The victory extended three impressive winning streaks for the Tigers - 38 straight regular-season non-conference games, 18 straight at Tiger Stadium and 14 consecutive regular-season wins.

Hilliard opened the scoring with a 38-yard touchdown run on LSU's first possession and added a 5-yard scoring run to make it 21-0 early in the second quarter. He finished with 141 yards on 13 carries. Blue wasn't far behind, racking up 123 yards on 16 carries.

After having a 76-yard punt return called back for an illegal block, Beckham did it again from 70 yards for his first career punt return touchdown, looking like a suitable replacement for suspended star Tyrann Mathieu.

North Texas scored both its touchdowns on strikes from Derek Thompson to Brelan Chancellor. The pair hooked up for an 80-yarder to make it 24-7 with 1:55 left in the half and added a 15-yard connection in the fourth quarter.

GAME NOTEBOOK: The Tigers extended a school record by winning their 10th consecutive season opener. … North Texas dropped to 37-57-3 all-time in season openers and has lost 14 of its last 16 opening games. … LSU has won all five all-time meetings by a combined score of 139-27.