LSU whips Arkansas to reclaim The Boot

LSU running back Leonard Fournette is tackled by Arkansas defensive lineman Bijhon Jackson during a game Saturday, Nov. 12, 2016, in Fayetteville.
LSU running back Leonard Fournette is tackled by Arkansas defensive lineman Bijhon Jackson during a game Saturday, Nov. 12, 2016, in Fayetteville.

— The Boot is heading south for the winter.

No. 24 LSU used a strong run game and stout run defense to overwhelm No. 25 Arkansas on Saturday and beat the Razorbacks 38-10. The Tigers snapped a two-game losing streak in the series.

Derrius Guice rushed for 252 yards and 2 touchdowns on 21 carries for LSU.

Guice, a sophomore, had a school-record 96-yard touchdown run midway through the fourth quarter to extend the Tigers' lead to 38-10. He also had a 3-yard touchdown run in the second quarter.

"We felt that Derrius deserved more touches," LSU coach Ed Orgeron said. "Obviously, Derrius is a very good running back and we wanted to share the carries."

Star LSU running back Leonard Fournette added 98 yards and 3 touchdowns on 17 carries for the Tigers. Fournette, who did not play in the fourth quarter, scored on runs of 5, 7 and 3 yards.

LSU (6-3, 4-2 SEC) rushed for 390 yards against a Razorbacks' defense that has been gashed by the run this season. In its four SEC losses, Arkansas has given up 1,563 rushing yards and 8.7 yards per carry.

“Give credit to LSU,” Arkansas coach Bret Bielema said. “They obviously came in with a game plan and executed very, very well for four quarters.

“We just do so much better defensively when we’re coming downhill and playing aggressive and resetting the line of scrimmage. At times we did that, but when we didn’t, they gashed us.”

The Tigers scored the game's first 21 points and led 21-7 at halftime.

Arkansas briefly had an opportunity to get back into the game in the second half when it recovered two fumbles inside LSU territory. But the Razorbacks only converted those turnovers into a 24-yard field goal by Adam McFain to pull within 21-10 early in the third quarter.

Arkansas (6-4, 2-4) had a touchdown overturned in the fourth quarter when it was determined Jeremy Sprinkle was tackled short of the goal line. Devwah Whaley fumbled on the next play and LSU recovered the ball in the end zone for a touchback.

The Razorbacks' only touchdown came in the second quarter when Austin Allen hit Dominique Reed for a 44-yard pass on third-and-22.

Allen struggled for the second consecutive game. He completed 15 of 31 passes for 210 yards and was intercepted twice.

The Tigers bottled up Arkansas' run game for 81 yards on 24 attempts.

"Offensively, it just seemed like whenever we did something good we shot ourselves in the foot or did something uncharacteristic," Bielema said. "That obviously set us back."

LSU quarterback Danny Etling completed 10 of 16 passes for 157 yards. Etling had a 48-yard pass to Malchi Dupre to set-up Guice's first touchdown run that gave the Tigers a 21-0 lead in the second quarter.

"He brings a lot to our team," Orgeron said. "Everything centers around your quarterback and your quarterback play.

"We felt confident he would do a good job and he did."

The game was Arkansas' last this season at home. The Razorbacks are scheduled to play their final two games on the road, beginning next Saturday with a 6 p.m. game at Mississippi State.

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