Allstate Louisiana Kickoff: Blocked PAT gives Florida State 24-23 win over LSU

NEW ORLEANS – It had the makings of one of the most memorable miracle comebacks in LSU football’s storied history. But a blocked extra point attempt by Florida State’s Shyheim Brown with no time left spoiled the party and left Seminoles’ fans in euphoria.

Brown’s block gave the Seminoles a 24-23 victory in a back-and-forth down-past-the-wire game in the Allstate Louisiana Kickoff before 68,388 fans in the Caesars Superdome on Sunday night. The game was hosted by the Allstate Sugar Bowl Committee in partnership with the Louisiana Office of Tourism and Allstate.

“We talked to our team all week that this game could come down to one play, to one opportunity,’’ Florida State Coach Mike Norvell said. “And as you watch throughout the course of the game, I thought our guys put on display an incredible heart. Obviously, there at the end, we had some things that happened that we just can’t have. But the one thing that happened on the last play is what we absolutely need.

“It’s determination. It’s heart. It’s a willingness that, even after a disappointing moment, our guys responded. Anybody that’s around our program, they know they hear that word all the time, “respond.’’ How do you respond when challenges arise? And effort showed up, guy (Brown) made a play there at the very end and gave us an opportunity to win that game.’’

Trailing 24-17 with 1:20 left, LSU (0-1) recovered a Florida State (2-0) fumble at its own 1. Tigers quarterback Jayden Daniels then engineered a classic 99-yard touchdown drive that culminated when he passed 2 yards to wide receiver Jaray Jenkins for a touchdown as time expired.

But Brown, who broke through the left side of LSU’s extra point protection line, got a hand on LSU kicker Damian Ramos’ attempt as it hit the bottom of the cross bar and bounced to the turf.

The loss spoiled the debut of LSU Coach Brian Kelly, whom the university hired from Notre Dame in the offseason.

“(Florida State) outplayed us in the first half,’’ Kelly said. “Certainly, mistake after mistake after mistake for us and particularly in the first half. And, you know, obviously more mistakes in the second half. We started to overcome some of those and played with, I would consider, more of a sense of urgency the last 12 minutes. But our margin for error was so small that we couldn’t make any more mistakes.

“I was proud of our resolve. We battled. But we just have to learn how to play the game the right way, and that is for four quarters. We didn’t play with the kind of sense of urgency that I want for four quarters, and that was evident in our play. We didn’t tackle very well. We couldn’t get off the field on third down. We didn’t execute very well offensively.’’

But it was an impressive comeback by LSU, which trailed 24-10 with 9:04 left to play and hadn’t shown much offense until the end of the game.

Daniels and Florida State quarterback Jordan Travis both produced fabulous performances. Travis passed for 260 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 31 yards.

“That (LSU’s) was one of the best defensive lines in the country,’’ Norvell said. “They’ve got some really good players all over the field. And I thought that Jordan’s decision-making, the way that he located the ball, the command of the offense was very good.’’

Daniels, a transfer from Arizona State making his debut with the Tigers, passed for 209 yards and two touchdowns and rushed for 114 yards on 16 carries. Neither Daniels nor Travis threw an interception.

Daniels was clutch in the final drive, completing 7-of-8 passes for 66 yards and rushing for 33 yards.

“We got into a better rhythm certainly in the second half, Jayden did,’’ Kelly said. “And he’s a threat. But we don’t want to rely on him having to go back there. And when he does sit in the pocket, we saw his ability to find open receivers, show the patience and in particular on the last touchdown, he stayed in the pocket, showed great patience and found Jaray Jenkins in the back of the end zone.’’

The Seminoles rolled up 392 yards, including 132 rushing and were 11 of 17 on third down. LSU, which scored 20 points in the final 15:08 of the game, had 348 yards, 139 rushing.

Travis and the offense scored on their first three possessions of the second half as the Seminoles drove 68, 57 and 72 yards for 17 points.

The Seminoles took the opening kickoff of the second half and drove 68 yards to the LSU 7 where it settled 25-yard field goal by Ryan Fitzgerald for a 10-3 lead.

After holding LSU to a three-and-out on the ensuing possession, Florida State drove 57 yards for a touchdown and a 17-3 lead with 4:17 left in the third period. Travis hooked up with Wilson for their second touchdown of the night, which covered 27 yards.

But LSU’s offense finally came to life then as the Tigers, led by Arizona State transfer Jayden Daniels, answered with an 11-play, 82-yard touchdown drive. LSU running back Noah Cain carried for 1 yard for the touchdown to narrow the Seminoles’ lead to 17-10 with eight seconds to play in the third quarter.

Travis engineered a Florida State touchdown on the ensuing possession of 72 yards on 12 plays. Running back DJ Lundy capped the drive with a 1-yard run with 9:04 to play.

Then it was LSU and Daniels’ turn, as he led the Tigers on a 15-play, 75-yard touchdown drive. Daniels passed 22 yards to Jaray Jenkins for a touchdown with 4:07 to play.

Florida State appeared ready to put the game away late when LSU’s Malik Nabers muffed a punt at the Tigers 10 and Florida State recovered at the 8. But on third-and-goal at the LSU 1, Florida State running back Treshaun Ward fumbled on a direct snap and LSU’s Mekhi Wingo recovered at the 1, setting up the 99-yard touchdown drive.

Florida State statistically dominated the first half but held only a 7-3 lead. The Seminoles had 166 yards to 119 for the Tigers but squandered two scoring opportunities inside LSU territory.

Florida State failed to take advantage of a big LSU mistake when the Seminoles, leading 7-3 with 3:15 left in the first half, recovered a muffed punt by LSU’s Malik Nabers at the Tigers’ 16.

The Seminoles drove to the LSU 8 where they faced fourth-and-2 and elected to go for it. But Travis’ pass intended for Mycah Pittman in the end zone fell incomplete as the Tigers held.

Florida State took its first possession of the game from its 27 to the LSU 29 when the drive stalled and Ryan Fitzgerald missed a 47-yard field goal.

The Seminoles lone scoring drive of the first half was an impressive one and showcased Travis’ ability. He led Florida State on a 14-play, 85-yard touchdown drive in which he completed five passes for 64 yards. The Seminoles scored on a flea flicker play when Travis threw 39 yards to Ontaria Wilson for the touchdown with 13:00 minutes left in the second quarter for the 7-3 lead.

Florida State converted four times on third down in the drive and, in fact, was good on six of its first seven third downs in the game.

LSU started fast as the Tigers took the opening kickoff and quickly marched deep into Seminoles territory. Daniels ran 25 yards from LSU’s 35 to the Florida State 40 on the first play from scrimmage of the game. A late hit by the Seminoles pushed the ball to the Florida State 25.

LSU drove the Seminoles 5 when it faced second-and-goal. But an errant snap over Daniels’ head pushed the Tigers back to the 19 as LSU settled for a 36-yard field goal by Damian Ramos to give LSU a 3-0 lead with 11:41 to play in the first quarter.

{Courtesy: release from the Allstate Sugar Bowl}