No. 13 LSU opens Orgeron era vs. BYU in New Orleans

Aug 31, 2017 - 5:34 PM BYU (1-0 in 2017) vs. No. 13 LSU (8-4 in 2016) in New Orleans, Saturday 9:30 p.m. ET (ESPN) Line: LSU by 17. Series record: First meeting. WHAT'S AT STAKE Louisiana native Ed Orgeron coaches his first season opener for LSU after holding the job on an interim basis for seven games following the firing of Les Miles in 2016. BYU opened with a blah victory over Portland State of the FCS. For FBS independent BYU, good results against ranked opponents is the only path to a marquee bowl games. KEY MATCHUP LSU's reshuffled offensive line vs. BYU's defensive front. The Tigers lost one starter, center Ethan Pocic, to the draft, while another, guard Maea Teuhema, left the program. The resulting shuffle has veterans K.J. Malone and Toby Weathersby at tackle, veteran guard Will Clapp getting his first start at center and two new starters at guard. BYU linebacker Fred Warner (10 tackles) and lineman Sione Takitaki (seven tackles, two sacks) led a stingy defensive performance last week. PLAYERS TO WATCH BYU: RB Squally Canada rushed for 98 yards on 16 carries and scored a TD against Portland State last week. He looks to become an emerging contributor in the Cougars' offense. LSU: RB Derrius Guice, who last season set a single-game LSU rushing record with 285 yards at Texas A&M, could emerge as one of the premier players in college football this season, depending on how he adjusts to the scheme of new offensive coordinator Matt Canada. FACTS & FIGURES The game was supposed to be played in Houston, but widespread flooding caused by Hurricane Harvey led officials on Monday to relocate. Technically, it is a "neutral site" game. For practical purposes, the Superdome is LSU's home-away-from-home, about 80 miles from Baton Rouge. LSU sold out its allotment of 25,000 tickets in a day or so this week. ... LSU has won 54 of its last 55 nonconference regular season games, the lone loss coming against Wisconsin in the 2016 opener at Green Bay's Lambeau Field. ... BYU's last victory over a ranked team came against No. 20 Boise State in Provo, Utah, on Sept. 12, 2015. The Cougars have gone 3-7 in their last 10 games against ranked teams. ___ More AP college football: http://collegefootball.ap.org and http://www.twitter.com/AP_Top25 .