2022 LSU Gumbo - Book - Page 10
Photos by Georgia Jones
It was a weird night in Houston, as Kansas State beat
LSU 42-20 in the TaxAct Texas Bowl, but it’s one that
Lutcher native Jontre Kirklin will never forget. As fans
online were burning down in the first half, saying LSU
should have never played in the game, the camera panned
over to Kirklin celebrating his first career TD with his
teammate Jaray Jenkins and showed the wide-reciever
turned quarter sporting the biggest smile we’ve seen in the
last two years.
That shot reminded us what it was all about and why
tonight was bigger than an LSU loss, forcing their first
losing season since 1999. It’s a game that these kids love,
and some of them wanted one more chance to suit up
for the Tigers. It allowed us to take a step back and take
a breath and watch the end of this era of Tigers football
unfold.
In high school Kirklin passed for 7,500 yards, with 3,000
rushing yards and 147 career touchdowns. Not a bad career
for a high school quarterback, but 2016 was the last time
that Kirklin had taken game snaps behind center. That
led to what should have been expected, a very run first
and low scoring output from the Tigers. But hey, hats off
to Kirklin for being able to pull off 138 passing yards and
three touchdowns. The defense played very well on first
and second downs early on, but was seemingly butter on
third and fourth downs. An early lead for Kansas State was
just too much for LSU to come back against without a true
quarterback.
The night wasn’t lost on everyone, as some of LSU’s
future stars showed up and played well. The man who
will always be mentioned because of his name, Pig Cage,
started at nickel for the Tigers, and shot into the backfield
multiple times for some big plays. He ended the night with
three tackles for losses, and a sack. BJ Ojulari was really
fun to watch play, constantly in the backfield disrupting
10
plays. Actually, all of that young defensive line played
fairly well for a while tonight. Ojulari was asked about their
experience and he expressed how this game did nothing
but help the young guys on the roster.
“They got their shot and we played very well,” Ojulari
said. “Going into next year, we’re going to have a lot more
experience with the younger guys, and just going into a new
program, we have to continue to build the LSU name and
legacy.”
LSU went into this bowl game with less than 40
scholarship players. In terms of the future of the program,
there’s one more thing that should not be understated
about this month. Interim Head Coach Brad Davis is
staying with the program, and he just spent a month where
he faced more adversity than some coaches face in a year.
He said after the game that the experience he gained during
this time was “invaluable.” He gained more respect for the
position of the head coach, but also realized how much
assistant coaches actually matter to the process.
The players seem to really respect him, and having him
stick around for the next few years after this will be a great
thing for LSU. He ended his press conference with “I’m
sorry for letting you guys down.” He obviously didn’t take
the opportunity for granted and tried his hardest. Not a
lot of coaches could have won tonight, especially with it
being their first game as a head coach. Davis will be around
football for a long, long time.
Yes, the game may not have gone exactly how the fans
wanted, plenty of people will complain that they did even
play. However, the coaches and players that were made
available to us all seemed to be very glad that they did play.
“We’re Fightin’ Tigers. We’re not going to back down from
nobody. If we’ve got 11, we’re going to go play,” Kirklin may
have had his last ride, but his mindset gives hope for the
future of the program.