COLLEGE STATION, Texas — Texas A&M’s arrival in the Southeastern Conference is turning out to be a Hullaba deal for LSU.

The Tigers, seemingly immune to the wild antics of an offense that has been such a shock to much of the league’s system, held on for a 23-17 win over A&M Thursday night.

It wasn’t pretty — LSU doesn’t play that game.

It was particularly efficient — nothing seemingly comes easy for these Tigers.

But it was LSU’s third consecutive victory over A&M in conference, and it came despite the Tigers’ best efforts to, if not give the game to the Aggies on a maroon platter, at least keep them in a game LSU dominated much of the night.

The exception came late in the first half when LSU — seemingly — took control with 17 points in the final 4:33 before halftime, including 10 points in the final 34 seconds.

That was just enough to break a two-game losing streak for LSU, which finished the regular season 8-4, 4-4 in the SEC. Texas A&M finished 7-4, 3-5.

LSU head coach Les Miles was ready to call it a trophy game.

“We need a trophy,” he said afterward. “Someone needs to come up with a trophy. Because there is so much petroleum in both (states), I think like a big — not barrel — a big wrench, like the roughnecks. There’s a chance for a trophy out there. It’s a hell of an idea.”

LSU had some other new angles on the field too.

The Tigers even found something productive for struggling quarterback Anthony Jennings to do in rolling up 491 yards of offense to 228 for the high-octane Aggies.

But plagued by penalties, misadventures in the red zone and a near-meltdown on the field goals they kept settling for, LSU didn’t escape with the victory until Jalen Collins intercepted a deep pass by Kyle Allen with 1:21 to play.

Jennings cracked 100 yards passing for the first time in three games — albeit a modest 107 — but the Tigers got him far more involved in a read-option running game. Keeping the Aggies off balance, Jennings responded with 119 yards rushing, the rare quarterback who ran for more than he threw.

“I thought it was my best game of the season.” Jennings said.

Leonard Fournette led the Tigers with a career-high 146 yards rushing, including a 22-yard touchdown in which he plowed over an Aggies defender 12 yards from the goal.

That sparked the big end-of-the-half outburst for the Tigers as Jennings hit John Diarse for a 10-yard touchdown pass with 34 seconds left in the half and, when A&M’s Speedy Noil fumbled the ensuing kickoff, the Tigers got a 31-yard field goal by Trent Domingue before the half.

Fournette also had a late, 46-yard run just when it looked as if all the momentum had shifted towards the Aggies, while, in another new development, wide receiver Travin Dural 49 yards on end-arounds.

“I thought the offensive coordinator Cam Cameron did a good job,” Miles said. “We had some different wrinkles on offense, and I thought that certainly helped things.”

“People kept following the ‘jet sweep’ (with Dural) and we came and ran right underneath it,” Fournette said.

Added Miles, “We rushed for 384 yards and had just under 500 yards of total offense. Had the ball 41 minutes to their 18. If we can do that, generally we’re going to win.”

And they did.

But it wasn’t easy.

In the end, the air-challenged Tigers’ 384 yards on the ground was the most by an LSU team since getting 400 in a 1997 game at Kentucky.

Those long-ago Tigers used them to score 63 points.

Thursday, much of the production got lost on the way to Kyle Field’s scoreboard ­— as did the huge edge in time of possession.

A Jennings interception foiled the first drive and set up the Aggies’ only points until the fourth quarter.

LSU settled for four field goal attempts at the end of impressive marches and made two of them as normally reliable Colby Delayhoussaye continued his slump.

LSU was hampered by nine penalties, particularly a rash of holding calls that stalled three drives in the red zone.

But a no-call on Collins’ interception may have saved the game for LSU after A&M rolled off 10 points in the fourth quarter and was marching, trailing 23-17.

It appeared that LSU’s Sione Teuhema may have jumped offside before Allen lofted the ill-fated deep pass that Collins stole.

“They just said that … they didn’t call it.” A&M coach Kevin Sumlin said of the explanation.

“I thought he jumped offside.”(Associated Press)

Sam Craft