LSU dominates BYU in 27-0 win

NEW ORLEANS – Derrius Guice ran for 120 yards and two touchdowns and the LSU defense held BYU to fewer than 100 yards in the Tigers’ 27-0 victory in the Advocare Texas Kickoff at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome on Saturday night.

HOW THEY SCORED

First Quarter

No scoring

Second Quarter

LSU 7, BYU 0

Score: Guice 4-yard run. Jack Gonsoulin kick. Drive: 66 yards in 13 plays. Time of Possession: 7:13. Time Remaining: 14:22. Key Play: On third-and-eight, Danny Etling completed an 11-yard pass to Derrick Dillon for a first down at BYU’s 22.

LSU 14, BYU 0

Score: Guice 1-yard run. Gonsoulin kick. Drive: 65 yards in 5 plays. Time of Possession: 2:17. Time Remaining: 11:53. Key play: On first-and-ten, Etling completed a 52-yard pass to DJ Chark for a first down at BYU’s 2.

Third Quarter

LSU 17, BYU 0

Score: Gonsoulin 23-yard field goal. Drive: 80 yards in 9 plays. Time of Possession: 4:08. Time Remaining: 8:00. Key Play: On first-and-ten, Etling completed a 32-yard pass to Russell Gage for a first down at BYU’s 10.

LSU 20, BYU 0

Score: Gonsoulin 20-yard field goal. Drive: 34 yards in 7 plays. Time of Possession: 3:39. Time Remaining: 3:08. Key Play: Chark returned a Jonny Linehan punt 32 yards to BYU’s 37.

Fourth Quarter

LSU 27, BYU 0

Score: Darrel Williams 1-yard run. Gonsoulin kick. Drive: 12 yards in 2 plays. Time of Possession: :35. Time Remaining: 8:12. Key Play: Linehan was tackled short of a first down at BYU’s 12 on a fake punt.

TURNING POINT

LSU scored two touchdowns in less than a three-minute span early in the second quarter. A 4-yard run by Guice capped a 66-yard drive which put the Tigers ahead. On the first play after the kickoff, Greedy Williams intercepted a Tanner Mangum pass. A 52-yard pass from Etling to Chark then set up a 1-yard scoring run by Guice. BYU would never have a chance to get back into the game against a tenacious LSU defense.

LSU OFFENSIVE PLAYER OF THE GAME

Guice was given the ball early and often against the Cougars. He had 13 carries for 65 yards in the first quarter. By halftime, Guice had 85 yards and his two touchdowns on 20 attempts. Guice ended the game with 120 yards on 27 attempts with the two touchdowns. The 100-yard rushing game was the eighth of his career.

LSU DEFENSIVE PLAYERS OF THE GAME

It was hard to single out one defensive player for the Tigers since no one had more than five tackles. Outside linebacker Corey Thompson did register two sacks for 18 yards in losses. Thompson dropped Mangum for an 11-yard loss on a third-and-nine play in the first quarter. Thompson sacked Mangum for a seven-yard loss on a third-and-ten play in the third quarter.

KEY TEAM STATISTICS

First downs – LSU 26, BYU 6Rushing yardage – LSU 294, BYU -5Total offense – LSU 479, BYU 97Time of Possession – LSU 41:54, BYU 18:06Third-down conversions – LSU 5-of-10, BYU 2-of-10

INDIVIDUAL STATISTICAL LEADERS

LSU

Derrius Guice: 27 carries, 120 yards, 2 touchdowns

Danny Etling: 17 attempts, 14 completions, 173 yards

DJ Chark: 4 catches, 77 yardsDevin White: 5 tackles

Corey Thompson: 2 sacks

Ed Paris: 3 pass breakups

BYU

Squally Canada: 5 carries, 8 yards

Tanner Mangum: 24 attempts, 12 completions, 102 yards, 1 interception

Matt Bushman: 4 catches, 43 yards

Marvin Hifo: 10 tackles

NOTES

The shutout was the first for LSU in a season-opener in ten years. The Tigers defeated Mississippi State 45-0 at Starkville in 2007. . .LSU’s shutout was its first in three seasons. The Tigers blanked Louisiana-Monroe 31-0 in 2014. . .BYU was held under 100 yards of offense for the first time in 43 seasons. The Cougars gained 92 yards against Iowa State in 1974. . .It had been 35 years since LSU held an opponent to minus-5 yards rushing. Ole Miss had minus-50 yards rushing against the Tigers in 1982. . .There were 15 LSU scholarship players not in uniform for the BYU game. Outside linebackers Arden Key and Andre Anthony were out with injuries. Those two players were on the sidelines. The following players were not at the game – wide receiver Dee Anderson, tight end Caleb Roddy, H-back Bry’Kiethon Mouton, offensive lineman Adrian Magee, quarterback Justin McMillan, defensive ends Deondre Clark and Frank Herron, inside linebacker Donnie Alexander, outside linebacker Michael Divinity and Sci Martin, cornerbacks Kevin Toliver and Kristian Fulton and safety Xavier Lewis. . .The Tigers ran 38 plays in the first half and gained 269 yards. The Cougars ran 17 plays in the first half and gained 47 yards. . .Four true freshmen started for LSU – offensive tackle Saahdiq Charles, outside linebacker K’Lavon Chaisson, inside linebacker Tyler Taylor and safety Grant Delpit. When the Tigers used five defensive backs for the first time, true freshman Kary Vincent was the nickel back. . .Two projected starters were suspended – inside linebacker Donnie Alexander and cornerback Kevin Toliver. Taylor replaced Alexander and redshirt freshman Greedy Williams replaced Toliver. . .Guice had the eighth 100-yard rushing game of his career. That total ties Guice with Charles Scott and Harvey Williams for the sixth most in school history. . .Guice now has 1,943 rushing yards in his career. He passed Billy Cannon for No. 16 on LSU’s all-time list. Guice now trails Justin Vincent by 78 yards. . .LSU had the ball inside BYU’s 20 seven times and scored just three touchdowns. Gonsoulin made two field goals and missed one field goal attempt. Williams was tackled for a loss on fourth-and-goal at the Cougars’ 1. . .Jim McMahon was the honorary captain for BYU. Jamal Adams was the honorary captain for LSU. . .The paid attendance was 53,826.

FROM THE LOCKER ROOM

Coach Ed Orgeron’s comments: “We prepared our freshmen. I thought they were going to make more mistakes than they did. This is one of the best classes I’ve been around. We try to be 50-50 on offense. This was one of those nights where we were going to be physical and take what they were giving us. We know, Derrius (Guice) is a physical back. Danny (Etling) did exactly what we asked him to do. He was fantastic. The guy is a relentless worker. We’ve got some things to fix on special teams. We had penalties and we are going to fix them.”

UP NEXT

LSU will play host to Chattanooga in its home opener Saturday at Tiger Stadium. Kickoff is set for 6:30 p.m. Central. The Mocs, who had an open date this weekend, lost to Jacksonville State 27-13 in their season opener on Aug. 26. The game will be available on the SEC Network’s alternate channel.