A month after Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe’s Heisman Trophy hopes took a big hit, Saturday’s dominating performance helped gain back ground in a big way.
Milroe dominated the No. 15 LSU Tigers (6–3) in a 42–13 victory for the No. 11 Crimson Tide (7–2) in Death Valley. The 6-foot-2 junior from Katy, Texas, ran all over the Tigers for 185 yards and 12 carries for four touchdowns. He averaged 15.4 yards every time he touched the ball.
In addition, Milore looked as efficient as ever, throwing the ball with 12-18 passing for 109 yards for a 99.3 quarterback average. That’s despite no touchdowns and only 6.1 yards per completion.
“Definitely proud,” Milroe told reporters afterward. “To get the win on the road, it’s not an easy task to go on the road and play a tough opponent in LSU and get a victory. And definitely, we’ve got to appreciate the win, number one.”
“Number two, I appreciate the guys, how hard they worked during the week to be prepared for this tough opponent,” Milroe added. “And number three, just our goal going into this week was a win.”
Milroe started things off with a 39-yard touchdown run on the game’s first drive, and Alabama’s lead only grew from there. He got the job done with his arm on the second scoring drive with a 6-yard completion to sophomore running back Justice Haynes on third down. It set up Haynes’ 1-yard touchdown two plays later for a 14–3 lead.
LSU’s defense managed to turn the Tide over on downs on Alabama’s next possession, and the Tigers fumbled the ball back on the following play. Milroe made the Tigers pay with a 22-yard run, followed by a 10-yard touchdown run for a 21–6 lead before halftime.
After Alabama junior cornerback Deonte Lawson’s interception in the third quarter, Milore did it again on a 19-yard touchdown for a 28–6 advantage. He then outdid himself to open the fourth quarter on a 72-yard touchdown to put the Tigers in a 35–6 hole.
It all came a little over a month after Milroe sustained one of the worst defeats in Alabama history—a 40–35 defeat against then-unranked Vanderbilt on Oct. 5. Milroe fumbled in the fourth quarter during that loss, which allowed the Commodores to cushion the lead.
Besides Saturday’s big win, Milore received help in the Heisman hunt early in the day when Georgia Tech stunned No. 4 Miami 28-23. Hurricanes quarterback Cam Ward fumbled late in that loss when he tried to drive his team to a comeback win.
Other Heisman favorites, such as Colorado’s Travis Hunter, had a stronger day. The junior wide receiver and defensive back stepped up in the No. 21 Buffaloes’ 41–27 win over Texas Tech with nine catches for 99 yards and a touchdown.
Oregon quarterback Dillon Gabriel kept going strong as he broke the NCAA record for total touchdowns in a 39–18 win over Maryland. Gabriel broke former Houston star Case Keenum’s old mark of 178 touchdowns between passing and rushing.
Boise State running back Ashton Jeanty similarly kept his case going, with 209 yards and three touchdowns on 34 carries. He helped the No. 12 Broncos (8–1) down Nevada (3–8) in a 28–21 victory.
Lastly, Indiana quarterback Kurtis Rourke aided his case as he helped the No. 8 Hoosiers improve to 10–0, with a 20–15 win over Michigan (5–5). Rourke threw for 206 yards and a touchdown versus one interception on 17–28 passing in the victory.
While Milroe could see plenty of competition from the aforementioned players down the stretch, he put himself back in the running with a little over a month to go before the Dec. 14 award night. If Milroe builds on Saturday’s win, he could become the fifth Alabama player to win college football’s most-prized award.
