Jacob Hester's second touchdown of the game and Charles Scott's pair of scoring runs helped LSU (5-0) amass 24 unanswered second-half points in a 34-9 victory on Saturday.

Matt Flynn shook off six sacks to throw for 258 yards. His passing was inconsistent in the face of constant pressure and he was intercepted once, but he kept fighting to eventually lead the Tigers to the lopsided triumph everyone expected.

Still, it wasn't as easy as expected for the Tigers, whose average margin of victory coming in was 35.5 point and who were favored by almost six touchdowns.

Tulane (1-3) trailed only 10-9 at halftime and didn't fall more than one score behind until Hester's 1-yard touchdown run gave LSU a 20-9 lead with 5:53 remaining in the third quarter.

If not for a pair of Tulane turnovers, Matt Forte's fumble and Anthony Scelfo's interception, the game might have been closer.

But the fumble set up Hester's TD, and the interception by LSU cornerback Chevis Jackson led to Scott's slashing 35-yard scoring run to make it 27-9. Scott pounded his way in for a short TD on LSU's next drive to complete the route.

Brandon LaFell had four catches for 76 yards, including a 43-yard reception that set up Hester's first touchdown on LSU's second offensive series. Demetrius Byrd caught three passes for 69 yards.

Scelfo finished 11-of-26 passing for 117 yards for Tulane, while Forte rushed for 73 yards on 16 carries.

Andre Anderson had a 5-yard touchdown run for Tulane, which gave the Green Wave a brief 9-7 lead late in the first half. LSU kicker Colt David had field goals of 36 and 33 yards.