2003 LSU Tigers football team

2003 LSU Tigers football
Coaches' Poll (BCS) national champion
NFF national champion
SEC champion
SEC Western Division co-champion
Sugar Bowl champion
Sugar Bowl (BCS NCG), W 21–14 vs. Oklahoma
ConferenceSoutheastern Conference
DivisionWestern Division
Ranking
CoachesNo. 1
APNo. 2
Record13–1 (7–1 SEC)
Head coach
Offensive coordinatorJimbo Fisher (4th season)
Offensive schemePro-style
Defensive coordinatorWill Muschamp (2nd season)
Base defense4–3
Home stadiumTiger Stadium
2003 Southeastern Conference football standings
Conf. Overall
Team   W   L     W   L  
Eastern Division
No. 7 Georgia xy   6 – 2     11 – 3  
No. 15 Tennessee x   6 – 2     10 – 3  
No. 24 Florida x   6 – 2     8 – 5  
South Carolina   2 – 6     5 – 7  
Vanderbilt   1 – 7     2 – 10  
Kentucky   1 – 7     4 – 8  
Western Division
No. 2 LSU xy$#   7 – 1     13 – 1  
No. 13 Ole Miss x   7 – 1     10 – 3  
Auburn   5 – 3     8 – 5  
Arkansas   4 – 4     9 – 4  
Alabama   2 – 6     4 – 9  
Mississippi State   1 – 7     2 – 10  
Championship: LSU 34, Georgia 13
  • # – BCS National Champion
  • $ – BCS representative as conference champion
  • x – Division champion/co-champions
  • y – Championship game participant
Rankings from AP Poll

The 2003 LSU Tigers football team represented Louisiana State University (LSU) during the 2003 NCAA Division I-A football season. Led by fourth-year head coach Nick Saban, the LSU Tigers played their home games at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana.

The Tigers compiled an 11–1 regular season record, going 7–1 in SEC play to finish tied for first in the SEC West, with the lone loss coming against SEC East foe Florida. Due to defeating the other co-division champion, Ole Miss, LSU was selected to play in the SEC Championship Game, defeating no. 5 Georgia 34–13. LSU was selected to play the Oklahoma Sooners in the Sugar Bowl for the Bowl Championship Series (BCS) national title. LSU won the BCS National Championship Game, the first national football championship for LSU since 1958.

The 2003 college football regular season ended with three one-loss teams in BCS contention: the LSU Tigers, Oklahoma Sooners, and USC Trojans. USC ended the regular season ranked No. 1 and LSU No. 2 in both the AP Poll and the Coaches' Poll. Media controversy ensued when the BCS computer-based selection system chose LSU and Oklahoma as the participants in the BCS title game, largely based on an assessment of the relative difficulty of the three teams' 2003 schedules. During the bowl games, LSU beat No. 3 Oklahoma 21–14 in the Sugar Bowl (designated as the BCS National Championship Game for the 2003–04 season), while USC defeated the No. 4 Michigan Wolverines 28–14 in the Rose Bowl. LSU was ranked No. 1 in the final Coaches' Poll (which was contractually obligated to rank the BCS champion No. 1) while USC remained No. 1 in the final AP Poll, resulting in a non-consensus national title - the last time this has happened.[1] Several experts have viewed the 2003 Tigers as having one of the greatest defenses in college football history.

Schedule

DateTimeOpponentRankSiteTVResultAttendance
August 307:00 p.m.Louisiana–Monroe*No. 14
W 49–789,148
September 69:00 p.m.at Arizona*No. 13
TBSW 59–1346,110
September 137:00 p.m.No. 1 (I-AA) Western Illinois*No. 12
  • Tiger Stadium
  • Baton Rouge, LA
W 35–787,164
September 202:30 p.m.No. 7 GeorgiaNo. 11
CBSW 17–1092,251
September 278:00 p.m.at Mississippi StateNo. 7
ESPN2W 41–645,835
October 112:30 p.m.FloridaNo. 6
  • Tiger Stadium
  • Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)
CBSL 7–1992,077
October 186:45 p.m.at South CarolinaNo. 10
ESPN2W 33–782,525
October 257:00 p.m.No. 17 AuburnNo. 9
ESPNW 31–792,085
November 17:00 p.m.Louisiana Tech*No. 7
  • Tiger Stadium
  • Baton Rouge, LA
PPVW 49–1091,879
November 156:45 p.m.at AlabamaNo. 3
ESPNW 27–383,818
November 222:30 p.m.at No. 15 Ole MissNo. 3
CBSW 17–1462,552
November 281:30 p.m.ArkansasNo. 3
  • Tiger Stadium
  • Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)
CBSW 55–2492,213
December 68:00 p.m.vs. No. 5 GeorgiaNo. 3
CBSW 34–1374,913
January 4, 20047:15 p.m.vs. No. 3 Oklahoma*No. 2
ABCW 21–1479,342
  • *Non-conference game
  • Homecoming
  • Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game
  • All times are in Central time

Rankings

See also: 2003 NCAA Division I-A football rankings
Ranking movements
Legend: ██ Increase in ranking ██ Decrease in ranking
( ) = First-place votes
Week
PollPre123456789101112131415Final
AP141312117661097433332 (21)2 (17)
Coaches151311107661098433332 (18)1 (60)
BCSNot released127744332Not released

Roster

Quarterbacks

Running backs

Fullbacks

  • 24 Tyler Olivier
  • 49 Michael Ricks
  • 35 Brandon Nowlin
  • 40 Shawn Jordan
  • 44 Kevin Steltz
  • 11 Jason Lile

Wide receivers

 

Tight ends

Center

Offensive line

Defensive line

  • 59 Leo Desselle

Defensive end

 

Defensive tackle

Linebackers

  • 99 Jason LeDoux
  • 45 Willie Demps
  • 35 Mark Martin
  • 19 Darius Ingram
  • 63 Patrick McGibboney
  • 57 Dave Peterson
  • 34 Dorsett Buckels
  • 27 Eric Alexander
  • 40 Barrett Dupuy
  • 52 Joey Noto
  • 47 Dustin Adams[2]
  • 35 Micah Metrailer
  • 91 Alonzo Manuel
  • 56 Kenneth Hollis
  • 42 Phillip Maxwell
  • 46 Cameron Vaughn
  • 58 Lionel Turner
  • 51 Dominic Cooper
  • 54 Brian West
  • 55 Chris McCauley
  • 7 Adrian Mayes

Defensive backs

  • 37 Daniel Francis
  • 38 Vernon Russell, Jr.
  • 6 Ryan Gilbert
  • 28 Jeff Cook
  • 39 Troy Hankton
  • 9 Corey Meredith
  • 28 Greg Hercules
  • 44 Patrick Babinecz
  • 30 LaRon Landry
  • 33 Jonathan Zenon
  • 26 Nick Child
  • 31 Jessie Daniels
  • 41 Marcques Lewis
  

Cornerbacks

Safeties

Punters

Kickers

  • 35 Andre Boagni
  • 6 Colt David
  • 41 Chris Jackson
  • 39 Ryan Gaudet

Long snappers

  • 86 Steve Damen
  • 70 Gant Petty

Game summaries

Louisiana–Monroe

See also: 2003 Louisiana–Monroe Indians football team
Team 1 234Total
Indians 0 007 7
• No. 14 Tigers 0 21217 49
Statistics ULM LSU
First downs 11 23
Total yards 240 474
Rushing yards 59 168
Passing yards 181 306
Turnovers 2 1
Time of possession 24:45 35:15
Team Category Player Statistics
Louisiana–Monroe Passing Steven Jyles 14/30, 180 yards, INT
Rushing Kevin Payne 16 rushes, 64 yards, TD
Receiving Mack Vincent 2 receptions, 46 yards
LSU Passing Matt Mauck 13/28, 153 yards, 3 TD, INT
Rushing Joseph Addai 15 rushes, 81 yards
Receiving Michael Clayton 6 receptions, 152 yards, 2 TD

[3]

At Arizona

See also: 2003 Arizona Wildcats football team
Team 1 234Total
• No. 13 Tigers 17 21714 59
Wildcats 0 0013 13
Statistics LSU ARIZ
First downs 28 10
Total yards 481 182
Rushing yards 182 91
Passing yards 299 91
Turnovers 4 3
Time of possession 36:13 23:47
Team Category Player Statistics
LSU Passing Matt Mauck 10/11, 150 yards, TD
Rushing Joseph Addai 18 rushes, 86 yards, 2 TD
Receiving Michael Clayton 6 receptions, 109 yards, TD
Arizona Passing Ryan O'Hara 7/20, 70 yards, INT
Rushing Clarence Farmer 8 rushes, 61 yards, TD
Receiving Sean Jones 3 receptions, 27 yards

[4]

No. 1 (I-AA) Western Illinois

See also: 2003 Western Illinois Leathernecks football team
Team 1 234Total
No. 1 (I-AA) Leathernecks 0 070 7
• No. 12 Tigers 6 7157 35
  • Date: September 13
  • Location: Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
  • Game start: 7:00 p.m. CST
  • Game attendance: 87,164
  • Game weather: 79 deg F, Wind E 5–10, 74% humidity
Scoring summary
Q108:18LSUMichael Clayton 10 yd pass from Matt Mauck (Ryan Gaudet kick failed)LSU 6–0
Q20:42LSUShyrone Carey 1 yd run (Chris Jackson kick)LSU 13–0
Q310:08WIUTerrence Hall 3 yd pass from Russ Michna (Justin Langan kick)LSU 13-7
Q35:00LSUSkyler Green 8 yd pass from Matt Mauck (Matt Mauck rush)LSU 21–7
Q32:26LSUSkyler Green 40 yd pass from Matt Mauck (Chris Jackson kick)LSU 28-7
Q48:29AUBD. Henderson 16 yd pass from Matt Mauck (Chris Jackson kick)LSU 35–7
Statistics WIU LSU
First downs 12 31
Total yards 208 457
Rushing yards 13 152
Passing yards 195 305
Turnovers 3 3
Time of possession 27:59 32:01
Team Category Player Statistics
Western Illinois Passing Russ Michna 17/39, 195 yards, TD, 3 INT
Rushing Travis Glasford 16 rushes, 21 yards
Receiving Travis Glasford 4 receptions, 43 yards
LSU Passing Matt Mauck 23/32, 305 yards, 4 TD
Rushing Shyrone Carey 21 rushes, 124 yards, TD
Receiving Michael Clayton 11 receptions, 162 yards, TD

[5][6]

No. 7 Georgia

See also: 2003 Georgia Bulldogs football team
Team 1 234Total
No. 7 Bulldogs 3 007 10
• No. 11 Tigers 0 737 17
Scoring summary
Q16:20UGABilly Bennett 33 yard field goalUGA 3–0
Q23:10LSUShyrone Carey 21 yard run (Ryan Gaudet kick)LSU 7–3
Q36:23LSURyan Gaudet 47 yard field goalLSU 10–3
Q44:25UGATyson Browning 93 yard pass from David Greene (Billy Bennett kick)Tie 10–10
Q41:22LSUSkyler Green 34 yard pass from Matt Mauck (Ryan Gaudet kick)LSU 17–10
Statistics UGA LSU
First downs 23 16
Total yards 411 285
Rushing yards 97 105
Passing yards 314 180
Turnovers 3 2
Time of possession 26:43 33:17
Team Category Player Statistics
Georgia Passing David Greene 20/44, 314 yards, TD, 2 INT
Rushing Michael Cooper 18 rushes, 73 yards
Receiving Tyson Browning 2 receptions, 104 yards, TD
LSU Passing Matt Mauck 14/29, 180 yards, TD, INT
Rushing Shyrone Carey 18 rushes, 73 yards, TD
Receiving Skyler Green 4 receptions, 78 yards, TD

[7]

At Mississippi State

See also: 2003 Mississippi State Bulldogs football team
Team 1 234Total
• No. 7 Tigers 7 17107 41
Bulldogs 0 006 6
Statistics LSU MSST
First downs 17 18
Total yards 354 239
Rushing yards 163 31
Passing yards 191 208
Turnovers 2 4
Time of possession 27:06 32:54
Team Category Player Statistics
LSU Passing Matt Mauck 12/19, 171 yards, TD, INT
Rushing Justin Vincent 6 rushes, 58 yards, TD
Receiving Devery Henderson 7 receptions, 114 yards, TD
Mississippi State Passing Kevin Fant 19/30, 191 yards, TD, 2 INT
Rushing Fred Reid 6 rushes, 29 yards
Receiving Justin Jenkins 5 receptions, 61 yards, TD

[8]

Florida

See also: 2003 Florida Gators football team
Team 1 234Total
• Gators 10 360 19
No. 6 Tigers 7 000 7
  • Date: October 11
  • Location: Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
  • Game start: 2:30 p.m. CDT
  • Game attendance: 92,077
  • Game weather: Cloudy, 76 °F (24 °C)
  • Referee: Terry Brown
  • TV announcers (CBS): Verne Lundquist, Todd Blackledge, and Jill Arrington
Scoring summary
111:51LSUSkyler Green 80-yard punt return (Ryan Gaudet kick)LSU 7–0
16:51FLARan Carthon 22-yard pass from Chris Leak (Matt Leach kick)Tied 7–7
(Drive: 13 plays, 80 yards, 5:00)
13:17FLAMatt Leach 29-yard field goalFLA 10–7
(Drive: 6 plays, 18 yards, 1:43)
25:37FLAMatt Leach 50-yard field goalFLA 13–7
(Drive: 6 plays, 32 yards, 1:58)
35:21FLACiatrick Fason 35-yard pass from Chris Leak (pass failed)FLA 19–7
(Drive: 6 plays, 48 yards, 1:58)
Statistics FLA LSU
First downs 18 14
Total yards 310 287
Rushing yards 81 56
Passing yards 229 231
Turnovers 1 3
Time of possession 30:20 29:40
Team Category Player Statistics
Florida Passing Chris Leak 18/30, 229 yards, 2 TD
Rushing Ciatrick Fason 7 rushes, 92 yards
Receiving Carlos Perez 3 receptions, 58 yards
LSU Passing Matt Mauck 19/33, 231 yards, 2 INT
Rushing Joseph Addai 10 rushes, 39 yards
Receiving Devery Henderson 5 receptions, 109 yards

[9]

At South Carolina

See also: 2003 South Carolina Gamecocks football team
Team 1 234Total
• No. 10 Tigers 6 1377 33
Gamecocks 0 070 7
Statistics LSU SCAR
First downs 27 11
Total yards 482 254
Rushing yards 263 0
Passing yards 219 254
Turnovers 1 1
Time of possession 41:43 18:17
Team Category Player Statistics
LSU Passing Matt Mauck 24/30, 199 yards, 2 TD, INT
Rushing Alley Broussard 19 rushes, 108 yards
Receiving Justin Vincent 4 receptions, 46 yards
South Carolina Passing Dondrial Pinkins 15/32, 254 yards, TD
Rushing Demetris Summers 8 rushes, 16 yards
Receiving Matthew Thomas 4 receptions, 102 yards, TD

[10]

No. 17 Auburn

See also: 2003 Auburn Tigers football team
Team 1 234Total
No. 17 Auburn 0 007 7
• No. 9 LSU 21 0100 31
  • Date: October 25
  • Location: Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
  • Game start: 7:00 p.m. CDT
Scoring summary
Q113:01LSUDevery Henderson 64 yard pass from Matt Mauck (Ryan Gaudet kick)LSU 7–0
Q17:43LSUMichael Clayton 18 yard pass from Matt Mauck (Ryan Gaudet kick)LSU 14–0
Q12:58LSUAlley Broussard 5 yard run (Ryan Gaudet kick)LSU 21–0
Q38:28LSURyan Gaudet 33 yard field goalLSU 24–0
Q33:46LSUDevery Henderson 16 yard pass from Matt Mauck (Ryan Gaudet kick)LSU 31–0
Q46:10AUBAnthony Mix 6 yard pass from Jason Campbell (Philip Yost kick)LSU 31–7
Statistics AUB LSU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession
Team Category Player Statistics
Auburn Passing
Rushing
Receiving
LSU Passing
Rushing
Receiving

[11]

Louisiana Tech

See also: 2003 Louisiana Tech Bulldogs football team
Team 1 234Total
Bulldogs 0 370 10
• No. 7 Tigers 28 2100 49
  • Date: November 1
  • Location: Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
  • Game start: 7:00 p.m. EST
Statistics LT LSU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession
Team Category Player Statistics
Louisiana Tech Passing
Rushing
Receiving
LSU Passing
Rushing
Receiving

[12]

At Alabama

See also: 2003 Alabama Crimson Tide football team
Team 1 234Total
• No. 3 Tigers 10 773 27
Crimson Tide 0 003 3
Scoring summary
Q110:34LSUChris Jackson 20 yard field goalLSU 3–0
Q19:16LSUMichael Clayton 23 yard pass from Matt Mauck (Chris Jackson kick)LSU 10–0
Q22:03LSUEric Edwards 3 yard pass from Matt Mauck (Chris Jackson kick)LSU 17–0
Q39:15LSUAlley Broussard 4 yard run (Chris Jackson kick)LSU 24–0
Q410:11LSUChris Jackson 33 yard field goalLSU 27–0
Q46:39ALABrian Bostick 27 yard field goalLSU 27–3
Statistics LSU ALA
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession
Team Category Player Statistics
LSU Passing
Rushing
Receiving
Alabama Passing
Rushing
Receiving

[13]

At No. 15 Ole Miss

See also: 2003 Ole Miss Rebels football team
Team 1 234Total
• No. 3 Tigers 3 707 17
No. 15 Rebels 7 007 14
Scoring summary
Q113:54MISSTravis Johnson 6 yard interception return (Jonathan Nichols kick)MISS 7–0
Q16:44LSUChris Jackson 45 yard field goalMISS 7–3
Q22:42LSUMichael Clayton 9 yard pass from Matt Mauck (Chris Jackson kick)LSU 10–7
Q414:50LSUDevery Henderson 53 yard pass from Matt Mauck (Chris Jackson kick)LSU 17–7
Q410:51MISSBrandon Jacobs 10 yard pass from Eli Manning (Jonathan Nichols kick)LSU 17–14
Statistics LSU MISS
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession
Team Category Player Statistics
LSU Passing
Rushing
Receiving
Ole Miss Passing
Rushing
Receiving

[14]

Arkansas

See also: 2003 Arkansas Razorbacks football team
Team 1 234Total
Razorbacks 10 707 24
• No. 3 Tigers 10 24210 55
  • Date: November 28
  • Location: Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, Louisiana
  • Game start: 1:30 p.m. CST
Statistics ARK LSU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession
Team Category Player Statistics
Arkansas Passing
Rushing
Receiving
LSU Passing
Rushing
Receiving

[15]

Vs. No. 5 Georgia (SEC Championship Game)

See also: 2003 SEC Championship Game
Team 1 234Total
• No. 3 Tigers 8 9710 34
No. 5 Bulldogs 0 3100 13
Statistics LSU UGA
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession
Team Category Player Statistics
LSU Passing
Rushing
Receiving
Arizona Passing
Rushing
Receiving

[16]

Vs. No. 3 Oklahoma (Sugar Bowl – BCS NCG)

See also: 2003 Oklahoma Sooners football team and 2004 Sugar Bowl
Team 1 234Total
No. 3 Sooners 0 707 14
• No. 2 Tigers 7 770 21
Scoring summary
Q111:38LSUSkyler Green 24 yard run (Ryan Gaudet kick)LSU 7–0
Q27:31OKLAKejuan Jones 1 yard run (Trey DiCarlo kick)Tie 7–7
Q24:21LSUJustin Vincent 18 yard run (Ryan Gaudet kick)LSU 14–7
Q314:13LSUMarcus Spears 20 yard interception return (Ryan Gaudet kick)LSU 21–7
Q411:01OKLAKejuan Jones 1 yard run (Trey DiCarlo kick)LSU 21–14
Statistics OKLA LSU
First downs
Total yards
Rushing yards
Passing yards
Turnovers
Time of possession
Team Category Player Statistics
Oklahoma Passing
Rushing
Receiving
LSU Passing
Rushing
Receiving

LSU Tigers in the 2004 NFL draft

Player Position Round Pick Overall NFL team
Michael Clayton Wide receiver 1 15 15 Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Devery Henderson Wide receiver 2 18 50 New Orleans Saints
Marquise Hill Defensive end 2 31 63 New England Patriots
Stephen Peterman Offensive Guard 3 20 83 Dallas Cowboys
Chad Lavalais Defensive tackle 5 10 142 Atlanta Falcons
Donnie Jones Punter 7 23 224 Seattle Seahawks
Matt Mauck Quarterback 7 24 225 Denver Broncos

[17]

References

  1. ^ "Split Decision: 2003 National Champions - LSU Tigers X USC Trojans". College Football Hall of Fame. November 8, 2023. Retrieved December 9, 2025.
  2. ^ "LSU Football Spring Guide" (PDF). LSU. LSU. Retrieved September 12, 2018.
  3. ^ ESPN
  4. ^ ESPN
  5. ^ ESPN Game Summary
  6. ^ Sidearm Sports - Scoring Summary
  7. ^ ESPN
  8. ^ ESPN
  9. ^ ESPN
  10. ^ ESPN
  11. ^ ESPN
  12. ^ ESPN
  13. ^ ESPN
  14. ^ ESPN
  15. ^ ESPN
  16. ^ ESPN
  17. ^ https://www.pro-football-reference.com/draft/2004.htm Archived 2007-12-23 at the Wayback Machine
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