Not even Mother Nature could prevent what many considered to be the inevitable outcome of LSU’s season opener — a blowout win for the Tigers against an outmatched UL-Monroe team.
Despite heavy thunderstorms and severe lightning that delayed the game 40 minutes, LSU rolled to a 49-7 win over the Indians. After the delay, which came with 11:09 to play in the first quarter, LSU coach Nick Saban said the team seemed sluggish but that it gained its composure and played better in the second half.
“I just think mentally we were a little bit flat in the beginning, and I’m not really sure the delay in the beginning really helped us much,” Saban said. “We came around, and there were a lot of good things out there. Guys seemed to make the plays.”
The Tigers (1-0) squandered several scoring chances in the first quarter, but were finally able to score on quarterback Matt Mauck’s 8-yard touchdown to Devery Henderson with 6:37 left in the second quarter.
Mauck, who completed 13-of-28 passes for 153 yards with three touchdowns, saw his first action since injuring his foot 10 months ago. He said he felt comfortable on the field but the inclement weather made things difficult on all the players.
“I wish maybe we could have come out with a little more intensity and maybe ready to play a little earlier,” Mauck said. “That would have made it a lot better. Overall I think it’s a game-winning result and it’s a win. I never complain about that.”
LSU added two more scores in the half, both on touchdown pass from Mauck, to take a 21-0 halftime lead.
The biggest setback of the game for LSU was losing cornerback Randall Gay, who broke a bone in his arm during the game. Saban said Gay could be out between two and five weeks. Saban said the injury will not require surgery.
Joseph Addai led all rushers with 81 yards on 15 carries, while Shyrone Carey gave LSU solid field position with four punt returns for 82 yards.
Saban said the team made some mental mistakes throughout the game, such as dropped passes and missed defensive assignments, but those could be fixed during the week.
Michael Clayton led the Tigers with six catches for 152 yards and a pair of touchdowns.
“We (the receivers) just came out there thinking we could make big plays,” Clayton said. “Matt did a great job of finding the open guy when we had a chance to make some plays.”
LSU finished with 474 yards of total offense while allowing only 240 yards to ULM (0-1).
Saban played 12 true freshmen in the game and said he was pleased with LaRon Landry and Jessie Daniels’ performance at the safety position.
UL-Monroe coach Charlie Weatherbie said his players fought well, but there are still many aspects of the game where they can improve.
“I thought we did some good things but field position killed us early,” Weatherbie said. “We did not punt the ball well, and of course the wind was against us and the rain came down pretty hard there in the first quarter. I felt like we played pretty well in the first quarter, but about midway through the second quarter we gave up a couple of cheap ones.”
Steven Jiles completed 14-of-30 passes for 180 yards to lead the Indians. Kevin Pane carried 16 times for 72 yards, and scored the team’s lone touchdown in the third quarter.
In the second half, LSU scored 28 points to put the game away and many of the reserves saw action, which Saban said should help the team in future games.
Marcus Randall also completed 5-of-7 passes for 153 yards in mop up duty in the second half, including a 66-yard touchdown strike to Clayton.