LSU Tigers quarterback Joe Burrow (9) LSU Tigers quarterback Joe Burrow. Credit: Jason Getz-USA TODAY Sports

If there were any lingering questions about whether or not LSU Tigers quarterback Joe Burrow deserved the Heisman Trophy, they were answered on Saturday. Burrow finished the day with eight total touchdowns as LSU dominated the Oklahoma Sooners in a 63-28 beatdown in the College Football Playoff semifinals.

LSU set the tone right away, shutting down Oklahoma on their first drive of the game and subsequently marching down the field for Burrow’s first of seven touchdown passes. Burrow’s pass to Justin Jefferson was the first of four touchdown connections between the two on the day.

While Oklahoma put up a fight, LSU took a 21-7 lead into the second quarter and didn’t let up from there. Burrow and the Tigers blew the door off the Peach Bowl in the second quarter, scoring 28 points and taking a 49-14 lead into the locker room.

At the half, Burrow’s stat line was already the stuff of legends. He finished the half 21 of 27 for 403 yards and seven touchdowns. That blew away the Peach Bowl record (four) and was the most touchdowns ever in a College Football Playoff game.

In the second half, Burrow added a rushing touchdown for eight total. Oklahoma chipped away at LSU’s lead as the Tigers took their foot off the gas, but it was all too little, too late. LSU tacked on another score in the fourth quarter to lock up the 63-28 victory. Burrow finished the game with 493 yards on 29-of-39 passing.

The 35-point victory was the third-most lopsided CFP game in its short history, trailing only Alabama’s 35-0 win over Michigan State and Oregon’s 59-20 drubbing of Florida State, both in 2015.

Putting Burrow’s stats in perspective, his big night gave him 71 career touchdowns, passing the LSU career record held by Tommy Hodson. It took Hodson four seasons to accumulate his numbers while Burrow did it all in two.

Meanwhile, Jefferson broke LSU’s single-season record for catches in a season with his four-touchdown performance. The 206 receiving yards he earned in the first half were a Peach Bowl, NY6, and College Football Playoff record. He finished the day with 227 yards and four TDs.

Oklahoma’s ignominious performance certainly raised a lot of questions on social media during the game about their worthiness in the College Football Playoff. Especially when you consider that OU is now four-for-four on semifinal losses in the six-year history of the CFP. The Sooners have developed a reputation as a great program that can’t get it done when it matters most, and that’s something they’ll take with them into next season.

LSU’s reward for their record-breaking win is that they get to go to New Orleans to play for the national title in the Sugar Bowl. They’ll find out who their opponent will be later tonight when the Clemson Tigers takes on the Ohio State Buckeyes in the Fiesta Bowl.

[The Advocate]

About Sean Keeley

Along with writing for Awful Announcing and The Comeback, Sean is the Editorial Strategy Director for Comeback Media. Previously, he created the Syracuse blog Troy Nunes Is An Absolute Magician and wrote 'How To Grow An Orange: The Right Way to Brainwash Your Child Into Rooting for Syracuse.' He has also written non-Syracuse-related things for SB Nation, Curbed, and other outlets. He currently lives in Seattle where he is complaining about bagels. Send tips/comments/complaints to sean@thecomeback.com.