Gabe McKenzie knew exactly what to do with the football when he got it in his hands.

The former tight end turned defensive end snatched the football from the air with his big paw and was off on a 24-yard interception return to give Auburn a 14-3 lead right before halftime.

“We were running around trying to line up,” McKenzie began. “The quarterback double-pumped it and I saw the ball coming over my head and I went up and caught it.

“I can’t hardly tell you what happened after that. I just took off.”

On the play, McKenzie found himself on the inside of the receiver and in perfect position to snag the short pass and take off to the races.

“He made a big play,” Auburn head coach Tommy Tuberville said. “Our defense has been making big plays all year. It’s good to see him have some success.”

Auburn’s defense, which has been carrying the Tigers in the early season, finally had a breaking point on Saturday night as LSU scored 14 third-quarter points, then needed a final touchdown with just over a minute left to pull out an exciting, 26-21 victory.

Tuberville said he believes the defense tired a bit.

“When they started going with what we call trips with three receivers on one side and one receiver to the other, they just outran us on some speed routes and the quarterback made the throw.”

But McKenzie believes it was mental errors rather than being tired that cost the Tiger defense in the second half.

“There were a couple of plays where we didn’t line up right — it was mental stuff,” McKenzie said. “We’ve just got to get back to work.”

LSU put up 398 yards of total offense (220 passing, 178 rushing), with most of it coming in the second half. Auburn held LSU to 105 yards in the first two quarters.

“We knew coming into the game they had a big offensive line and a strong running back,” Auburn defensive tackle Sen’Derrick Marks said. “We did a good job at first, but when they got loose they were all over us.

“In the second half, they came out and we had our guard down.”

LSU fought back thanks to some big passing plays on offense in the second half — touchdown throws of 39, 22 and 18 yards.

“That is a bunch of great receivers — big, strong and fast,” Auburn defensive back Jerraud Powers said.

Quarterback Jarrett Lee was the star for LSU in the second half as he took over when Andrew Hatch went down after a hard hit midway through the third quarter.

“I knew I had to come in and make plays,” Lee said. “I knew the receivers were getting open and the offensive line was blocking, so I had to make the plays.”