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Bowl Masters
A sideline shower capped Nick Saban's Sugar Bowl win.
LSU proved it has become one of the closest things to a sure-bet for victory when it comes to bowl games. The Tigers built a big lead and then held on to beat Illinois 47-34 on Tuesday to win the Sugar Bowl, the fifth straight bowl victory for LSU. Kurt Kittner tried to rally the Illini with four TD passes, but it was too little, too late.
• Davis the 'Doman-ator' | Notebook: LSU takes charge
| INDIVIDUAL STATISTICAL LEADERS |
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ILLINOIS |
YDS |
LSU |
YDS |
| Passing |
Kurt Kittner |
2994 |
Rohan Davey |
3347 |
| Rushing |
Antoineo Harris |
626 |
LaBrandon Toefield |
992 |
| Receiving |
Brandon Lloyd |
1006 |
Josh Reed |
1740 |
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| TEAM STATISTICAL COMPARISON |
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| Total Offense |
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389.8 |  | 
416.8 |
Passing Yards |
| | 252.1 | | |
275.2 |
Passing completion % |
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55.2 | | |
57.9 |
Completions |
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211 | | |
238 |
Attempts |
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382 | | |
411 |
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| Scoring Offense |
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32.5 | | |
32.2 |
Scoring Defense |
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23.8 | | |
23.2 |
Rushing Yards |
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137.8 | | |
141.5 |
Rushing attempts |
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467 | | |
451 |
Key: |
| Illinois | | LSU |
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"The Illini found out that they just couldn't keep up with the high-powered offense of LSU. Great game to Davey, Reed, and Davis."
Big Ten notebook
As the season draws to a close, it's time to look back at the highs and lows as well as salute the best coach and players in the Big Ten.
SEC notebook
As the season draws to a close, it's time to look back at the highs and lows as well as salute the best coach and players in the SEC.
Looking back at the experts' preseason picks
Looking back at the experts' preseason picks
More News & Features
Nokia Sugar Bowl breakdown
ABC's analysts break down the matchup between LSU and Illinois.
Players to Watch
Josh Reed and Kurt Kittner will light up the Superdome, writes ABC Sports' David Norrie.
Breakdown: LSU-Illinois
A statistical breakdown of the Nokia Sugar Bowl between LSU and Illinois.
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WITH MEL KIPER
Going into this game, the key matchup was between LSU's wide receivers (Biletnikoff winner Josh Reed and Michael Clayton) and Illinois' cornerbacks (Eugene Wilson and Christian Morton, the Illini's best all-around athlete). I felt that whoever got the best of this matchup would win.
As it turned out, Clayton and Reed proved to be uncoverable -- they schooled Wilson and Morton. And LSU quarterback Rohan Davey was able not only to get away from pressure by scrambling but also to complete passes with defenders draped on his 250-pound frame.
The Illini defense, which improved significantly this season, wasn't able to get it done in this game. Davey, Clayton and Reed were just too much to handle. Illinois produced some points behind Kurt Kittner to make it a little more interesting, but the Tigers were able to move the ball whenever they wanted to. The result was the highest-scoring game in Sugar Bowl history.
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| IT WAS OVER WHEN |
| Domanick Davis answered an Illinois touchdown in the fourth quarter, scoring on a 4-yard run to give LSU a 47-28 lead with 8:39 remaining. |
| GAME BALL GOES TO |
| LSU's Davis, who started for injured star LaBrandon
Toefield and promptly rushed for 122 yards and a Sugar Bowl-record four touchdowns. |
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ILLINOIS CLUBHOUSE
Heading into its Nokia Sugar Bowl game against LSU, coach Ron Turner was concerned about the speed and athleticism of LSU. As it turned out, Turner had every right to be worried.
LSU CLUBHOUSE
RB Domanick Davis was impressive as LaBrandon Toefield's replacement in the Tigers' win over Illinois in the Nokia Sugar Bowl on New Year's Day.
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ILLINOIS VS. LSU
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