The good news: Max Johnson is 2-0 as the LSU starting quarterback.
The bad news: The season is over just as the true freshman was heating up.
On Saturday night, in his first home start, Johnson helped lead LSU to a comeback win behind 435 passing yards and a game-winning touchdown pass with less than two minutes left against Ole Miss, which put the Tigers up for good with the 53-48 win. He passed for three total touchdowns and rushed for two more touchdowns.
"He's got ice in his veins," LSU head coach Ed Orgeron said after the win. "He was raised on football. He knows how to react. He's even-keeled, the same guy every day. He matured a lot tonight. He's going to be a great quarterback for us."
The game-winning drive in the pouring rain took just three plays thanks to a 45-yard touchdown catch by true freshman Kayshon Boutte, who set an SEC and LSU single-game record with 308 receiving yards in the game.
“We all do a wet ball drill each week, and (LSU offensive coordinator Steve Ensminger) called some great plays," Johnson said. “We have been working on dig routes all week. That’s what we run. We had to find the right holes for the routes, and that’s what we came out with.”
Johnson had seen time coming in off the bench this season after fellow true freshman TJ Finley got the starting nod following the injury to Myles Brennan. But in the third quarter against Alabama, Johnson went into the game for Finley and hasn't returned to the bench since.
“All year I battled," Johnson said. "Me and TJ battled. We are both great players. We each expected to be in that position."
In less than one half against Alabama, Johnson passed for 110 yards. He then got the starting nod on the road against No. 6 Florida, where he engineered another two-minute drill for points in a game where he totaled 291 total yards and three touchdowns.
Against the Rebels on Saturday night, Johnson had 480 total yards and five total touchdowns.
He turned the ball over on an interception for his first time this season, then answered with a pair of fourth quarter touchdown drives to help seal the win.
“The coaches were telling me to have a short rearview mirror," Orgeron said. "There is a big windshield when you look forward. You have to look forward. I made a mistake. We are in the red zone and I should have thrown it out of the back of the end zone and gotten a field goal. I have to be better in that area."
While he wasn't perfect, Johnson was close to it all things considered.
For the second week in a row, the Tigers were below 60 scholarship players, which meant playing with a backup at right guard, leaning heavily on a walk-on running back and operating with just one scholarship tight end. Gone were all three starting wide receivers from fall camp.
The group that remained? 50-something Tigers who knocked off No. 6 Florida and posted 50-plus points to beat Ole Miss and avoid the program's first losing season of the 21st century.
“I will remember these players and these guys forever," Johnson said. "I am thankful for them. I will never forget this time.”
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December 20, 2020 at 09:08AM
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Max Johnson will never forget the 2020 finish - 247Sports
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