LSU's Joe Burrow Says CFP Semifinal Blowout of Oklahoma 'Was Expected'

LSU quarterback Joe Burrow told ESPN's Laura Rutledge (h/t Nicole Auerbach of The Athletic) after his team's 63-28 College Football Playoff semifinal win over Oklahoma on Saturday that the big win "was expected."

Per B/R Betting, LSU was a heavy 12.5-point favorite over the Sooners. LSU beat the spread by 22.5 points, with Burrow throwing seven first-half touchdown passes and running for an eighth score in the beginning of the second half.

Burrow sat for nearly all of the fourth quarter en route to the win, which sends LSU to the national championship against the winner of the Ohio State-Clemson semifinal.

Burrow more than backed up his talk on the field, where he completed 29-of-39 passes for 493 yards. His favorite target was Justin Jefferson, who snagged 14 Burrow passes for 227 yards and four touchdowns.

The performance is a continuation of Burrow and LSU's dominant season. The 2019 Heisman Trophy winner completed 77.9 percent of his passes for 48 touchdowns and six interceptions leading into the CFP and averaged 10.7 yards per pass attempt. The Tigers were also third in points per game in Division I-FBS and scored 36 or more points in all but one contest.

Therefore, Burrow had every right to feel confident leading into the semifinal. Oklahoma finished fourth in the CFP rankings and sported an excellent offense of its own featuring Heisman candidate quarterback Jalen Hurts and wideout CeeDee Lamb, but the Sooners defense joined a long list of teams that have encountered significant trouble against Burrow's Tigers.

Burrow is also the consensus favorite to go first overall in the 2020 NFL draft to the Cincinnati Bengals.