| It’s another week and another slight step forward for the LSU football team After thumping Central Michigan 49-21 last week, the Tigers showed up strong on the road and held on for a 28-25 victory over Mississippi State in the SEC opener for both squads. Early in the fourth, it appeared that LSU was headed to a comfortable victory on the road in the SEC - a success under any circumstance. But Mississippi State rallied from down 28-10 with 11:32 remaining to setup an onside kick in the final 2 minutes of the game. The attempted failed much to the relief of the LSU faithful. Again, the Tigers relied on the arm of QB Max Johnson and an increasingly impressive receiving corps. With four more passing touchdowns on Saturday, Johnson has a total of 15 with three interceptions through four games. The LSU offense didn’t show much of a sign that it’s ready to get past its early-season issues in the ground game, but it did get 51 yards on 13 carries by Tyrion Price-Davis. It’s still hard to wrap your mind around how a team as physically gifted as LSU can’t get consistent production in the rushing attack. The LSU defense gave up 486 yards total on Saturday, but that’s another step forward considering the Tigers allowed 632 yards in the 44-34 loss to the Bulldogs in Baton Rouge in 2020. At the end of the day, a win is a win. Ed Orgeron’s seat is not any warmer headed into next week’s home game against Auburn. HOW LSU REBOUNDED ON D VS. THE AIR RAID:The Tigers had spent a year trying to fix the issues that let Mississippi State throw for 623 yards last season, a Southeastern Conference record. KIRK HERBSTREIT IS STILL NOT IMPRESSED:ESPN's College GameDay crew has been critical of the LSU football team's performance during the 2021 season, but analyst Kirk Herbstreit took it to another level on Saturday. THREE TAKEAWAYS:What we learned, trending now and final thoughts on LSU's win in Starkville. | 
