BATON ROUGE, La. — Whether you're young or perhaps a little older, one catchphrase around the LSU campus connects everyone.
That "Geaux Tigers" spirit was in full force Saturday as LSU fans welcomed their tigers back to campus, after clawing their way to that championship win in New Orleans.
"This is like the best season for LSU ever," said Brianna Riley from Gonzalez.
As the championship parade rolled, thousands of fans were trying to get that perfect view of Coach "O" and the team bringing home a shiny new trophy and a new sense of pride.
"It was just amazing. I just could not not be here," said Mariah Solar from Gonzalez.
The last time LSU brought home a national championship was in 2007. For fans like Kacie Orso from New Orleans, a new trophy was a big deal.
"We spent a lot of time just having this, like, downfall on us — that we weren't doing as well as we use to. Then we had the whole Bama thing, and now, we finally won. Joe Burrow is here, and it's just an amazing experience for all of us," said Orso.
It's this type of excitement, support and energy fans want the entire country to see, and this national championship win was a platform to do just that.
The Pete Maravich Assembly Center at LSU was packed as the Tigers were given a key to the city of Baton Rouge. A key, the mayor said, unlocks a national spotlight for Louisiana and the university.
"The home of Louisiana State University, is the home of the LSU National Champions," said Mayor Sharon Weston Broome.
That hometown pride also filters into families across the state.
"It's been a while since they won something real big like this, and I thought it'd be nice to experience it with my daughter," said Rodrick Dupui.
For fans across the board, the support will always be there.
"They won fair and square, so I got to go and cheer them on at least," said Kaylei Thomas, from Livonia.
While the cheers will — of course — continue, fans must remind themselves, not to get a big head about it, unless it’s one of those giant Coach “O” cutouts.
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