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By LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN
A win is a win, no matter how ugly it looks....but still, even through victory, some worrying signs about Brian Kelly's 2024 LSU squad are starting to boil to the surface.
First...the Positives:
Winning 44-21, LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier's third consecutive 300 yard passing performance (over 3 career starts) capped off by 6 touchdown passes, set the Tigers on their way.
It was a 21 point 3rd quarter which finally saw LSU take control of a back and forth, far too close contest against Nicholls State, answering Nicholls' impressive running game & clock control with a nonstop NussBuss passing onslaught.
While Blake Baker's defense played much worse than the promising signs shown during Week 1, a key 3rd quarter strip and recovery by PJ Woodland changed the game & gave LSU the football with a chance to kill the game off.....Nussmeier, wheeling, dealing and oozing radical confidence, duly obliged, completing 27/37 for 304 yards, hitting 4 different receivers with a touchdown pass.
Nuss combined with another four different receivers for 50+ yards, CJ Daniels leading the way with 71 yards on 4 grabs, as Kyren Lacy's 3 TDs & 65 yards set himself apart from the pack; Aaron Anderson recorded over 60 yards for the second straight game (63 yards, 5 catches, 6 targets), consistently a factor on key downs; Zavion Thomas caught all 5 of his targets for 50 yards & his first LSU TD, also tacking on 114 crucial return yards on special teams, headlined by a bristling 58 yard return.
Slade Nagle's tight ends weren't much involved, yet remained impactful: Mason Taylor hauling down 4 passes for 40 yards & freshman phenom Trey'Dez Green cashing in a red zone touchdown, his first of what should be many wearing purple and gold.
Making his debut at running back, former LCA record setting quarterback & prior LSU safety Ju'uan Johnson was effective & found the end zone during his first action, grabbing 3 passes out of the backfield for 16 yards and an important touchdown.....a play that gave LSU something positive to end one of their most disjointed & frustrating halves of football in a long time.
Outside of that turnover by Woodland and those receiving performances, there was little else to enjoy from LSU's display:
First off, there was a nonstop fear of continued injury crisis, everyone from Nussmeier to Lacy and even starting defensive tackle Jacobian Guillory hobbling off the field in pain.
Scoring his first touchdown, Lacy leaped over Nicholls State's tackler only to be caught on his foot, an area that was already causing the star wide out pain before the game.
Lacy was down the field, laid out as training staff worked on him.....and in a week where LSU lost John Emery Jr to an ACL tear, Tiger Stadium fell to a hush.
He was able to finish the game, but defensive tackle Jacobian Guillory wasn't so lucky, barely able to get off the field under his own power, needing to sit in a wheelchair on the sidelines.
His injury could be serious, another punch to the gut for a roster already reeling with depth issues at defensive tackle & running back among other positions.
Next, LSU's starting quarterback went off hobbling under his own power right before halftime, replaced by Rickie Collins for a few plays. Nussmeier likely was affected by cramping, as he returned for a blistering 2nd half showcase, even running the ball or evading pressures via his underrated mobility.
But once again, it was another worrying moment of injury woe...and when it concerns Nussmeier's availability, this was a bullet dodged for LSU's season.
The other problems arose from all too familiar defensive ineptitude rearing its disgraceful, hideous face once again, alongside yet another game where LSU could not run the football.
Allowing 21 points, 31 minutes of possession, 16 first downs, 6/13 on 3rd down efficiency, 295 total yards, 16/22 completions against our secondary, 150 yards rushing including a 67 yard TD bust given away by Major Burns, while posting only 2 TFLs, forcing a single turnover, getting hands on just 3 passes, hitting their quarterback one single time, and generating 0 sacks as Stamps, Woodland, Burns, Allen, Gilbert, and Ryan all gave up explosive plays, missed tackles, or surrendered easy pitch and catch gains....it was abysmal from Blake Baker's defense....unraveling all the promise of last week.
Then, LSU's rushing game couldn't sustain a pulse on the ground, just 64 total yards vs an FCS defense, Josh Williams' 19 yards leading the way.....just pathetic.
If you subtract John Emery's 61 rushing yards vs USC, this 2024 offense, led by a line featuring 2 of the greatest ever Tiger O-linemen, tabbed for the Joe Moore Award, could only gain 116 rushing yards overall over their first 2 games.....staggering numbers.
A player who was supposed to be ready for the big stage, Kaleb Jackson, produced just 33 yards vs USC and Nicholls on 14 carries....
Even more troubling, once LSU gained their 23 point lead to end the 3rd quarter, the Tigers were shutout during the 4th, coasting to victory through 2 or 3 yard rushing chunks & aimless punts from Peyton Todd....it was an embarrassing, ramshackle performance.
Yes, LSU won the game....but across an upcoming season full of close games, insidious opponents, tough scheduling, and plenty of moments of real adversity ahead, it's stunning we just witnessed anything but a complete performance against an in-state minnow.......we watched LSU struggle, suffer, bend and nearly break against Nicholls State...
At one point, near the end of the 2nd quarter, LSU had already allowed 17 minutes of possession to their paltry 8 1/2, as Nicholls State also outgained Joe Sloan's offense 140-124 yards.
It was pisspoor....
It was a joke....
Outside of Garrett Nussmeier taking charge and delivering victory, there was little else to celebrate from this treacherous "effort".
Worst of all, this is a squad who just suffered a heart-wrenching loss to USC in Vegas....a game they all feel they should have won.
These players spoke of revenge all week, yet this is what we get??
Instead of Liam Neeson in Taken, we're being treated to Steven Seagal's cheap cabaret form of B movie "revenge"....a lukewarm cruise control to victory against a program LSU should've bludgeoned by 50 points.
Or....maybe this team isn't as good as I thought it was....
LSU's staff continue to coach in conservatism, fear, and a lack of awareness about their personnel, the feel of the game, finding solutions.....it's not good enough.
LSU's players themselves must look in the mirror, asking each and every Tiger "is this the team we are? Is this really who we are? A 7-5 team???"
Because that's what I saw tonight....a team that still may just be a year away from the contention some of us expected in 2024...
By LONN PHILLIPS SULLIVAN
©️ 2024 Uninterrupted Writings Inc
I am not saying this because I am emotional or upset with our Tigers. I am with them no matter what. At the same time realistically we must say our defense is still a shambles. Even our best players are playing mediocre. The offensive line is a major disappointment. Apparently, they have not been able to master complex run blocking schemes. We are a very average team right now.