Max Johnson's five-touchdown game puts him in rare LSU company

LSU quarterback Max Johnson’s performance in a 49-21 win over Central Michigan on Saturday added his name to a prestigious LSU list.

Johnson became the third LSU quarterback to throw five touchdown passes in a game, joining former Tigers Joe Burrow and Zach Mettenberger. 

Burrow threw five touchdowns a mind-boggling six times in 2019 on his way to winning the Heisman Trophy. During regular season contests with Georgia Southern, Utah State and Ole Miss he had five scores through the air, plus six against Vanderbilt. In the Peach Bowl against Oklahoma Burrow threw seven touchdown passes, and he finished LSU’s perfect 15-0 season with five touchdown passes against Clemson in the College Football Playoff National Championship. Unsurprisingly, Burrow broke the single-season touchdown pass record in 2019 with a total of 60. 

Mettenberger threw five touchdown passes against UAB in 2013 in a 56-17 win for LSU. He went 16-for-19 on the day, which means nearly a quarter of his pass attempts went for six points. 

In total last weekend, Johnson went 26-for-35 for 372 yards. Four of the scores were of 20+ yards: 28, 40, 20 and 21, while the final touchdown pass was two yards. Four different receivers contributed to the scoring: Deion Smith caught the first two touchdowns, and Kayshon Boutte, Jack Bech and Devonta Lee had the final three. 

Smith and Bech are both freshmen, and On3’s Charles Power recognized Smith for being a breakout freshman last week.

Run game woes continue for LSU

While Johnson was able to take over last weekend’s game with his arm, that won’t always be the case against the big defenses on their impending SEC schedule. They will need a run game, and their run game has struggled mightily this year.

LSU finished the game against the Chippewas with 84 yards on the ground. Leading rusher Corey Kiner had 12 carries for 74 yards and one touchdown. 

The Tigers are currently second to last in the SEC ahead of only Mississippi State, a team which runs an Air Raid offense. LSU is averaging just 85.7 rushing yards per game, and they have played just one Power Five opponent this season in UCLA. They rushed for 49 yards against the Bruins, and they put up 124 yards on the ground against FCS McNeese State in Week 2.

If LSU remains almost entirely one-dimensional in their offense, games against Florida, Alabama and Texas A&M, among others, are going to be very difficult to win.