Joe Burrow was nothing short of spectacular this season. Once the 4th string QB at Ohio State and an eventual transfer, nobody expected Joe Burrow to shatter the SEC record for yards, touchdowns, and completion %. His final stats are something you see on NCAA Football Road to Glory playing on Freshman.
402-for-527 (76.3%), 5,671 passing yds, 60 TDs, 6 INTs, 4 rush TDs.
You gotta have numbers like this to win the Heisman over a guy who had a 40-1 TD/INT Ratio. Not only did Burrow light up the scoreboard with his personal stats, but he also defeated Alabama and Nick Saban, something the Bayou Bengals hadn’t done in almost 10 years. He led the first-ever SEC team to go 15-0, and it wasn’t an easy route:
LSU opponents won…
The ACC
The Big 12
The SEC East
The Orange Bowl
The Fiesta Bowl
The Sugar Bowl
The Citrus Bowl
The Alamo Bowl
The Texas Bowl7 were ranked in the top 10 when they played.
— Cole Cubelic (@colecubelic) January 14, 2020
Auburn and Alabama both gave LSU the best run for their money, but in the end, it never felt like they played in a close game. As good of a game plan as Clemson had for them at first, they still broke 40 points en route to a dominating victory. It all starts with Burrow.
Calm, cool, and collected at all times; this LSU team just had the perfect recipe for a magical season. Ja’Marr Chase, Terrace Marshall Jr., Thad Moss, and Justin Jefferson are some of the best weapons a QB could ask for. LSU has a surplus of playmakers on defense. Clyde Edwards-Helaire is essentially a human wrecking ball. As bright as this LSU team was, nobody came close to matching the prowess and playmaking of Burrow. If it wasn’t a deep ball, it was a 25-yard scramble. If it wasn’t a 25-yard scramble, it was barely escaping a sack and getting a miraculous completion. The guy is just a gamer, plain and simple. The 5 best seasons by a college football player since 2000 to me are 2005 Reggie Bush, 2007 Tim Tebow, 2010 Cam Newton, and 2016 Derrick Henry… this was before Burrow came along. Excluding the running backs for obvious reasons… nobody compares to Burrow. (Honorable mention to Run CMC, Deshaun Watson, and others)
Tebow: 234-350 (67%), 3286 Yards, 32 TDs, 6 INT, 210 Carries, 895 Yards, 23 TDs*
Newton: 185-280 (66%), 2854 Yards, 30 TDs, 7 INT, 264 Carries, 1473 Yards, 20 TDs
Burrow: 402-527 (76%)*, 5671 Yards*, 60 TDs*, 6 INTs, 115 Carries, 369 Yards, 5 TDs
* = Denotes SEC Record (Tebow’s 23 is a record for QBs)
Burrow’s 60 Passing TDs gave life to this LSU offense that had been unseen since Jamarcus Russell. To put it in perspective, from 2014-2017, LSU had 59 passing TDs. Burrow just finished with 60, and became the first SEC quarterback to throw for 4,500 yards. It was a magical season for LSU. I don’t know if we’ll see another offense like theirs for another decade. This was a special group, and Burrow just posted the greatest season by a college football player. Ever.