LSU, Fournette run roughshod over Auburn, 45-21

LSU is fortunate to have Fournette.

The sophomore tailback amassed 228 yards rushing and three touchdowns in three quarters of work. He carried the rock only 19 times as the Bayou Bengals walloped the Auburn Tigers, 45-21 in Baton Rouge.

Before the game, the talk was all about Auburn’s quarterback Jeremy Johnson, who waited on the bench for two years before laying an egg against LSU.

Auburn's Rudy Ford said before that game that tackling Fournette wouldn't be "that difficult," but boy was he wrong. Also, unbeknownst to him, he had just supplied locker room fodder for Les Miles, who pasted Ford's quote on Fournette's locker before the game.

LSU defensive line coach Ed Orgeron, quoted in CampRush, said it best: “That was the most dominant performance of any college player I’ve seen in my 30 years coaching,” Orgeron says. “It was unbelievable.”

After the game, all anyone could talk about was Fournette and how he steamrolled Auburn’s defenders, breaking 11 tackles and created an ESPN highlight reel.

Fournette Express carries LSU over Mississippi State

Despite suiting up last week and playing for about 30 minutes against McNeese State before the game was called due to inclement weather, this one was billed as LSU's first game of the season.

The 15th-ranked Tigers came into No. 25 Mississippi State's home field in Starkville like a new team: Quarterback Brandon Harris looked poised and smart, the playcalls were diverse and aggressive, and the defense was playing lights out.

LSU took a commanding 14--0 lead in the first quarter, largely on the legs of sophomore Leonard Fournette, who finished with 159 yards and three touchdowns. LSU needed every last one of them.

But can they contend with the vicious SEC West? “We have the players, we have the coaches. It's time," Fournette told reporters after the game. We will see.

LSU beats MSU Bulldogs 21-19

MSU's Dak Prescott, frustrated most of the night by the Bengals D, finally solved LSU in the fourth quarter by lobbing short throws underneath that got them into easy down and distance. Scoring 13 points in the fourth quarter, the Bulldogs failed in the little things along the way to their first loss of the season.

They missed a crucial two-point conversion after scoring their second TD; they got called on a crucial delay of game near the end, which cost them 5 yards and probably the game.

LSU on the other hand, got long plays and touchdowns called back all night, negating big plays and huge chunks of yardage. Still, LSU hung on to win 21-19 on the road.

Fans will say Les Miles did all he could to lose the game -- and they're partially right -- but LSU's first game showed that the Tigers need a second wind to wear teams down -- and they need to stay aggressive down the stretch. Overall it was a solid B effort. #GeauxTigers

Fun With Colors: Georgia calls for 'Red Out' vs. LSU

University of Georgia Coach Mark Richt plans to have fun with colors Saturday night when LSU comes to between the hedges. He wants fans to wear red.

"We are wearing red jerseys Saturday. To show the unity of the DawgNation I'm asking everyone to wear Red!" was the message delivered from @MarkRicht," per the AJC.

Richt has done thing before, if we all remember the famous 'blackout' game against Florida and Tim Tebow.

"I think it’s a good thing," he said. "We are wearing our red, our players are, and our fans traditionally wear red most of the time. I’d like to have it 100 percent. I think it’d be a great sign of unity for our Bulldog Nation. If everybody buys in and gets to the stadium and see that everybody’s bought in before we even kickoff, I think that just adds a little energy to the day. I’d really like to see that.”

Sanford Stadium, Athens, Georgia

Saturday, September 28, 3:30 PM (ET)

5 reasons why LSU beat Auburn, 35-17

OK, there has been much pontification about LSU's shellacking of Auburn Saturday night in Baton Rouge, but here 5 reasons why it went down:

THE RAIN: LSU jumped out to a 21-0 lead. Common sense says you don't need to put the ball in the air on a night where inclement weather is a factor. When you're behind the weather plays a huge role in what you can do, thus Auburn had to abandon much of their gameplan (mind you, they still had a 100-yard back), but the weather helped LSU tremendously because they scored early.

JEREMY HILL: Le'ts get the elepant out of the room and into the end zone. Hill, who finished with 184 yards on 25 carries,single-handedly won the game, actually in the first half. Auburn simply had no answer, until they put 10 in the box. Les Miles very much tried to get him 200 yards, but the ram-him-up-the-middle scheme can only work for so long.

THE CROWD: Again, the bad weather forecast turned many Auburn fans away from the game and made others leave early. LSU had a decided advantage, as it should, playing in Tiger Stadium that night.

AUBURN'S INEPT OFFENSE: Quarterback Nick Marshall went 6 of 16 and had two turnovers in the first half, dooming any fast start the Tigers had -- and they had a good one the very first time they touched the ball, driving into LSU territory before fumbling.

LSU's BIG PLAYS: Auburn made a game of it in the second half, and truth be told, should have been down by one touchdown with 10 minutes in the game -- Tre Mason had come to life by that time, rumbling past LSU defenders for huge chunks of yards on the way to a 132-yard night. But everytime Auburn scored, LSU's receivers made a big play of their own, keeping the Bayou Bengals ahead by more than  a score most of the night.

Sean Payton reinstated to NFL, not interested in hollering at Gregg Williams

New Orleans Saints head coach Sean Payton was reinstated by the NFL this week, just days before the Super Bowl in New Orleans.
When asked if he had spoken about former Saints defensive coordinator Gregg Williams, Payton told reporters: "I have no interest in talking to Gregg."
OUCH. This is a guy you won a ring with...
Anyway, Payton's season-long suspension due to Bountygate was hard to take, he said.
"It was more or less something you can't control. To dwell on it with the time that I had ... the first week or so, it was difficult," Payton said. "You felt a lot of different emotions. At that point, you have to move on from it. Regardless of how you felt, knowing there were eight months. You'd drive yourself crazy if you just continue to hold those thoughts, whether you thought it was fair or not."
The coach is looking forward to evaluating players at the Senior Bowl.
Will the Saints make a Super Bowl run next year?

LSU outlasts Ole Miss, 41 -35

LSU outlasted Ole Miss 41-35 on Saturday in a scoring marathon between two unlikely offensive quarterbacks.

"I think everything we were doing was working," said Ole Miss quarterback Bo Wallace, who completed 15 of 34 passes for 310 yards and two touchdowns, despite three interceptions.
Jeremy Hill continued a dominant two months, leading the Tigers' ground game for the fifth straight week, as he carried the ball 20 times for 86 yards and three touchdowns.

Les Miles let his quarterback throw with abandon for the second straight game and it worked out.

"I'm proud of those men," Miles said of his team. "How easy it could of have been to say it was (Ole Miss') night. Spectacular group of men. You go find them, throw your arms around them and you give them a big kiss on the mouth, if you are a girl. Wow! What a game!"

"That was maybe the biggest momentum changer in the game," Miles said, adding giddily, "Is it Halloween night?"

The biggest play of the game was turned in by Odell Beckham on an 89-yard kickoff return.

"Everyone had their block, everyone had their man and everyone covered their assignments," Beckham said. "I saw a crease and I just hit it. ... It was an amazing experience and definitely changed the momentum."

2012: No. 6 LSU vs. No. 18 Texas A&M

LSU wins 24-19 against Johnny Football. Here is the complete game. This text

LSU pops Mississippi State Buldogs, 37 -1 7

Zach Mettenberger has finally showed the Tiger faithful what LSU coaches have been raving about the past three months as the Georgia native went 19-30 for 273 yards and two touchdowns in Saturday's 37-17 win over Mississippi State.

"He's at a hot streak right now. I think that's something Zach and the fans and really everybody have been waiting on all season," LSU center P.J. Lonergan said. "It's good to finally see him get in that rhythm."

Mettenberger's top target was Jarvis Landry, who finished with nine catches for 109 yards, including a 19-yard touchdown to help the Tigers (8-2, 4-2 SEC) beat the Bulldogs (7-3, 3-3).

Why the sudden explosive of offense for the Tigers???

"I think it is just everybody on the offense just maturing. We are really young in the receiving corps," Mettenberger said. "They are starting to know their assignments and are running better routes. That is all I can ask. If we can continue to keep clicking like this there are going to be big games for everybody like what Jarvis had tonight."

"Our passing game obviously is coming," LSU coach Les Miles said. "Zach is playing extremely well. He's got a nice touch on the ball. I think he knows where he needs to go. He's making quality decisions."

Oh, if we could get Bama again.