SportsDirect Inc. staff
Oct 26, 2013
No. 13 LSU 48, Furman 16: Jeremy Hill, Terrence Magee and Odell Beckham each scored two touchdowns as the Tigers rebounded from an underwhelming first half to rout the visiting Paladins.
Zach Mettenberger overcame a pair of interceptions by going 16-of-24 for 328 yards and three touchdowns, two of which were hauled in by Beckham (six catches, 204 yards). LSU (7-2) also racked up 332 rushing yards, sparked by Hill's 143 yards on 14 attempts and Magee's seven efficient carries that resulted in 108 yards.
Hank McCloud rushed for a team-high 79 yards, while Ray Early kicked three field goals for Furman (3-5) . Paladins quarterback Reese Hannon needed 28 pass attempts to throw for only 104 yards and was intercepted once.
LSU, facing an FCS opponent that has already lost to Gardner-Webb, Coastal Carolina, Elon and Chattanooga, held a slim 20-16 halftime advantage in this one. Mettenberger was intercepted on the Tigers' opening drive by Reggie Thomas, who returned the pick 74 yards for a touchdown, and several other mistakes, including a missed extra point and a missed 31-yard field goal, contributed to LSU's lethargic first half.
The Tigers opened the second half with a crisp drive capped by Magee's 1-yard touchdown plunge before extending their advantage late in the third quarter on a 7-yard TD pass from Mettenberger to Melvin Jones. Magee erased any potential drama with a 39-yard scoring sprint in the first minute of the fourth quarter and Mettenberger put an exclamation point on the Tigers' resilient second-half performance with a 63-yard TD pass to Beckham with 9:10 to play.
GAME NOTEBOOK: Hill rushed for touchdowns of 55 and 4 yards in the first quarter, the second TD erasing a 10-7 deficit. ... Furman managed only 198 total yards, compared to 672 for LSU, but the Paladins held the ball for more than 35 minutes. ... Beckham's 204 receiving yards were a career high, surpassing his 179-yard performance against Mississippi State on Oct. 5.