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EASTON, Pa. -- Princeton racked up 573 offensive yards while handing Lafayette a 40-7 loss on Saturday night at Fisher Stadium.

The Leopards never found their offensive stride, rushing for 58 yards on the night before finally getting on the scoreboard late in the fourth quarter when Drew Reed (26-of-34 for 220 yards) hit Rajhan Meriwether for a 50-yard pass and run.

The Tigers scored 23 first-half points in their season opener. Lafayette had its chances early. Dennis Bencsko's second interception of the season gave the Leopards the ball for the first time in the first quarter, but the teams then traded punts.

On the second possession, Lafayette took over at its 30-yard line and moved 44 yards on 11 plays before eventually settling for a 43-yard field goal. Freshman Jacob Bissell, who made three field goals of 40-plus yards at Delaware a week ago, missed his only attempt of the night, wide left.

On the ensuing drive, Princeton took the lead, covering 74 yards on eight plays. Dre Nelson's 39-yard rush moved the ball to the Lafayette eight-yard line. Chad Kanoff (20-31-1, 256 yards) completed a five-yard pass to Trevor Osborne for the touchdown and the 7-0 lead.

Princeton scored three more times before intermission. Nelson, who ended with 116 rushing yards, scored on a 23-yard run end-around to lead 13-0. Princeton stretched the lead to 16-0 with 2:58 left in the half on a Nolan Bieck 38-yard field goal. The Tigers were propelled into field-goal range with a 3rd-and-9 conversion from the Lafayette 40-yard line. Princeton converted 14-of-18 third downs.

Lafayette's offense managed to run just 1:03 off the clock before a Ryan Forrester punt, giving Princeton the ball at its 29-yard line with 1:55 left in the half. The Tigers' offense picked through the defense, eventually scoring on a one-yard pass from John Lovett to defensive end Kurt Holuba who entered the offensive scheme as an eligible receiver. Princeton led 23-0 at halftime.

Princeton's offense kept rolling to start the second half. Nelson's 37-yard carry highlighted the drive, but it was Lovett who scored from a yard out as the Tigers covered 65 yards on six plays in 89 seconds.

Midway through the third quarter, the Leopards' offense looked to get on the scoreboard. A 52-yard rush by Tyler West was erased by a procedure penalty, but a pass interference penalty two plays later kept the drive going. A mix of runs by West and passes from Reed to Mrazek (10 yards) and Joey Chenoweth (22 yards) eventually moved Lafayette to 10-yard line where Lafayette had the ball 1st-and-goal. The Tigers' defense buckled down, stopping West for a 1-yard gain before sacking Reed for a loss of three to end the third quarter.

A false start penalty preceded passes to Bobby DePietro (nine yards) on third down and Chenoweth (six yards) on fourth down to end the 14-play drive without points. Princeton then rattled off 11 plays (10 rushes and a pass) for its final score, coming on a 26-yard run by Joe Rhattigan.

When the Leopards took over, the offense helped the team avoid its first shutout since 2001. Reed found Meriwether who caught the short pass and took it to the endzone for a 50-yard touchdown and the 40-7 final.

Mark Dodd led the team with 11 tackles while Alex Merriman, who was playing with a hip pointer, contributed eight solo stops.

The Leopards next travel to Wagner on Sept. 26 for a 6 p.m. kickoff in Staten Island, N.Y.