By Hunt Palmer
THE STORY: LSU was never in jeopardy of losing the game. The Tiger offense always had an answer for the Nicholls offense. Still, it had to be a concerning night for the LSU defense. Nicholls was able to run the ball effectively, totaling 152 yards that were bolstered by the thunderous opening to the second half. They completed 73 percent of their passes, working the horizontal passing game with extreme efficiency. Nicholls did not throw a first half incompletion. It wasn’t just one long scoring drive. Those are common in these types of games. It was a consistent, methodical approach that LSU couldn’t really choke off.
Garrett Nussmeier made some really, really good throws. He ripped one to Aaron Anderson late in the first half for 26 yards. The touchdown to Kyren Lacy on the first second half possession was a dime to the back pylon. He showed a lot of patience in the pocket to allow his receivers to come open. Nussmeier looks the part of a big-time SEC quarterback.
Ju’Juan Johnson was a cool story–a mid-week position change from safety to running back that produced a touchdown.
And, unfortunately, Jacobian Guillory’s injury could be a huge story. LSU is awaiting X-rays on the senior defensive tackle. If he is to miss any significant time, it could be major issue for LSU.
THE PLAYS: The Colonels’ first punt try resulted in a snap over punter Kylan Dupre’s head. He chased it down in the endzone and kicked it out of bounds for a safety.
Kyren Lacy electrified the crowd and then terrified it seconds later. Three minutes into the second quarter, he hauled in a pass from Nussmeier and turned it upfield toward the end zone. When he got near the goalline, he leapt into the air and crashed into the Tiger Stadium turf for a score. It was a 32-yard catch and run, but the fall left Lacy on the ground while the medical team checked him out. He returned to the game.
The first half ended in a bit of chaos. With Nussmeier sidelined with an injury, backup Rickie Collins darted toward the sideline with under 15 seconds on the clock and LSU in field goal range. He was ruled out of bounds which would set up a Tiger field goal try of 39 yards. It was missed but blown dead before the snap so officials could review whether or not he got out of bounds. He did not. The referee enforced a 10-second run-off down to three seconds. LSU had the field goal team on the field for the resumption of play, but Damien Ramos missed the second try. Perhaps the offense could have spiked the ball with the three seconds left to create a more rhythmic field goal chance. It didn’t happen.
On the third snap of the second half, Nicholls went Wildcat. Collin Guggenheim bolted 67 yards right through the heart of the Tiger defense for a score.
The Tigers struggled to halt the Colonel offense and force a punt. PJ Woodland single-handedly forced a stop. The freshman cornerback stripped Quency Brown and recovered the football with just under nine minutes to play in the third quarter. The freshman is going to play a good bit this year.
THE STAT: On the good? Garrett Nussmeier fired six touchdown passes on Saturday night, tying him with some elite company. Only Joe Burrow and Jayden Daniels have ever thrown six touchdowns in an LSU uniform. Burrow did it against Vanderbilt in 2019. Daniels set the mark against Georgia State in 2023. Burrow’s record of seven was set in College Football Playoff against Oklahoma.
The bad? LSU averaged three yards per carry against an FCS defense. Last week the Tigers couldn’t mount a consistent rushing attack versus USC. That had to be a focus this week, but it never happened. LSU running backs carried 17 times for 47 yards.
THE QUOTE: “Certainly that was a team that was tired, did not play its very best. We had a long week. We had to go back out and practice on Tuesday, and it showed, it did. They worked their tails off this week, but they just did not have the same energy, the same snap, the same kind of physicality that they had against USC.” — Brian Kelly
