No. 18 LSU rolls past Auburn behind Leavitt's 387 passing yards
Sam Leavitt threw for 387 yards and three touchdowns as No. 18 LSU pulled away in the second quarter and beat Auburn 38-17 at Jordan-Hare Stadium.
No. 18 LSU moved the ball almost at will Saturday at Jordan-Hare Stadium, and Sam Leavitt was the reason. The quarterback completed 32 of 45 passes for 387 yards and three touchdowns without an interception, and the Tigers turned that production into a 38-17 SEC win over Auburn. LSU finished with 552 total yards to Auburn's 271, a gap that showed up on the scoreboard by halftime.
Leavitt's favorite target was Jackson Harris, who caught nine passes for 178 yards and two touchdowns. Dilin Jones gave LSU balance on the ground with 21 carries for 92 yards and a score. Jordan Ross supplied the pass rush with two sacks, and PJ Woodland matched Auburn's Kaleb Harris for the game high with nine tackles.
The game swung in the second quarter. LSU led 10-3 after the first period, then put up 21 points in the second while Auburn managed seven, sending the visitors into halftime with a 31-10 cushion. Neither team scored in the third, and the teams traded touchdowns in the fourth.
Auburn's best moments came through the air. Byrum Brown completed 15 of 24 passes for 160 yards, and Keshaun Singleton caught four of them for 64 yards. Brown also ran for a touchdown, but the ground game never got going: Auburn rushed 35 times for 67 yards, an average of 1.9 per carry, with Brown's 19 attempts netting 21 yards. Jared Smith recorded Auburn's lone sack.
The down-to-down numbers favored LSU across the board. LSU converted 29 first downs to Auburn's 16 and went 3-for-4 on fourth down while holding the ball long enough to run 46 passes and 34 rushes. Neither team turned the ball over. LSU was flagged seven times for 50 yards; Auburn six times for 48.
LSU improves to 6-2 with the win. Auburn falls to 4-3.