LSU’s Two Trick-Play Touchdowns Worked—So Why Didn’t the Tigers Win?

LSU reached deep into the playbook at Kentucky and found two touchdowns no one could have reasonably predicted: one to a player making his first career catch, another thrown by a wide receiver. The creativity worked. The finishing around it did not.

Quick Answer

LSU scored two trick-play touchdowns in its 35-34 overtime loss at Kentucky. Sam Leavitt hit Zach Grace for a 22-yard score on a double flea-flicker—Grace’s first career reception. Later, wide receiver Jackson Harris threw a 41-yard touchdown to Roman Mothershed, LSU’s first regular-season touchdown pass by a wide receiver since Todd Kinchen in 1989.

What were LSU’s two trick-play touchdowns?

The first came from a double flea-flicker. LSU layered misdirection in the backfield, returned the ball to Leavitt and created space for Grace downfield. The result was a 22-yard touchdown and the first catch of Grace’s career.

The second asked Harris to become the passer. He found Mothershed for a 41-yard touchdown, giving LSU a rare explosive score and a historical note. According to LSU’s official recap, it was the Tigers’ first regular-season touchdown pass by a wide receiver since Kinchen in 1989.

Both plays and their historical context are documented in LSU’s official game recap.

Why did the trick plays work?

Misdirection works when the offense first sells something the defense already expects. The double flea-flicker uses normal run-action and an apparent reverse exchange to pull eyes toward the backfield. By the time the defense recovers, the downfield route has created separation.

The Harris pass attacks a different assumption: when the ball reaches a wide receiver behind the line, defenders expect him to run or distribute laterally. Kentucky’s support reacted to that picture, and Mothershed escaped into open space.

Neither score was random gadgetry. Each used an established offensive tendency to make the defense wrong. That is the difference between creative sequencing and a desperate trick.

What did the plays reveal about LSU’s offense?

First, LSU has enough trust and practice detail to execute complex concepts on the road. Exchanges, spacing and timing have to be precise. One loose pitch or rushed throw can turn creativity into a turnover.

Second, the staff is actively searching for explosive answers. Kentucky held LSU to 94 net rushing yards, so conventional ground-game efficiency was not carrying the offense. Trick plays became a way to manufacture the vertical stress that the base run game was not consistently producing.

That search also explains why Sam Leavitt’s night was so complicated. TigerHype’s quarterback evaluation after his two turnovers separates his efficient passing from the mistakes that erased possessions.

Why creativity was not enough

LSU generated 410 total yards and 34 points. It scored through a tight end’s first career catch and a receiver’s pass. Yet the Tigers still lost because creativity cannot substitute for possession value, coverage discipline or late-game execution.

The double flea-flicker does not erase a fourth-quarter fumble. The receiver pass does not erase a 55-yard punt-return touchdown. A brilliant call can create seven points, but it cannot guarantee the next drive or protect the next kick.

That is the central lesson of TigerHype’s special-teams breakdown and the fourth-and-1 decision analysis. LSU had enough inventive football to win, but not enough clean football to finish.

Should LSU keep the trick plays for Mississippi State?

Yes—but as complements, not life support. The best version of LSU’s offense forces Mississippi State to defend its normal concepts first, then uses counters and changeups when the defense overcommits.

The tape now creates value even if LSU never repeats either design. Future opponents have to spend practice time on the double flea-flicker, the receiver pass and the possibility of another variation. That hesitation can open ordinary runs, screens and play-action throws.

LSU hosts Mississippi State on Saturday, October 17, at 11 a.m. CT on ESPN. The challenge is to keep the imagination while reducing the need for rescue plays.

The bottom line

LSU’s two trick-play touchdowns were not hollow highlights. They showed preparation, nerve and a playbook with answers. They also made the loss feel sharper: the Tigers found two rare ways to score and still surrendered the game through ordinary failures.

Which Kentucky trick play should LSU build on more—the double flea-flicker to Zach Grace or Jackson Harris’ touchdown pass? Pick your favorite in the LSU Game Day group.