re: LSU, LSU, LSU!!!! BEAT WHOEVER WE PLAY IN THE BOWL GAME!!!

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And then it happened. I can still see Tyson Browning running, and just thinking "why aren't they tackling him?" LSU almost seemed to be moving in slow motion. And now the game's tied. Four minutes and 25 seconds left. And the Tigers are blowing another game in the fourth quarter. "Dammit, they had this game. How could it slip away again?"

The stadium was stone silent. As quiet as I'd ever heard it. Those notes of Georgia's band, those were the first time you could hear anything they played all day. And there it was. L-S-U...L-S-U...L-S-U...L-S-U... And Devery Henderson returned the ensuing kickoff to midfield.

Fans impact a football game. It's stupid to argue otherwise. I'll save the "rise up and lift the team to a higher place" bullshite to other Bills writing on the web, but don't tell me it didn't matter. I was there. A program is more than just coaches, players and support staff. The fans are a part as well, and having a successful one means that everybody is moving in one direction. And on that stuffy September afternoon, the LSU program stood up and said "NO. NO. NO! THIS.IS. OUR. TIME. NO MORE OF THIS ALSO-RAN CRAP. THIS GAME IS OURS, WE'RE NOT GIVING IT UP, AND IF YOU WANT IT YOU'RE GOING TO HAVE TO DO A HELLUVA LOT MORE TO TAKE IT." I say this now in the hopes that today's fans will remember these moments. Remember that there was a time when LSU was up against it, and we, as fans, didn't boo. We didn't whine or complain or say fire this coach or that quarterback. We stood up and we said frick. THIS. shite. LET'S WIN THIS GAME. I chose to write about this game for a reason. These are the moments we live for as fans. Championships are great, but a destination is nothing without a memorable journey. And moments like these will be the ones you remember. The ones you tell your kids and grandkids about. And I hope that people will remember that this season during the tougher moments.

And the Tigers didn't let us down. Mauck rolls and throws. From my knees on the sidelines, I could see there was somebody behind the defense and I could see that the ball was going to get there.

CRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAPCRAP and then just dual waves of pure jubilation and relief. Skyler Green lives forever. 17-10, less than a minute to go. Just hold on.

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Georgia had timeouts, but it in my bones all I could think is "at worst, this goes to overtime, and Greene won't get another cheap score." The Georgia QB had probably thrown that fade to Brown a ton of times, but Corey Webster was in a zone, and with that one hand he pulled in LSU's biggest win since the 2001 SEC Championship game.

My postgame assignment was the Georgia locker room. I remember Richt's stoicism, and Pollack's graciousness. I also remember thinking David Greene looked more like a doorman at Reggie's than a college QB.

The postgame punditry dwelled on Georgia's missed opportunities. A refrain we ought to be used to by now, I suppose. But I still look back on this moment as the first time beating an elite team didn't feel like a fluke for LSU. It was a breakthrough. Not that it was really the last one, but it's one that can still live on in this program's history, and in the hearts, and minds, of fans as we prepare for another potential run at a national championship.

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