ATLANTA — LSU, of all teams, should know the postseason drill around here by now.

After all, the Tigers were in the very first Peach Bowl back in 1968, their six previous appearances are the most by any school and their five wins are also the most.

And it’s been a long-standing tradition at the Peach Bowl for just about every news conference held therein.

An affable moderator takes it upon himself to warm up the crowd with a few opening questions of his own. Not much about the upcoming game, you understand, but little Chamber of Commerce tidbits to remind everyone know what a wonderful time the teams are having during their stay in Atlanta.

He’ll rib the players, prying for details about who might have eaten the most hot dogs when the teams squared off for that friendly competition or who was the wildest go-cart driver when the teams were turned loose on a local track.

The players generally play along. An overpompous media tends to get annoyed that their quality time to ask about game keys and motivations is being infringed upon. But it’s all pretty much harmless. It’s not like the game was going to change Earth’s football orbit.

This time, this year, not so much. The affable moderator has pretty much stayed out of it and let the LSU and Oklahoma football players talk serious football.

Too bad.

There was quite a peripheral story running loose on Christmas Day.

You already guessed that it involved LSU’s Joe Burrow.

If anything, the Heisman Trophy winner added to his ever-growing legend at one of those “friendlies” with Oklahoma leading up to Saturday’s bowl game.

The No. 1 and No. 4 football teams in the country gathered at local joint and, at the urging of the Peach Bowl committee, had a basketball competition.

Normally, it’s something more like foosball or air hockey. This wasn’t even pop-a-shot.

Anyway, five players from each team were chosen, each shooting baskets against a timer while alternating between the free-throw line and the top of the key.

According to highly placed sources, wide receiver Terrace Marshall is the Tigers’ best basketball player. But Burrow, dramatically, was the last to shoot, with the competition going against the Tigers.

By all accounts, he looked a little bored and it appeared he didn’t want to make a big deal of something that might be beneath him except that he didn’t want to seem like a bad guest.

So, with every cellphone taping, he calmly stepped up and hit nine of his first 11 shots. Then, he got off one more at the buzzer, drained it from the top of the key — 10 of 12 —to provide the winning margin for the Tigers, and got a proper mobbing from teammates.

Well, of course he did.

What’d you expect?

That’s just the way Joe rolls.

He was also an Ohio high school all-state basketball player before he was a lightly recruited football player who would eventually move to the bayou and save LSU football.

In LSU’s past trips to the Peach Bowl, it might have been the biggest news of the week. But this week is a little different.

This time it won’t even be a footnote to the football.

This time it’s strictly business. No time for friendlies.

This isn’t really a bowl trip in the traditional sense.

The Peach Bowl, underrated even in its previous life, is all grown up from LSU’s previous trips, which usually meant the Tigers didn’t win the SEC and were relegated to being off-Broadway, football speaking, for the holidays.

It’s not so much the Peach Bowl this season as it is one of the semifinals of the College Football Playoff.

That’s not quite so familiar for the Tigers, who flourished late in the old BCS days but have been left out of the previous five playoffs.

So LSU practiced on Christmas Day. And the Tigers didn’t get so much as a “Merry Christmas” from head coach Ed Orgeron, who was all business.

The Crazy Cajun has brought the Tigers back to where their fans believe they always belong: back in the national picture; back in the national championship hunt. One game, one win, from returning home to play for the big one. In New Orleans, where their previous three national championships were consummated.

So this trip, nice as the bowl people are, has one mission: Beat Oklahoma.

It’s unlikely a 3-pointer at the end of the game is going to help them.

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Scooter Hobbs covers LSU athletics. Email him at shobbs@americanpress.comNEW LSU LOGO (UPLOADED 2019)