| 2011AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 75th Cotton Bowl Classic | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
 | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Date | January 7, 2011 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Season | 2010 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Stadium | Cowboys Stadium | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Location | Arlington, Texas | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| MVP | DBTyrann Mathieu (LSU) WRTerrence Toliver (LSU) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Favorite | LSU by 1, Over/Under: 49[1] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Referee | Randy Smith (C-USA) | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Attendance | 83,514 | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Payout | US$7.15 million total($3.75 million to A&M; $3.4 million to LSU)[2] | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| United States TV coverage | |||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Network | Fox | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| Announcers | Kenny Albert andDaryl Johnston | ||||||||||||||||||||||||
| |||||||||||||||||||||||||
The2011 AT&T Cotton Bowl Classic was the 75th edition of the annual post-seasoncollege footballbowl game that was part of the2010–11 bowl season of the2010 NCAA Division I FBS football season. The game featured theLSU Tigers of theSoutheastern Conference who defeated theTexas A&M Aggies of theBig 12 Conference by a score of 41–24. The game was scheduled for January 7, 2011 at 7:27 p.m.CST and was held atCowboys Stadium inArlington,Texas. This was the second time it was held in Cowboys Stadium after leaving itsnamesake venue. The game was broadcast by Fox.
The meeting between the Tigers and the Aggies was the 50th all-time between the teams, but the first since the 1995 season. It was the second time LSU and Texas A&M squared off in a bowl game, the first being the1944 Orange Bowl.
It was the fifth Cotton Bowl Classic appearance for the Tigers and the first since the 2002 season. The Tigers are the conference statistics leader on pass defense (165.83 ypg). They are rated second in pass efficiency defense (112.94 rating), kickoff returns (25.79 avg.), punt returns (13.50 avg.), scoring defense (17.75 ppg), and total defense (301.67 ypg). Senior Josh Jasper has kicked 31 of 32 point-after-touchdowns, and 26 of 31 field goals for a total of 109 points.
Texas A&M finished the 2010 season 9–3 after starting the season 3–3 and winning their final 6 games. Led by 3rd year head coachMike Sherman and 1st year defensive coordinator/assistant head coachTim DeRuyter, the team finished the season by beating 2 top 10 teams,Oklahoma andNebraska, as well as in state rivalsBaylor andTexas. The Aggies finished their conference schedule in a 3-way tie with Oklahoma andOklahoma State. Oklahoma won the tiebreaker by having a higherBCS Ranking and eventually beat Nebraska in theBig 12 Championship.
It was Texas A&M's twelfth Cotton Bowl Classic appearance, tied for the second-most visits among any team. The Aggies' last trip to the Classic was in 2005 when they were defeated byTennessee, 38–7. Overall Texas A&M holds a 5–8 record in the Cotton Bowl Classic, with their last win being a 41–13 victory overOklahoma in 2013.
| Scoring play | Score | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| 1st quarter | |||
| A&M –Uzoma Nwachukwu 6-yard pass fromRyan Tannehill (Randy Bullock kick), 13:01 | A&M 7–0 | ||
| A&M – Bullock 39-yard field goal, 5:03 | A&M 10–0 | ||
| LSU – Terrance Toliver 42-yard pass fromJordan Jefferson (Josh Jasper kick), 1:48 | A&M 10–7 | ||
| 2nd quarter | |||
| LSU – Jefferson 1-yard run (Jasper kick), 10:13 | LSU 14–10 | ||
| A&M – Nwachukwu 14-yard pass fromCyrus Gray (Bullock kick), 7:44 | A&M 17–14 | ||
| LSU –Stevan Ridley 17-yard run (Jasper kick), 4:43 | LSU 21–17 | ||
| LSU – Toliver 2-yard pass from Jefferson (Jasper kick), 1:27 | LSU 28–17 | ||
| 3rd quarter | |||
| LSU – Toliver 41-yard pass from Jefferson (Jasper kick), 12:06 | LSU 35–17 | ||
| 4th quarter | |||
| A&M – Kenric McNeal 4-yard pass from Ryan Tannehill (Randy Bullock kick), 10:04 | LSU 35–24 | ||
| LSU – Jasper 50-yard field goal, 6:12 | LSU 38–24 | ||
| LSU – Jasper 26-yard field goal, 3:04 | LSU 41–24 | ||
| Statistics | LSU | Texas A&M |
|---|---|---|
| First Downs | 24 | 23 |
| Total offense, plays – yards | 74–446 | 65–373 |
| Rushes-yards (net) | 55–288 | 29–155 |
| Passing yards (net) | 158 | 218 |
| Passes, Comp-Att-Int | 10–19–1 | 23–36–3 |
| Time of Possession | 37:26 | 22:34 |