The 2008 LSU Tigers football team represented

Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

in the

2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season The 2008 NCAA Division I FBS football season was the highest level of college football competition in the United States organized by the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA). The regular season began on August 28, 2008, and ended on ...

. The team's head coach was Les Miles, who entered his fourth year at the helm. They played their home games at Tiger Stadium in

Baton Rouge, Louisiana Baton Rouge ( ; , ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of Louisiana. It had a population of 227,470 at the 2020 United States census, making it List of municipalities in Louisiana, Louisiana's second-m ...

. The Tigers entered the season as defending national champions, having defeated Ohio State, 38–24, in the 2008 BCS National Championship Game.

Previous season

In his third season as head coach, Les Miles led LSU to the 2007 SEC Championship and the 2007 NCAA Division I-FBS national football championship. The Tigers became the first team to win two championships in the

Bowl Championship Series The Bowl Championship Series (BCS) was a college football post-season selection system that created four or five bowl game match-ups involving eight or ten of the top ranked teams in the NCAA Division I Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of America ...

era (1998–2013) and also the first 2-loss team to win a national championship, even though no games were lost in regulation. The team finished with a final record of 12–2. The team overcame 2 triple-

overtime Overtime is the amount of time someone works beyond normal working hours. The term is also used for the pay received for this time. Normal hours may be determined in several ways: *by custom (what is considered healthy or reasonable by society) ...

losses and four other close games to become the first two-time

(BCS) champion ever. On their way to the BCS championship, the Tigers won their tenth

Southeastern Conference The Southeastern Conference (SEC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference whose member institutions are located primarily in the South Central United States, South Central and Southeastern United States. Its 16 members in ...

championship by defeating

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

in the 2007 SEC Championship Game. The Tigers finished the season having earned the Southeastern Conference championship trophy, the Grantland Rice Award, the MacArthur Bowl National Championship trophy, the Associated Press Trophy and the

AFCA National Championship Trophy The Coaches' Trophy (officially known as the AFCA National Championship Trophy and popularly as the "crystal football") is the trophy awarded annually by the American Football Coaches Association (AFCA) to the NCAA Division I FBS college football ...

Pre-season

In February, the NCAA granted defensive end Kirston Pittman a sixth-year of eligibility. Pittman had missed the 2005 and 2006 seasons with foot and ankle injuries.

Coaching changes

Defensive coordinator Bo Pelini left to become the head coach at

Nebraska Nebraska ( ) is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders South Dakota to the north; Iowa to the east and Missouri to the southeast, both across the Missouri River; Ka ...

2008 recruiting class

Key losses

Offense *

Matt Flynn Matt or Matthew Flynn may refer to: * Matt Flynn (American football) (born 1985), American football player * Matt Flynn (Australian footballer) (born 1997), Australian rules footballer * Matt Flynn (politician) (born 1947), American politician * ...

, QBNationalChamps.net 2008 LSU Early Bird Preview
/ref> Drafted by the Green Bay Packers in the seventh round (209th overall) of the 2008 NFL draft. * Jacob Hester, FB/RB Drafted by the San Diego Chargers in the third round (69th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft. * Early Doucet, WR Drafted by the Arizona Cardinals in the third round (81st overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft. * Ryan Perrilloux Dismissed from team February 18, 2008; team policy violations. Defense * Glenn Dorsey, DT Drafted by the Kansas City Chiefs fifth overall in the 2008 NFL Draft. * Craig Steltz, SS Drafted by the Chicago Bears in the fourth round (120th overall) of the 2008 NFL Draft. * Ali Highsmith, LB Signed with the Arizona Cardinals as a rookie free-agent for a two-year deal.

Schedule

*Denotes the largest crowd to watch a football game at Tiger Stadium Schedule Source:''
2008 LSU Tigers football schedule

Rankings

Game summaries

Appalachian State

North Texas

Auburn

Mississippi State

Florida

South Carolina

Georgia

Tulane

Alabama

Troy

Game delayed due to effects from Hurricane Gustav from originally scheduled date of September 6. Trailing 31–3 midway through the third quarter, the Bayou Bengals stage the greatest comeback in LSU history, even surpassing their fabled 1959 Halloween Night Billy Cannon-led rally against Ole Miss, scoring 37 consecutive points and rally for a 40–31 win.

Ole Miss

Arkansas

Chick-fil-A Bowl

A 28-point 2nd quarter by LSU was too much for the Yellow Jackets to overcome in the 2008 Chick-fil-A Bowl rout. Georgia Tech gave up three turnovers and did not force any.

Statistics

Team

Scores by quarter

Offense

Rushing

Passing

Receiving

Defense

Special teams

Roster

2008 Louisiana State University Football Roster and Bios

Coaching staff

LSU Tigers in the 2009 National Football League Draft

Source:

References

{{LSU Tigers football navbox

LSU Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, commonly referred to as Louisiana State University (LSU), is an American Public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Baton Rouge, Louis ...

LSU Tigers football seasons Peach Bowl champion seasons

LSU Tigers football The LSU Tigers football program, also known as the Fighting Tigers, represents Louisiana State University in college football. The LSU Tigers and Lady Tigers, Tigers compete in the Football Bowl Subdivision (FBS) of the National Collegiate Athle ...