January 13, 2020 Postseason Neutral site Belt changed hands

LSU takes the belt, 42–25, at a neutral site over Clemson.

Home · New Holder

LSUAP No. 1 42

Away · Defending Holder

ClemsonAP No. 3 25

AP poll, week 16: Clemson No. 3 at LSU No. 1 · No. 1 that week: Georgia. The belt vs. the polls →

Belt context

Where this game sits in the lineage

LSU took the belt here, ending Clemson’s run of 16 days and 0 defenses (reign #307) and starting reign #308. It lasted 257 days and 0 defenses, until Mississippi State took it on September 26, 2020.

For LSU this was its 18th shot at the belt; it had held the belt 6 times before — and it took it back here.

It was the 2nd of 2 belt games between the two; going in, LSU led the belt series 1–0; all-time LSU leads 2–0.

AI-Written

Recap

LSU dominated this College Football Playoff National Championship Game from start to finish, with Joe Burrow orchestrating one of the most efficient offensive performances in championship history. Burrow connected with receivers across the field early and often, hitting Justin Jefferson for three touchdown passes in the first half alone (19, 35, 42, and 30 yards) while also finding Terrace Marshall Jr. twice and Thaddeus Moss for a spectacular 62-yard score. Clemson managed only one turnover and struggled to sustain drives, converting just 1 of 11 third-down attempts, while LSU's high-powered offense piled up 628 total yards with zero turnovers to secure the belt with a convincing 42-25 victory.

Justin Jefferson's 42-yard TD reception in Q2 12:13 - extended LSU's lead to 35-7 and put the game completely out of reach
Thaddeus Moss's 62-yard TD reception in Q2 4:18 - a perfectly thrown deep ball that showcased Burrow's arm talent and LSU's offensive firepower
Kary Vincent Jr. interception of Jalen Hurts in Q2 12:03 - LSU's defense forced the only turnover of the game, halting a Clemson drive
Joe Burrow's seven touchdown passes - clinical efficiency from the future #1 overall pick that demonstrated LSU's complete dominance

Written by Claude from the box score and play-by-play on this page — a plain-English recap of the numbers below, not a substitute for them.

Full Box Score

Team stats

CFBD box score

LSUClemson

Total yards628394

Rushing yards165160

Passing yards463234

First downs2923

3rd down conv.4/141/11

Turnovers01

Penalties–yards11–1187–65

Time of possession34:4525:15

Full team box score from CFBD’s /games/teams data. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have team-level stats that far back.

Play By Play

Key plays

CFBD play-by-play

When	Team	Yards	Play
Q1 12:03	LSU	+19 yd	Justin Jefferson 19 Yd pass from Joe Burrow (Cade York Kick)
Q1 7:34	Oklahoma	+3 yd	Kennedy Brooks run for 3 yds for a TD, (Gabe Brkic KICK)
Q1 7:55	Oklahoma	+51 yd	Jalen Hurts pass complete to CeeDee Lamb for 51 yds to the LSU 3 for a 1ST down
Q1 4:24	LSU	+8 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Terrace Marshall Jr. for 8 yds for a TD, (Cade York KICK)
Q1 4:24	LSU	+33 yd	Avery Atkins kickoff for 60 yds , Charleston Rambo return for 33 yds to the Okla 38
Q1 2:29	LSU	+24 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Terrace Marshall Jr. for 24 yds to the LSU 46 for a 1ST down
Q1 1:16	LSU	+35 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Justin Jefferson for 35 yds for a TD, (Cade York KICK)
Q2 12:13	LSU	+42 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Justin Jefferson for 42 yds for a TD, (Cade York KICK)
Q2 12:03	Oklahoma	+0 yd	Jalen Hurts pass intercepted Kary Vincent Jr. return for no gain to the LSU 45
Q2 9:40	LSU	+22 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Ja'Marr Chase for 22 yds to the Okla 30 for a 1ST down
Q2 9:17	LSU	+30 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Justin Jefferson for 30 yds for a TD, (Cade York KICK)
Q2 4:45	Oklahoma	+2 yd	Jalen Hurts run for 2 yds for a TD, (Gabe Brkic KICK)
Q2 7:45	Oklahoma	+44 yd	Jalen Hurts pass complete to CeeDee Lamb for 29 yds to the LSU 49 for a 1ST down LSU Penalty, Roughing Passer (Patrick Queen) to the LSU 34 for a 1ST down
Q2 4:18	LSU	+62 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Thaddeus Moss for 62 yds for a TD, (Cade York KICK)
Q2 0:50	LSU	+2 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Terrace Marshall Jr. for 2 yds for a TD, (Cade York KICK)
Q2 1:32	LSU	+39 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Ja'Marr Chase for 39 yds to the Okla 10 for a 1ST down
Q3 10:11	LSU	+3 yd	Joe Burrow run for 3 yds for a TD, (Cade York KICK)
Q3 15:00	Oklahoma	+20 yd	Gabe Brkic kickoff for 59 yds , Jontre Kirklin return for 20 yds to the LSU 26
Q3 12:51	LSU	+32 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Terrace Marshall Jr. for 32 yds to the Okla 25 for a 1ST down
Q3 4:19	Oklahoma	+12 yd	Jalen Hurts run for 12 yds for a TD, (Gabe Brkic KICK)
Q3 9:15	Oklahoma	+26 yd	Jalen Hurts pass complete to CeeDee Lamb for 26 yds to the LSU 46 for a 1ST down
Q4 14:06	LSU	+46 yd	Cade York 46 yd FG MISSED
Q4 9:39	Oklahoma	+1 yd	T.J. Pledger run for 1 yd for a TD (Gabe Brkic KICK)
Q4 14:00	Oklahoma	+21 yd	Jalen Hurts pass complete to Theo Wease for 21 yds to the 50 yard line for a 1ST down
Q4 8:45	LSU	+20 yd	Chris Curry run for 20 yds to the LSU 49 for a 1ST down
Q1 14:40	Clemson	+35 yd	Trevor Lawrence pass complete to Justyn Ross for 35 yds to the LSU 46 for a 1ST down
Q1 6:34	Clemson	+1 yd	Trevor Lawrence run for 1 yd for a TD (B.T. Potter KICK)
Q1 8:26	Clemson	+27 yd	Trevor Lawrence pass complete to Braden Galloway for 42 yds to the LSU 25 for a 1ST down CLEMSON Penalty, Illegal Block (Tee Higgins) to the LSU 40 for a 1ST down
Q1 7:28	Clemson	+25 yd	Trevor Lawrence pass complete to Tee Higgins for 19 yds to the LSU 12 for a 1ST down LSU Penalty, Personal Foul (Siaki Ika) to the LSU 6 for a 1ST down
Q1 2:20	LSU	+52 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Ja'Marr Chase for 52 yds for a TD (Cade York KICK)
Q2 13:43	Clemson	+52 yd	B.T. Potter 52 yd FG GOOD
Q2 13:35	LSU	+20 yd	Joe Burrow run for 20 yds to the LSU 45 for a 1ST down
Q2 12:02	Clemson	+24 yd	Trevor Lawrence pass complete to Justyn Ross for 24 yds to the Clem 28 for a 1ST down
Q2 10:38	Clemson	+36 yd	Tee Higgins run for 36 yds for a TD (B.T. Potter KICK)
Q2 11:31	Clemson	+29 yd	Travis Etienne run for 29 yds to the LSU 43 for a 1ST down
Q2 9:17	LSU	+3 yd	Joe Burrow run for 3 yds for a TD (Cade York KICK)
Q2 9:53	LSU	+56 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Ja'Marr Chase for 56 yds to the Clem 3 for a 1ST down
Q2 8:35	Clemson	+27 yd	Travis Etienne run for 12 yds to the LSU 37 for a 1ST down LSU Penalty, Face Mask (15 yards) (Grant Delpit) to the LSU 48 for a 1ST down
Q2 6:49	LSU	+22 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Justin Jefferson for 22 yds to the LSU 45 for a 1ST down
Q2 6:25	LSU	+23 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Clyde Edwards-Helaire for 23 yds to the Clem 32 for a 1ST down
Q2 5:19	LSU	+14 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Ja'Marr Chase for 14 yds for a TD (Cade York KICK)
Q2 3:31	LSU	+25 yd	Clyde Edwards-Helaire run for 25 yds to the LSU 30 for a 1ST down
Q2 0:14	LSU	+29 yd	Joe Burrow run for 29 yds to the Clem 6 for a 1ST down
Q2 0:10	LSU	+6 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Thaddeus Moss for 6 yds for a TD (Cade York KICK)
Q3 13:26	LSU	+26 yd	Zach Von Rosenberg punt for 41 yds, downed at the CLEMSON 35 LSU Penalty, Kick Catching Interference (Jontre Kirklin) to the 50 yard line
Q3 12:02	Clemson	+22 yd	Trevor Lawrence run for 7 yds to the LSU 29 for a 1ST down LSU Penalty, Face Mask (15 yards) (K'Lavon Chaisson) to the LSU 14 for a 1ST down
Q3 10:49	Clemson	+3 yd	Travis Etienne run for 3 yds for a TD (Trevor Lawrence pass to Amari Rodgers for Two-Point Conversion)
Q3 5:13	LSU	+4 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Thaddeus Moss for 4 yds for a TD (Cade York KICK)
Q3 6:20	LSU	+43 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Ja'Marr Chase for 43 yds to the Clem 16 for a 1ST down
Q3 1:40	LSU	+45 yd	Cade York 45 yd FG MISSED
Q3 3:25	LSU	+35 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Justin Jefferson for 35 yds to the Clem 33 for a 1ST down
Q4 12:08	LSU	+24 yd	Joe Burrow pass complete to Terrace Marshall Jr. for 24 yds for a TD (Cade York KICK)
Q4 12:08	LSU	+30 yd	Avery Atkins kickoff for 65 yds , Travis Etienne return for 30 yds to the Clem 30
Q4 3:53	Clemson	+5 yd	Trevor Lawrence run for 12 yds to the LSU 45 Trevor Lawrence fumbled, forced by Grant Delpit, recovered by LSU Derek Stingley Jr. , return for 5 yds to the LSU 45
Q4 4:14	Clemson	+21 yd	Trevor Lawrence pass complete to Tee Higgins for 21 yds to the Clem 48 for a 1ST down
Q4 3:41	LSU	+21 yd	Clyde Edwards-Helaire run for 21 yds to the Clem 34 for a 1ST down

Scoring plays, turnovers, and gains of 20+ yards, pulled from CFBD’s play-by-play. This section only appears for belt games with play-by-play on file (2003 onward).

Box Score

Player stats

CFBD player stats

Passing

LSU

Player	C/ATT	YDS	AVG	TD	INT
Joe Burrow	31/49	463	9.4	5	0

Clemson

Player	C/ATT	YDS	AVG	TD	INT
Trevor Lawrence	18/37	234	6.3	0	0

Rushing

LSU

Player	CAR	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG
Clyde Edwards-Helaire	16	110	6.9	0	25
Joe Burrow	14	58	4.1	1	29
Team	2	-3	-1.5	0	0

Clemson

Player	CAR	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG
Travis Etienne	15	78	5.2	1	29
Trevor Lawrence	10	49	4.9	1	12
Tee Higgins	1	36	36.0	1	36
Lyn-J Dixon	1	-1	-1.0	0	0
Team	1	-2	-2.0	0	0

Receiving

LSU

Player	REC	YDS	AVG	TD	LONG
Ja'Marr Chase	9	221	24.6	2	56
Justin Jefferson	9	106	11.8	0	35
Clyde Edwards-Helaire	5	54	10.8	0	23
Terrace Marshall Jr.	3	46	15.3	1	24
Thaddeus Moss	5	36	7.2	2	13

Clemson

Player	REC	YDS	AVG	LONG
Justyn Ross	5	76	15.2	35
Braden Galloway	2	60	30.0	42
Tee Higgins	3	52	17.3	21
Travis Etienne	5	36	7.2	19
Amari Rodgers	2	8	4.0	5
Lyn-J Dixon	1	2	2.0	2

Show more stats (6 more categories)

Defense

LSU

Player	TOT	SOLO	SACKS	TFL	PD
Patrick Queen	8	6	0.5	2.5	0
Jacob Phillips	8	5	0	0.5	0
JaCoby Stevens	7	5	0	0.5	0
Kristian Fulton	6	6	0	1	1
Grant Delpit	6	5	1	1	0
Kary Vincent Jr.	3	3	0	0	0
Rashard Lawrence	3	1	0	1	0
K'Lavon Chaisson	2	2	0	0	0
Derek Stingley Jr.	2	1	0	0	0
Glen Logan	2	0	0.5	1	0
Jontre Kirklin	1	1	0	0	0
Racey McMath	1	1	0	0	0
Avery Atkins	1	1	0	0	0
Neil Farrell Jr.	1	0	0	0.5	0

Clemson

Player	TOT	SOLO	SACKS	TFL	PD
Nolan Turner	10	6	0	0	1
K'Von Wallace	9	6	0	0	0
Isaiah Simmons	7	6	1	2	2
Derion Kendrick	7	5	0	0	0
James Skalski	5	4	1	1	1
A.J. Terrell	5	4	0	0	1
Tanner Muse	5	3	0	1	0
Denzel Johnson	4	2	0	0	0
Tyler Davis	3	2	1	1	0
Jake Venables	3	1	1	1.5	0
Justin Foster	2	2	1	1	0
Xavier Thomas	2	1	0	0	0
K.J. Henry	2	0	0	0.5	0
Amari Rodgers	1	1	0	0	0
Patrick Phibbs	1	0	0	0	0
Logan Rudolph	1	0	0	0	0

Fumbles

LSU

Player	FUM	LOST	REC
Preston Stafford	0	0	1
Derek Stingley Jr.	0	0	1

Clemson

Player	FUM	LOST	REC
Trevor Lawrence	1	1	0

Kick Returns

LSU

No recorded stats in this category.

Clemson

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	LONG	TD
Travis Etienne	1	30	30.0	30	0

Kicking

LSU

Player	FG	PCT	LONG	XP	PTS
Cade York	0/1	0.0	0	6/6	6

Clemson

Player	FG	PCT	LONG	XP	PTS
B.T. Potter	1/1	100.0	52	2/2	5

Punt Returns

LSU

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	LONG	TD
Derek Stingley Jr.	2	17	8.5	9	0

Clemson

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	LONG	TD
Amari Rodgers	2	0	0.0	0	0

Punting

LSU

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	TB	In 20	LONG
Zach Von Rosenberg	7	312	44.6	0	3	56

Clemson

Player	NO	YDS	AVG	TB	In 20	LONG
Will Spiers	9	355	39.4	0	5	58

Full player stats from CFBD’s /games/players data, split out by team. This section only appears for belt games from 2003 onward — CFBD doesn’t have player-level stats that far back. Linked player names go to that player’s stat line in every other belt game they’ve appeared in.

Sources Box score at ESPN · Game record: College Football Data (id 401135295) · This game in the downloadable dataset

← Clemson at Ohio State Mississippi State at LSU →