Was Nick Brossette more situation aware than the LSU coaches on that last series?

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A bizarre sequence of great interest to the betting public played out at the end of the LSU-Arkansas game.

Leading 24-17 and trying to kill the clock, Tigers running back Nick Brossette made a heady decision on his way to the end zone with less than 90 seconds to play. He slid to the turf at the Razorbacks’ 7-yard line instead of trying to score. Arkansas was out of timeouts, and a couple of LSU kneel-down plays would end the game.

But LSU did a strange thing, lining up in a normal formation and attempting to score. Brossette got a handoff and did the same thing — sliding to the turf again, this time at the Arkansas 1-yard line. The Tigers again called a play and again gave the ball to Brossette, and he was stopped for no gain. End of game.

Brossette seemed to handle the situation more intelligently than the LSU coaching staff. The only necessity was running the clock, not scoring. An LSU touchdown would have given Arkansas hope, however slim — score, recover an onside kick and score again.

Beyond that, the Tigers’ insistence on trying to score on the final two plays obviously increased the risk of a fumble in a one-score game. If Ed Orgeron needs to know what can happen while trying to score a meaningless, rub-it-in touchdown, he should consult with Auburn defensive coordinator Kevin Steele — as head coach at Baylor in 2000, Steele ordered a running play at the goal line against UNLV and it resulted in a fumble and 99-yard return for a touchdown with no time remaining for the winning score.

Orgeron also was messing with the gamblers. The line was LSU by 13½, which made that final sequence immensely important. If Brossette scores, the Tigers cover the spread. Very interesting.

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