- The Washington Times - Monday, September 5, 2022

Notre Dame may have lost to Ohio State on Saturday night, but their fans got a sweet victory on Sunday. 

Coach Brian Kelly, who spurned the Fighting Irish to take over as LSU’s coach last year, lost his debut with the Tigers against Florida State. But it wasn’t just the fact that Kelly lost that delighted some Notre Dame fans; it was how LSU lost in what is now the frontrunner for the craziest game of the college football season.

LSU came back from down 14 points in the fourth quarter — including a 99-yard drive in the final two minutes that ended with a touchdown as time expired — only to have their game-tying extra point get blocked, ending in a 24-23 Florida State victory. 

“The reality is we’ve got some learning to do,” Kelly told reporters after the season-opening loss. “We’ve got to coach better, and we’ve got to play better.”

Kelly is the first LSU coach to lose his debut since Gerry DiNardo in 1995. After leaving Notre Dame following 12 seasons with a 113-40 record, Kelly signed a 10-year, $95 million contract with LSU last November — before Notre Dame’s season was over. 

Aside from the blocked point after attempt, the Tigers made several other mistakes that led to the loss. They also had a field goal blocked in the first half and muffed two punts that gave the Seminoles possession. 

The latter of the two muffed punts happened with only a few minutes remaining, giving Florida State the ball in LSU’s red zone. But the Tigers forced a fumble near the goal line on third down to prevent the Seminoles from kicking a would-be game-winning field goal, giving Kelly’s offense the chance to tie the game.

Quarterback Jayden Daniels, who transferred into LSU from Arizona State after Kelly was hired, drove the Tigers all the way down to the 2-yard line with just 1 second remaining. He then connected with Jaray Jenkins for a touchdown that appeared to send the game to overtime, but Florida State’s Shyheim Brown broke through the line to block the kick.

“Mistake after mistake for us, particularly in the first half,” Kelly told reporters. “And, you know, obviously more mistakes in the second half.”

• Jacob Calvin Meyer can be reached at jmeyer@washingtontimes.com.

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