Ole Miss kicker Andrew Ritter said his game-winning, 41-yard field-goal attempt felt good off his foot. Then he watched with dread as it started drifting right. By the time it reached the uprights, it was dangerously close.
The senior held his breath. So did the rest of Vaught-Hemingway Stadium.
It sailed through with about a foot to spare. The crowd exploded. It was the finishing touch on Ole Miss’s 27-24 upset victory over No. 6 LSU on Saturday night.
“Can you believe it?” Ritter asked.
It was a happy ending for Ole Miss (4-3, 2-3 SEC) after the Rebels let a 17-point lead slip away completely when LSU’s Zach Mettenberger hit Jarvis Landry for a 4-yard touchdown to tie the score at 24-24 with 3:19 remaining.
But the Rebels responded with a methodical, 14-play drive that ended in Ritter’s field goal with two seconds remaining.
It capped a remarkable day of upsets across the league. LSU joined Georgia, Texas A&M, Florida and South Carolina as ranked SEC teams to lose Saturday.
Bo Wallace completed 30 of 39 passes for 346 yards, and Jaylen Walton rushed for 105 yards and two touchdowns for the Rebels, who snapped a three-game losing streak.
LSU (6-2, 3-2) nearly pulled off the comeback, but couldn’t overcome a rough game by Mettenberger, who threw three crucial interceptions.
The winning field goal was redemption for Ritter, who had a 29-yard attempt blocked earlier in the fourth quarter.
LSU moved the ball fairly well in the first half, especially on the ground, but Mettenberger’s bad decisions and poor throws cost the Tigers dearly.
The 6-foot-5, 235-pound senior entered the game leading the SEC with 1,890 yards, 15 touchdowns and only two interceptions. But he had a brutal first half, throwing three interceptions, including two in the end zone.
All three were thrown into tight coverage. Mettenberger finished 19-of-33 passing for 274 yards and a touchdown.
While Mettenberger was struggling, Wallace started hot, completing 16 of 23 passes for 200 yards in the first half. Ritter kicked a 28-yard field goal in the first quarter to put Ole Miss ahead 3-0, and Barry Brunetti’s 3-yard touchdown pass to Nick Parker gave the Rebels a 10-0 halftime lead.
The Rebels’ defense was surprisingly stout. They were missing five starters, including linebacker Serderius Bryant, the team’s leading tackler.
But Ole Miss used a no-name bunch to stop LSU consistently. Chief Brown, Cody Prewitt and Charles Sawyer had the three interceptions.
Ole Miss announced a crowd of 61,160, which is the ninth-largest in school history. And the place was rocking by the time Walton broke through for a 2-yard touchdown in the third quarter to give the Rebels a 17-0 lead.
But the LSU offense came alive in the third quarter, scoring touchdowns on short runs by Kenny Hilliard and Jeremy Hill to pull within 17-14.
Ole Miss yanked the momentum right back with a seven-play, 76-yard drive, capped by Walton’s spectacular 26-yard touchdown dash through the teeth of LSU’s defense.
The Rebels had a 24-14 lead and all the momentum early in the fourth quarter, but Korvic Neat dropped a punt, and LSU recovered on the Ole Miss 13. The defense managed to hold, but LSU’s Colby Delahoussaye hit a 41-yard field goal to pull the Tigers within 24-17.
Ole Miss squandered another opportunity a few minutes later when Ritter’s 29-yard field goal was blocked by Ego Ferguson. But Ritter redeemed himself later.
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