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    • LSU survives, while Ole Miss and Lane Kiffin collapse in a wild SEC finish
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    LSU survives, while Ole Miss and Lane Kiffin collapse in a wild SEC finish

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    • The Magnolia Bowl often provides a lot of drama, and this LSU comeback win fit the bill.
    • Ole Miss collapses in a game that never trailed until the final play.
    • A win keeps LSU’s playoff hopes afloat.

    BATON ROUGE, La. – A wild, crazy rivalry series has gotten its latest wild, crazy chapter.

    Just the Magnolia Bowl, right?

    No. 8 Ole Miss lost a game never trailing until the final play.

    No. 10 LSU won a game that was unwinnable for most of the night.

    Maybe the ghost of Billy Cannon still haunts the rebels.

    Sixty-five years after running, Billy, running, serving the Magnolia Bowl over, Garrett, over.

    Collapse, rebels, collapse.

    Rally, Tigers, rally, to a 29-26 victory in extra time.

    “Really proud of our football team and the way they never blinked,” LSU coach Brian Kelly said after a win that moved his team to 5-1.

    Missed opportunities haunt Ole Miss

    The Rebels came to regret not scoring a single point in a first quarter in which they gained 139 yards, penetrated the red zone twice and let a would-be touchdown pass slip through the hands of their best receiver.

    LSU managed to escape despite squandering opportunities to take the lead for most of the second half after stops provided by the defense.

    But quarterback Garrett Nussmeier kept hammering it and the Rebels’ defense eventually broke — just as they did in the fourth quarter two weeks ago in their loss to Kentucky.

    Twice, Nussmeier completed fourth-down passes on the tying score. With LSU’s season on the line, he hit Aaron Anderson for a 23-yard touchdown to force overtime.

    Tigers fans sang their infamous NSFW song before overtime as the band provided the beat, and then Death Valley roared as loudly as it did all night, just before the Rebels’ Caden Davis scored a 57-yard field goal.

    Of course, this crazy game needed a 57-yard shoe, right?

    Amid the noise, Nussmeier kept his cool.

    Garrett Nussmeier delivers in critical time for LSU

    Statistically speaking, LSU’s quarterback wasn’t enjoying a great night. He threw two interceptions and more incompletions than he had in any game this season.

    But Nussmeier is the best Kelly’s team has to offer.

    So, pass, Garrett, pass.

    He only needed one overtime throw.

    Nussmeier threw it to his best wide receiver.

    Kyren Lacy worked against 1-on-1 coverage.

    That’s a winning match for LSU.

    “That’s not a 50/50 ball. That’s a 100-to-nothing ball,” Nussmeier said.

    And who cares what the first 49 passes Nussmeier threw are? Because his last two throws were touchdowns.

    “Nuss had a great game,” Lacy said.

    Lacy joined Kelly in giving a more generous assessment of Nussmeier’s evening than the quarterback himself gave. Nussmeier called his performance one of the worst games of his career. He just kept shooting.

    “That was a growth game for him,” Kelly said.

    Lacy’s 25-yard touchdown grab kept LSU’s playoff hopes afloat while building on what should have been a dream season for the Rebels, who fell to 5-2.

    Time for the melodies.

    “Grove St. Party” played from the stadium speakers as Tigers fans stormed the field.

    A field storm after a minor upset?

    Ah, who cares, after this crazy game, storm, tigers, storm.

    Blake Toppmeyer is the national college football columnist for the USA TODAY Network. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter @btoppmeyer.

    Subscribe to read all his columns.

    (This story has been updated with new information.)

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