1996 LSU Tigers football team

The 1996 LSU Tigers football team represented Louisiana State University (LSU) in the 1996 NCAA Division I-A football season. LSU finished with a 10–2 overall record (6–2 in SEC play) after defeating Clemson Tigers, 10–7, in the Peach Bowl. It was Gerry DiNardo's second season as head coach and the Tigers built upon the previous year's success with their first ten-win season and bowl win since 1987. The Tigers tied for the SEC West title with Alabama, but had lost to the Tide 26–0 in Baton Rouge in a game that was notable for being Shaun Alexander's breakout performance.

1996 LSU Tigers football
SEC Western Division co-champion Peach Bowl champion
Peach Bowl, W 10–7 vs. Clemson
Conference	Southeastern Conference
Division	Western Division
Ranking
Coaches	No. 13
AP	No. 12
Record	10–2 (6–2 SEC)
Head coach	Gerry DiNardo (2nd season)
Offensive coordinator	Morris Watts (2nd season)
Offensive scheme	Multiple
Defensive coordinator	Carl Reese (2nd season)
Base defense	4–3
Home stadium	Tiger Stadium
Seasons ← 1995 1997 →

1996 Southeastern Conference football standings

v t e	Conf							Overall
Team		W		L					W		L
Eastern Division
No. 1 Florida x$		8	–	0					12	–	1
No. 9 Tennessee		7	–	1					10	–	2
South Carolina		4	–	4					6	–	5
Kentucky		3	–	5					4	–	7
Georgia		3	–	5					5	–	6
Vanderbilt		0	–	8					2	–	9
Western Division
No. 11 Alabama xy		6	–	2					10	–	3
No. 12 LSU x		6	–	2					10	–	2
No. 24 Auburn		4	–	4					8	–	4
Mississippi State		3	–	5					5	–	6
Ole Miss		2	–	6					5	–	6
Arkansas		2	–	6					4	–	7
Championship: Florida 45, Alabama 30
$ – Conference champion x – Division champion/co-champions y – Championship game participant Rankings from AP Poll

Schedule

Date	Time	Opponent	Rank	Site	TV	Result	Attendance	Source
September 7	7:00 p.m.	Houston*	No. 17	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		W 35–34	80,303	^[1]
September 21	6:30 p.m.	at No. 13 Auburn	No. 21	Jordan-Hare Stadium Auburn, AL (Tiger Bowl)	ESPN	W 19–15	85,214	^[2]
September 28	7:00 p.m.	New Mexico State*	No. 17	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		W 63–7	77,676	^[3]
October 5	7:00 p.m.	Vanderbilt	No. 14	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		W 35–0	80,142	^[4]
October 12	11:00 a.m.	at No. 1 Florida	No. 12	Ben Hill Griffin Stadium Gainesville, FL (rivalry)	CBS	L 13–56	85,567	^[5]
October 19	7:00 p.m.	Kentucky	No. 17	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA		W 41–14	79,660	^[6]
October 26	11:30 a.m.	Mississippi State	No. 13	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry)	JPS	W 28–20	79,594	^[7]
November 9	6:30 p.m.	No. 10 Alabama	No. 11	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (rivalry) (College GameDay)	ESPN	L 0–26	80,290	^[8]
November 16	2:00 p.m.	at Ole Miss	No. 17	Vaught–Hemingway Stadium Oxford, MS (rivalry)	PPV	W 39–7	44,436	^[9]
November 23	7:00 p.m.	Tulane*	No. 18	Tiger Stadium Baton Rouge, LA (Battle for the Rag)		W 35–17	78,966	^[10]
November 29	1:30 p.m.	at Arkansas	No. 19	War Memorial Stadium Little Rock, AR (rivalry)	CBS	W 17–7	22,329	^[11]
December 28	8:00 p.m.	vs. Clemson*	No. 17	Georgia Dome Atlanta, GA (Peach Bowl)	ESPN	W 10–7	63,622	^[12]
*Non-conference game Homecoming Rankings from AP Poll released prior to the game All times are in Central time

^[13]

Roster

1996 LSU Tigers football team roster
Players			Coaches
Offense Pos. # Name Class TB 1 Jermaine Sharp Sr RB 3 Kevin Faulk So TE 47 David LaFleur Sr G 66 Alan Faneca   So	Defense Pos. # Name Class DT 94 Anthony McFarland So DE 98 Arnold Miller So DE 99 David Watkins Fr	Special teams Pos. # Name Class	Head coach Gerry DiNardo (2nd season) Coordinators/assistant coaches Morris Watts – Offensive coordinator/quarterbacks Michael Haywood – Running backs Bob McConnell – Wide receiver David Kelly – Tight ends Hal Hunter – Offensive line Carl Reese – Defensive coordinator/defensive backs Jerry Baldwin – Defensive ends Mike Tolleson – Defensive tackles Bill Elias Jr. – Linebackers Bo Davis – Graduate assistant Legend (C) Team captain (S) Suspended (I) Ineligible   Injured   Redshirt Roster

References

1. "RB Faulk lifts LSU". The Tennessean. September 8, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
2. "LSU's Hill burns Auburn". Daily World. September 22, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
3. "Tigers don't Mealey-mouth around with New Mexico St". The Daily Advertiser. September 29, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
4. "LSU proves good as gold against Vanderbilt, 35–0". The Knoxville News-Sentinel. October 6, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
5. "Gators thump No. 11 LSU 56–13". Pensacola News Journal. October 13, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
6. "Tigers trounce Wildcats 41–14". The Sun Herald. October 20, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
7. "Opportunities, LSU slip by Miss. State". The Greenville News. October 27, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
8. "Alabama blanks LSU". Alexandria Daily Town Talk. November 10, 1996. Retrieved February 9, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
9. "2nd-half surge lifts LSU over Rebels". The Montgomery Advertiser. November 17, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
10. "Tigers struggle past an inspired Green Wave". The Shreveport Times. November 24, 1996. Retrieved February 9, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
11. "LSU's win over Arkansas is Peachy keen with bowls". Austin American-Statesman. November 30, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
12. "LSU top Tiger in town". The Atlanta Journal-Constitution. December 29, 1996. Retrieved February 10, 2024 – via Newspapers.com.
13. "1996 LSU Fighting Tigers Schedule and Results". SR/College Football. Sports Reference LLC. Retrieved February 10, 2024.