Acting simultaneously as impromptu host and the visiting team for Saturday’s game against South Carolina, LSU rolled out the hospitality … right up until kickoff.

After briefly falling behind in the opening quarter, the Tigers took control and ran away with a 45-24 win, racking up 624 total yards along the way. The win puts LSU at 5-0 heading into its home showdown Saturday night against unbeaten Florida.

5 TAKEAWAYS

  • Even when he’s not amazing, Leonard Fournette is pretty great: South Carolina gave LSU a preview of a defense the Tigers can expect to see plenty the rest of the season, stacking the box with eight defenders primed to limit the LSU’s primary weapon. It worked well for a half. But early in the third he broke into the open field, shifted gears, and outran the Gamecocks secondary to the end zone on an 87-yard touchdown run. He finished with 158 yards on 20 carries.
  • The wide receivers aren’t as bad as they looked last week: The passing game looked better Saturday than it has all season. Brandon Harris is still on-and-off with his accuracy, but perhaps the bigger problem in recent games has been drops from the talented, yet inconsistent receivers. Those problems never surfaced Saturday. After starting the game on the bench, Malachi Dupre and Travin Dural resumed their roles as LSU’s primary receivers and finished with a combined 10 catches for 183 yards.
  • The LSU backfield is absurdly talented: Fournette’s other-worldly gifts are common knowledge. But this week, we got our first extended look at freshman Derrius Guice. And let’s just say, the future looks promising. Showing power, burst and a running style reminiscent of the Tasmanian Devil, Guice churned out a game-high 161 yards on 16 carries. Add to the mix bulldozing Darrel Williams, and you’ve got one of the best collections of running back talent in the country, and arguably the best in the SEC since Darren McFadden, Felix Jones and Peyton Hillis were chewing up yards for Arkansas.
  • Kickoff coverage continues to be a problem: We knew it was coming. LSU has been giving up chunks of field position with spotty kickoff coverage throughout the season, and South Carolina finally made them pay when Rashad Fenton went 96 yards untouched in the second quarter. The Tigers opted for squibs and pooches on their next two kickoffs, but that’s a less-than-ideal strategy going forward.
  • The pass defense has been fine, but … : The Tigers have been solid against the pass. Entering Saturday, they ranked third in the conference in passing yards allowed per game, and fifth in pass defense efficiency. But South Carolina made it clear they still need Jalen Mills to be at their best. Quarterback Perry Orth, who was 6 of 17 in his first start this season against Georgia, finished 14 of 28 for 200 yards against LSU. The Tigers can live with those numbers, but the Gamecocks picked on Dwayne Thomas for a pair of big plays in the first half. So far this season, Tre’Davious White has been the lock-down corner he was expected to be, and Kevin Toliver has been excellent by any measure, but especially for a true freshman. All told, the secondary is getting the job done. But when Mills returns to full health, it could go from good to great.

REPORT CARD

Offense: A- — It took the running game awhile to start clicking, but LSU moved with little resistance in the second half. Harris finished 18 of 28 with a career-high 228 through the air, and the Tigers’ 624 total yards mark their most in a conference game since 1987.

Defense: B — Typical of this year’s team, the Tigers defense swarmed at times, and at others gave up yards a little too easily. Nonetheless, it’s hard to complain much when the defense holds an SEC opponent to fewer than 4 yards per carry and 283 yards of offense.

Special Teams: C — Trent Domingue is 7 of 7 on field goals, but LSU must find a cure for its kickoff coverage woes.

Coaching: B+ — Les Miles and offensive coordinator Cam Cameron have brought the passing game along slowly but are growing more comfortable giving Harris more responsibility. Their faith was rewarded Saturday, and the emergence of a passing game could have big benefits for LSU as it enters the heart of  SEC play.

Overall: B+ — The Tigers showed room for improvement, but also looked much better in most phases than they did in lackluster showings against Syracuse and Eastern Michigan.

GAME PLAN

It’s telling that in a game in which the Tigers threatened 400 rushing yards again, the passing game was perhaps the most encouraging facet of the offense. South Carolina was determined to limit LSU on the ground and largely succeeded in the game’s early stages. But Harris’ ability to connect on big passes in key situations loosened the Gamecocks’ defense and let the running game go wild in the second half.

The LSU staff came with the right mix of conservatism and aggression in a game in which the Tigers had more talent, and it paid off as the offense got better as the game wore on.

GAME BALLS

  • RB Leonard Fournette: The Heisman frontrunner topped 100 rushing yards for the seventh straight game and went over 1,000 yards for the season on his 87-yard scoring run in the third quarter. In just five games, he reached the plateau faster than any player in LSU history.
  • RB Derrius Guice:  All that offseason talk we heard from coaches on Guice’s behalf appears justified. Guice showed Saturday that he’s ready to log significant carries in SEC play and could play a big role in the offense.
  • QB Brandon Harris: He misfired on a few passes, but Harris continues to take care of the ball and flash big-time arm strength. Perhaps the biggest development is that he also showed some touch; his 10-yard fade to Dupre in the end zone was picture-perfect.
  • WR Malachi Dupre and Travin Dural: After a brutal outing against Eastern Michigan, Dupre and Dural came off the bench to play their best games of the season. Dupre finished with six catches for 78 yards and a touchdown, and Dural had four for 109, including a 62-yard score midway through the third quarter.
  • DE Lewis Neal: Not a big game for defensive stats, but Neal had another sack, taking his team-leading total to four through five games.

INJURY UPDATE

  • FB John David Moore left in the first half with a leg injury and did not return.
  • S Jalen Mills (leg) dressed out, but did not play.
  • TE Dillon Gordon (Achilles) dressed out, but did not play.
  • OL Adrian Magee (foot) remains out indefinitely after surgery in August.