Slowing Louisville's Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback would be quite an ending to an otherwise tough season for LSU.
The No. 20 Tigers (7-4) have embraced the challenge heading into Saturday's Buffalo Wild Wings Citrus Bowl matchup against Lamar Jackson and No. 13 Louisville (9-3) at Camping World Stadium. Kickoff is at 11 a.m. and the game will air on ABC.
Lining up against Jackson and the Cardinals is a welcome challenge for a team that finished the regular season with narrow losses in two of its last four games.
"That's what I love about it. He's the Heisman Trophy winner for a reason," LSU defensive end Lewis Neal said. "It's good for us to go in and compete against that kind of competition. We're just coming out one last time to show everybody what we've got and to finish the season strong."
It'll be the third time an LSU team has faced the newly crowned Heisman recipient in a bowl game. The Tigers defeated Jason White and Oklahoma 21-14 for the national title following the 2003 regular season and lost 16-9 to John Cappelletti and Penn State 30 years earlier.
While Jackson did enough to win college football's top honor, LSU's defense has also been impressive.
The Tigers have allowed just 16 touchdowns, good for second fewest behind Alabama among all Football Bowl Subdivision teams. LSU also finished No. 6 in the nation in scoring defense while giving up only 16.4 points per game.
Jackson enters the game with 3,390 passing yards and 1,538 rushing yards with 51 total touchdowns.
"You can't watch enough film," LSU cornerback Donte Jackson said. "Especially as dynamic a player as he is, you've got to see as many different clips of him as you possibly can."
The season for each side will likely be judged by which team rises to the occasion.
"It brings more competitiveness to the game," Jackson said. "We know he's going to get out there and compete and we know we're going to get out there and compete, so that really brings a lot more hype and enthusiasm and eagerness to get out there and play."
