No. 13 LSU shuts down BYU, 27-0
FOXBOROUGH, Mass. — The New England Patriots traded quarterback Jacoby Brissett to the Indianapolis Colts for receiver Phillip Dorsett.
The deal was announced Saturday in advance of the deadline for NFL teams to set their 53-man rosters for the start of the regular season.
In separate deals, the Patriots sent undisclosed draft picks to Seattle for defensive end Cassius Marsh, and traded another draft pick to Detroit for cornerback Johnson Bademosi. Marsh was a fourth-round draft pick in 2014 and Bademosi was an undrafted free agent in 2012.
New England’s trade with the Colts fills needs for both teams. By bringing in Brissett, the Colts add some depth at quarterback with Andrew Luck still working his way back from shoulder surgery. Brissett, a thirdround pick in 2016, started two games as a rookie last season while Tom Brady served his fourgame “Deflategate” suspension.
By adding Dorsett, a first-round draft pick in 2015, the Patriots get another capable pass catch- er with Julian Edelman out for the season with a knee injury.
The addition of Marsh could help fill New England’s need at edge rusher after rookie Derek Rivers was sidelined during the preseason with an injury. Bademosi gives New England some depth in the secondary after Cyrus Jones suffered a knee injury during the Patriots’ preseason finale.
NEW ORLEANS — Derrius Guice looks like he can thrive in LSU’s new offense and the Tigers’ inexperience on defense does not appear to be a liability whatsoever.
Guice rushed for 120 yards and two touchdowns, and No. 13 LSU never allowed BYU’s offense to cross midfield in a 27-0 defeat of the Cougars on Saturday night.
Louisiana native Ed Orgeron was able to celebrate a largely stressfree victory in his maiden season opener as LSU’s head coach, but also saw his offense squander scoring chances that could have made the result even more lopsided.
“We had some miscues down on the goal line but a lot of it is just some first-game stuff,” quarterback Danny Etling said. “It’s good to get it out of the way. You want to cut down on those mistakes, but all in all I thought it was a pretty good night.”
The good news for LSU was that a defense with four true freshmen in the starting lineup — and without injured top pass rusher Arden Key — held BYU to fewer than 100 yards. And the last time LSU played in the Superdome, it was the Tigers who didn’t cross midfield during a loss to Alabama in the 2012 national title game.
“People were joking about years ago the LSU offense the last time in this place, but look what our defense did,” defensive end Rashard Lawrence said. “We knew what the stats were on the sidelines for a large portion of the fourth quarter. We were checking the yards and just encourag- ing the guys in there once the starters came out to just keep holding them.”
Operating an overhauled offensive scheme under new coordinator Matt Canada, LSU piled up enormous statistical advantages but stalled four times inside the BYU 20 — twice coming away with no points, once because of a missed field goal and once because of a failed run on fourthand-goal from the 1.
The Tigers outgained BYU (1-1) 479 yards to 97, and Etling proved right those teammates and coaches who said he has looked more accurate since recovering from offseason back surgery. Etling completed 14 of 17 passes for 173 yards, including completions of 52 yards to D.J. Chark and 32 yards to Russell Gage. He did not have a touchdown pass, but didn’t turn the ball over, either.
Etling did “exactly what we asked him to do tonight,” Orgeron said. “He did fantastic. But It goes to show you the hard work he did all summer. He learned. He studied. The guy’s a relentless worker. Our guys believe in him.”
The game was supposed to be played in Houston, but was moved because of flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey. Still, the “Texas Kickoff” logo was on the Superdome field and the LSU band played “Texas My Texas” before kickoff.
Cougars QB Tanner Mangum was 12 of 24 for 102 yards while under routine pressure. He was sacked three times.
“They showed some of the best defense I’ve seen in college football,” BYU coach Kalani Sitake said. “We just couldn’t get anything going.”