BATON ROUGE — It didn’t matter who was throwing long passes to Rueben Randle, and it certainly didn’t matter that LSU was missing three key players.
Randle caught scoring passes of 42 yards from Jordan Jefferson and 46 yards from Jarrett Lee, and BCS No. 1 LSU again overcame off-the-field distractions in style Saturday with a 45-10 victory over 20th-ranked Auburn.
“It just seems like no matter who goes down or who’s out, we have guys who are ready to step in ... and not just to fill a spot but to go in and dominate,” LSU center T-Bob Hebert said.
LSU was without star cornerback Tyrann Mathieu, leading rusher Spencer Ware and defensive back Tharold Simon, all of whom were suspended one game for violating the team’s drug policy. Yet LSU continued to dominate opponents with its eighth victory by 10 or more points in as many games this season, a streak that started with a season-opening triumph over Oregon without then-suspended Jefferson and receiver Russell Shepard.
“I almost feel like everybody else makes a bigger deal about it than we do,” Hebert said of the periodic lineup upheaval and misbehavior that has caused it. “It’s not distracting to us. This team is so good about staying focused, one-track mind, not letting anything on the outside get to them because we don’t want to have any regrets.”
LSU (8-0, 5-0 SEC) has the coming week off and willbe unbeaten entering what is bound to be a highly anticipated showdown at No. 2 Alabama on Nov. 5.
The beneficiary of Ware’s absence was freshman Kenny Hilliard, who scored the first two touchdowns of his career while rushing for 65 yards on 10 carries.
Randle finished with five receptions for 106 yards.
“We all know our roles on this team, and we know if we come out and do our jobs that we are going to be tough to beat,” Randle said. “Kenny came in and really stepped up when we needed him.”
Lee was 14 of 20 for 165 yards and 2 touchdowns, the second a 10-yarder to Shepard. Jefferson completed 2 of 3 passes for 54 yards.
“I feel really comfortable with the rhythm that I have with both quarterbacks,” Randle said. “That was shown in both touchdown passes today.”
With Michael Ford leading the way (12 rushes, 82 yards), LSU gained 174 yards on the ground.
Even without two key defensive backs, LSU held Auburn first-time starter Clint Moseley to 145 yards passing, sacked him six times and intercepted him once.
“It’s really difficult to really assess how he did,” Auburn Coach Gene Chizik said. “That was an anemic job of protecting the quarterback. We have a lot of work to do and a lot of research to do to figure out how to stop the bleeding in that regard.”
Mathieu’s replacement, Ron Brooks, made the interception and returned it 28 yards for a score that made it 42-3 only halfway through the third quarter.
“I just tried to keep myself calm, not try to do too much and just play within the game plan and do what the coaches were asking me to do,” said Brooks, a senior who has been part of LSU’s six-defensive back formation for three seasons.
Auburn (5-3, 3-2) was held to 87 yards rushing, with Michael Dyer (Little Rock Christian) accounting for 60.
“The reality of it is we got beat in just about every phase of the game,” Chizik said. “They did a lot of whatever they wanted.”
All season, LSU has appeared increasingly galvanized by each potential pitfall, and Coach Les Miles even mentioned several weeks ago that adversity seems to strengthen his tight knit team’s resolve.
“That is the mark of a great team,” Miles said.
It’s getting pretty hard to argue with that, considering LSU responded to its latest crisis with the most lopsided victory by either team in the 46-game history of the LSU-Auburn series. It was Auburn’s worst loss since falling 51-10 to then-No. 1 Florida in 1996.
KENTUCKY 38, JACKSONVILLE STATE 14
LEXINGTON, Ky. - CoShik Williams ran for a career-high 148 yards and Kentucky (3-4) ended a four-game losing streak with a nonconference victory over Jacksonville State (5-2).
Williams took up the slack as the primary ball carrier after sophomore Raymond Sanders left in the first quarter with an ankle injury. Williams, a junior, finished with 22 carries.
Freshman Josh Clemons, the Wildcats’ leading rusher this season, already had been ruled out for the season with a knee injury.
Williams’ previous career best was 95 yards rushing, set against Charleston Southern last season.
The Wildcats were able to break out after a bye week, earning a season-best 445 yards of total offense and 340 yards of total offense despite missing their two primary tailbacks.
Kentucky struggled to move the ball in the first quarter with its first three possessions ended with two punts and a lost fumble. The Wildcats entered this game ranked 118th out of 120 FBS teams in total offense, averaging just 229 yards per game this season. Their first three possessions carried held true to that reputation, ending with only one first down, two punts and a lost fumble.
But with 3:33 left in the first, safety Martavius Neloms sacked Jacksonville State quarterback Coty Blanchard, forced a fumble and ran it back 40 yards for the game’s first score.
The offense began clicking in the second quarter for the Wildcats, and they finished with 253 yards of total offense at halftime. They had gained a total of 251 yards in their previous two games combined
Washaun Ealey rushed for 120 yards for the Gamecocks.
Sports, Pages 33 on 10/23/2011