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No. 25 LSU off and running with 33-17 win over No. 8 Miami

Miami wide receiver Evidence Njoku (83) and LSU cornerback Kristian Fulton (22) compete for a pass during the second half of an NCAA college football game Sunday, Sept. 2, 2018, in Arlington, Texas. The pass was incomplete. LSU won 33-17. (Ron Jenkins / AP)
Associated Press

ARLINGTON, Texas – Nick Brossette ran for 125 yards with two touchdowns, grad transfer quarterback Joe Burrow won his first college start and No. 25 LSU made an opening statement with a 33-17 victory over No. 8 Miami on Sunday night.

Once the game started, the Hurricanes never really backed the bravado they showed in a feisty exchange of words and some shoving between the teams during warmups about 75 minutes before kickoff.

LSU led 27-3 by halftime after Jacob Phillips returned an interception 45 yards for a touchdown.

Cole Tracy, a kicker last season at Division II Assumption College, made four field goals in his Tigers debut. His 54-yarder that just skimmed over the crossbar made it 33-3 late in the third quarter.

Miami, which has lost four games in a row since a 10-0 start last season, never got to celebrate with that gaudy turnover chain that comes out when the Hurricanes get a takeaway.

When LSU fumbled on the opening drive, receiver Dee Anderson managed to recover after taking a shot to the head and losing the ball briefly at the end of an 11-yard catch for a first down. The Hurricanes instead lost starting cornerback Trajan Bandy when he was ejected for targeting.

The Hurricanes thought they had a fumble return for a touchdown later in the first quarter, but a replay review determined it was an incomplete pass by Burrow instead of a fumble.

LSU went ahead to stay in the final minute of the first quarter when Burrow, who played in 10 games for Ohio State the past two years, appeared to change the called play. Brossette took an inside handoff and went untouched down the middle of the field for a 50-yard TD run that snapped a 3-3 tie.

Burrow finished 11 of 24 for 140 yards.

Brossette’s 1-yard run made it 17-3 on an 11-play drive when LSU twice converted fourth-and-1 – on a 2-yard gain by Brossette near midfield, and when Miami jumped offside. He had only 96 yards rushing all last season as a junior.