NEW ORLEANS – No. 13 LSU dominated BYU in a 27-0 shutout in the 2017 AdvoCare Texas Kickoff Saturday night at the Mercedes-Benz Superdome.
The Tigers smothered BYU's offense and outgained the Cougars 479 to 97 in total yards. The Cougars couldn't ever find a rhythm on offense and were limited to 38 offensive plays while possessing the football for just over 18 minutes.
Freshman tight end Matt Bushman led BYU receivers with 43 yards on four receptions while sophomore wide receiver Micah Simon caught two passes for 28 yards. Junior quarterback Tanner Mangum completed 12 of 24 passes for 102 yards and an interception.
Marvin Hifo led the team with 10 tackles. Troy Warner added nine tackles and four solo stops.
The game remained scoreless through the first quarter. LSU was the first to put points on the board on a 13-play, 66-yard touchdown drive 38 seconds into the second quarter. Running back Derrius Guice rushed for four yards to the end zone and Jack Gonsoulin connected on the PAT to put the Tigers up 7-0.
Andraez Williams intercepted a pass moments later from Mangum on the Cougars’ first play of the next drive. DJ Clark caught a 52-yard reception from quarterback Danny Etling to put the Tigers inside the five-yard line. Guice scored his second touchdown of the night on a one-yard run, giving LSU a 14-0 advantage.
LSU marched 65 yards down the field before Gonsoulin missed a 34-yard field goal wide right with just 1:43 left in the half. The Tigers maintained their lead, 14-0, heading into the locker room.
On back-to-back LSU drives, Gonsoulin hit two field goals from 23 and 29 yards out, respectively, to make the score 20-0 in favor of the Tigers with 3:08 left in the third quarter.
The BYU defense held LSU on a critical fourth-and-goal on the three yardline seven minutes into the fourth quarter. The Cougars turned the ball over on downs after a fake punt and Darrel Williams rushed one yard for a touchdown, making it 27-0 for the Tigers.
BYU hosts Utah on Sept. 9 at LaVell Edwards Stadium at 8:15 p.m. MT. That game will be televised on one of the ESPN networks with radio broadcasts on the BYU Sports Network, BYU Radio (Sirius XM 143) and KSL Radio (1160 AM/102.7 FM).