By Hunt Palmer
Garrett Nussmeier enjoyed the result on Saturday night. It was his role in it that he didn’t feel as good about.
“I will sit here and say that I probably had one of the worst games of my career tonight,” Nussmeier said in the postgame. “I will openly say that.”
The numbers would back Nussmeier’s assertion. The junior quarterback only completed 22 of his 51 pass attempts, a chilly 43 percent, and turned the ball over twice in critical spots.
His first interception, a tipped ball, set Ole Miss up on the LSU 13 yard line. His defense bailed him out with a fourth down stop. His second came the snap after LSU’s defense had forced a turnover of its own, Zy Alexander’s endzone interception of Jaxson Dart.
Generally speaking, high attempt numbers paired with low completion percentage and multiple turnovers, spells real trouble for a quarterback.
Not on this night.
Nussmeier kept firing and made crucial play after crucial play to keep his team in the ballgame.
“I think he grew more today than at any time that he’s been here,” LSU Head Coach Brian Kelly said. “That was a growth game for him…The growth that he was able to exhibit through that game and at the end in going to serve him well.”
Ole Miss boasts an elite pass rush loaded with NFL Draft prospects. The Rebel secondary blanketed LSU wide receivers early in the game, shrinking throwing windows down to nearly nothing. Nussmeier started the game just 3-for-11, and two of the completions were a throw to Mason Taylor that went for a loss of one and a swing pass to running back Josh Williams.
Everything down the field was smothered by the Rebels.
Because the Tiger running game was shuffling, the onus fell on Nussmeier to keep slinging it.
When crunch time came, Nussmeier was ready for it. LSU took over with 3:14 to play, down seven with 75 yards to drive.
The Tigers immediately faced fourth and six, and Nussmeier delivered a ball right on the money to a covered Taylor. Third and 10 came three plays later, and Nussmeier found Taylor again for 19 yards.
Finally, with 32 ticks left, Nussmeier delivered the throw of his career to Aaron Anderson on fourth and five. When Nussmeier let go of the ball, the speedy slot man had not yet hit his break nor crossed the face of the Ole Miss safety. Nussmeier threw to a spot on the field, and Anderson met the ball right at the goalline for a touchdown.
It was a pro throw.
Many of the situations Nussmeier has faced through seven weeks are new to him. For three years he mostly sat on the sideline and watched. He saw a little mop up duty here and there, and when Jayden Daniels was hurt against Georgia and Alabama, he entered facing multi-score deficits in desperation time.
This is Nussmeier’s team now, and he showed up when he was needed late on Saturday.
While the game-winning drive in his first career start against Wisconsin mirrored Saturday night’s heroics, that game was largely inconsequential. Every one of LSU’s season goals hung in the balance Saturday night, and Nussmeier delivered against what might be the best defense on LSU’s schedule.
Nussmeier absolutely must cut down on the mistakes he’s made. One interception at South Carolina was wiped away for a horse collar. The other was a brutal red zone error that could have cost LSU the game was it not for an unnecessary roughness call.
Two more showed up on Saturday at inopportune times. However, the other end of the spectrum, the great throws, are equally as hard to ignore.
LSU is not going to morph into an elite ground team over the next six weeks. The defense, while improving, is not going to dominate most games.
Nussmeier’s play will likely be the difference in winning and losing moving forward. He knows that, and its why he was hard on himself after the electrifying win in Tiger Stadium.
“The best part about that is that I get to learn from it, and we got a win,” Nussmeier said. “I’m excited to get in the film room and fix those things and correct those mistakes. Hopefully this will be a huge growth moment for me and take my game to the next level.”
LSU’s offensive line continues to keep Nussmeier upright. Only three teams in college football have allowed fewer than LSU’s two sacks on the season. Kyren Lacy has emerged as a true No. 1 target, and Anderson and Taylor aren’t too shabby either. LSU’s passing attack makes the Tiger a dangerous team on any given night.
Even if it’s one of its worst.
