No. 9 LSU Coasts by Wave, Ready for Tide

Ninth-ranked LSU amassed a season-best 455 yards of offense including 267 on the ground, as the Tigers won their 18th-straight over in-state rival Tulane on Saturday night at Tiger Stadium, 45-0.
LSU (7-1) scored four rushing touchdowns for the first time since its Chick-fil-A Bowl blowout win over Georgia Tech last December, while running back Charles Scott broke out with 112 yards and touchdown runs of 4 and 8 yards.
The Tigers' win setup a 2:30 p.m. CST clash with the No. 2-ranked and undefeated Alabama Crimson Tide on Saturday in Tuscaloosa. The game will be televised nationally by CBS.
Tulane (2-6) was shutout for the first time in 85 games. The last time the Green Wave were held scoreless was Sept. 28, 2002, against Texas in the Louisiana Superdome, 49-0.
The Tigers defense continued to smother its opponents. LSU allowed only 216 yards of total offense, including 26 yards rushing on 20 attempts. When the Green Wave entered LSU territory, cornerback Patrick Peterson intercepted a pass at the LSU 5-yard line and placekicker Ross Thevenot missed a 43-yard field goal.
While the Tigers worked on their rushing game, starting quarterback Jordan Jefferson threw for 163 yards, completing 11-of-17 passes with two touchdowns and an interception. Touchdown passes of 19 and 13 yards went to wide receiver Brandon LaFell, who moved into second place on the school's career receiving touchdowns list with 22.
LaFell caught four passes for 85 yards, while Terrance Toliver added 59 yards on four catches.
Backup Jarrett Lee led the Tigers on a 98-yard scoring drive in the fourth quarter, completing 2-of-3 passes for 25 yards. Running back Stevan Ridley rolled up 73 yards in the final quarter and scored from 10 yards with 1:12 to play in the game.
LSU freshman all-purpose back Russell Shepard scored for the second-straight game, putting the Tigers on the board with a 19-yard run with 8:05 left in the first quarter. Shepard ran five times for 48 yards and caught a pass for no gain.
Ryan Griffin, the starter and first of three Tulane quarterbacks, completed 21-of-29 passes for 163 yards. His longest completion went for 21 yards. Wide receiver Jeremy Williams had eight catches for 78 yards, and wide receiver Casey Robottom added seven catches for 63 yards.
Tulane leading rusher Andre Anderson attempted 11 rushes for 27 net yards.
LSU scored its first touchdown on a short field when Daniel Graff blocked Thevenot's punt at the Tulane 28-yard line and Stefoin Francois recovered at the 23. Two plays later, Shepard weaved for a 19-yard score.
A 50-yard punt return by LSU's Trindon Holliday gave the Tigers positive field position again at the Tulane 30, but Jefferson was intercepted by Adam Kwentua at the 16.
After a Tulane punt, Scott moved the Tigers to the Tulane 39 with runs of 9 and 15 yards. On third-and-10, Jefferson found LaFell wide open in the end zone for a 14-0 lead with 2:32 left in the opening quarter.
The teams traded punted before Tulane advanced to the LSU 14-yard line on consecutive receptions by fullback Antoine Duplessis of 21 and 6 yards. Three plays resulted in 12 yards lost, and Thevenot pulled his 43-yard field goal attempt to the left.
The Tigers took over at their 26 and used Scott five times to get to the Tulane 18. After a 14-yard pass to freshman wide receiver Rueben Randle to the 4, Scott barreled into the endzone for a 21-0 lead.
Late in the third quarter, the Tigers increased the lead to 28-0 on another short-field touchdown following another 50-yard punt return by Holliday to the Tulane 20.
Scott ran three-straight times, the last an 8-yard touchdown run.
In the fourth quarter, Jefferson and the Tigers continued to concentrate on the running game, as Scott, Jefferson and Williams combined for 44 yards to setup a 13-yard touchdown pass to LaFell. LaFell caught the ball at the Tulane 1, then reached the ball over the goalline before stepping out of bounds.
LSU led 35-0 with 9:55 to play.
With Lee at quarterback, Ridley powered and cut through the Tulane defense eight times for 73 yards, completing the effort with a 10-yard touchdown run with 1:12 left. The SEC Rocks!