LEXINGTON, Ky. -- Alfred Rawls rushed for a career-high 192 yards and two touchdowns Saturday night, including a 73-yard dash with three minutes left, to lead Kentucky to a 27-21 victory over Louisiana State.
Kentucky, 4-2 overall and 1-2 in the Southeastern Conference, grabbed a 21-0 lead midway through the third quarter after Ken Willis' third field goal of the game. LSU quarterback Tim Hodson, however, directed a pair of fourth-quarter scoring drives that brought the Tigers within 21-14.
After another Kentucky punt, Hodson had LSU driving again until Billy Swanson picked off a pass at the Wildcats' 27. Rawls, who scored on a 43-yard run on the third play of the second half, went almost untouched up the right sideline on the next play for a 73-yard TD.
Hodson, after a disastrous start, finished 23 of 39 for 283 yards, 187 in the final quarter, and the two touchdowns. The scores gave him 57 career touchdown passes, a new SEC record.
The interception stalled the LSU momentum for less than a minute. Four plays and 39 seconds later, Hodson hit a wide-open Alvin Lee with a 45-yard touchdown pass despite Kentucky having 12 players on the field.
Kentucky ran the final two minutes out to preserve the win.
The Wildcats' defense dominated the first half, holding LSU to just two first downs and 42 yards total offense. Kentucky's Willis had field goals of 44 and 42 yards in the second quarter and 31 yards in the third quarter. He tied a school record with four field goals last week and missed one from 47 yards Saturday night.
Kentucky led 12-0 at the half when Freddie Maggard threw 2 yards to Bobby Henderson with 1:02 remaining. Maggard was 10-17 for 126 yards on the night.
LSU fell, 1-5, 0-3 in the league, pulled within 21-7 when Victor Jones scored from 1-yard with 11 seconds left in the third quarter. After a Kentucky punt, Hodson needed just six plays to drive the Tigers 63 yards. He hit Tony Moss for the 21-yard score to make it 21-14.
Eddie Fuller picked up 80 yards on 18 carries to lead LSU.
