College Football
BOXSCORE | RECAP
Clemson 25, Louisiana State 24
When: 7:30 PM ET, Monday, December 31, 2012
Where: Georgia Dome, Atlanta, Georgia
Temperature: Dome
Head Official: Dave Witvoet
Attendance: 68027

No. 13 Clemson 25, No. 7 Louisiana State 24: Chandler Catanzaro booted a 37-yard field goal as time expired to lift Clemson to victory at the Chick-fil-A Bowl in Atlanta.

Clemson (11-2) outscored LSU 12-0 in the fourth quarter, scoring nine points in the final 2:47. DeAndre Hopkins caught 13 passes for a Chick-fil-A Bowl-record 190 yards and two touchdowns. Tajh Boyd completed 35 of 49 passes for 339 yards - although none bigger than the 26-yard strike to Hopkins on fourth-and-16 on the final drive.

Freshman running back Jeremy Hill rushed for a season-high 125 yards on 12 carries and scored two touchdowns for LSU (10-3).

Boyd hit Hopkins on a 12-yard seam route with 2:47 remaining to pull Clemson within two, but then threw incomplete under pressure on the ensuing two-point conversion. LSU quarterback Zach Mettenberger threw two incomplete passes on the next possession, allowing Clemson to get the ball back at its 20 with 1:39 remaining and all three of its timeouts.

Despite out-gaining LSU 240-95 in total yards during the first half, Clemson still trailed at the break for the first time this season. Hopkins caught an 11-yard touchdown reception from Boyd with 5:43 remaining in the first half, but the extra-point attempt was blocked - leaving Clemson behind 14-13.

GAME NOTEBOOK: Hopkins finished with 1,404 receiving yards this season, breaking the school’s single-season record set last year by teammate Sammy Watkins (1,243). Watkins suffered a right ankle injury on the second play against LSU and did not return, finishing the season with 708 receiving yards. … LSU punter Jamie Keehn, who replaced suspended All-American Brad Wing, averaged 44.4 yards on nine punts. … Catanzaro had made 143 of 145 extra points in his three-year career before his second-quarter kick was blocked by defensive lineman Bennie Logan.
Top Game Performances
Rushing
Louisiana State   Clemson
Jeremy Hill Player Andre Ellington
12 Attempts 11
124 Yards 50
10.3 Avg Yards 4.6
2 Touchdowns 0
0 Long 0
Receiving
Louisiana State   Clemson
Odell Beckham Jr. Player DeAndre Hopkins
3 Receptions 13
40 Yards 191
13.3 Avg Yards 14.7
0 Touchdowns 2
0 Long 0
Team Stats Summary
 
  Yards Scoring Defense
Team Tot Rus Pas TD FG INT Sck FF
Louisiana State 219 99 120 3 1 0 6.0 3
Clemson 445 99 346 3 2 1 8.0 0