By RON HIGGINS, Journal Sports
BATON ROUGE – LSU’s 2024 football season already seemed on life support for the then 1-1 Tigers late in the second quarter of last year’s third game of the season.
Unheralded host South Carolina scored on four of its six first-half possessions and led 24-10 with 4:15 left in the second quarter when quarterback LaNorris Sellers answered 10 straight LSU points with a 75-yard TD run.
Instead of folding, the competitive pluck of then-new starting quarterback Garrett Nussmeier and the debut of explosive freshman running back Caden Durham rallied the Tigers to a 36-33 victory.
Nussmeier’s ability to produce chunk plays – nine of his completions accounted for 204 of his 285 passing yards – and Durham picking up 71 of his 98 rushing yards (including two TDs) on four runs of 10 yards or more – helped the Tigers tie their second-largest comeback road victory in school history.
Considering Nussmeier and Durham have already been battling injuries this season – part of the reason for LSU’s massive offensive regression – last year’s comeback in Columbia seems like it happened light years ago heading into Saturday’s 6:45 p.m. SEC battle in Tiger Stadium between the 11th-ranked Tigers (4-1 overall, 1-1 SEC) and South Carolina (3-2, 1-2 SEC).
While LSU fourth-year head coach Brian Kelly has greenlighted Nussmeier and Durham for this weekend after coming off last week’s open date, there’s no clear picture of how the Tigers can stop performing like one of college football’s most imbalanced teams.
The only reason LSU has just one blemish on its record – a 24-19 loss at Ole Miss two weeks ago — is that its stingy defense is ranked sixth nationally in points allowed per game (12.2) and 14th in rushing defense (84.4 yards allowed per game).
The Tigers’ offense, which is ranked No. 81 nationally in total offense (364.2 yards per game), 117th in rushing offense (104.8 ypg), and 80th in scoring offense (27 ppg), has been a massive disappointment.
Nussmeier’s mystery torso injury has affected his ability to throw deep, thus reducing LSU’s number of chunk plays to almost nothing.
Having Durham out of action for the last two games meant the absence of the Tigers’ only running back who could gain yards on his own despite LSU’s inconsistent offensive line.
Any chance of the Tigers’ busting loose vs. South Carolina is mostly on Nussmeier, who Kelly claims is on the backside of recovering from his injury.
“Whatever your narrative is on our quarterback, so be it,” Kelly said. “You earn what you get and everything you do in life, but there’s so much in front of us this season.
“I just think maybe the lesson is that everything we do in life, let’s be a little bit more patient. Let’s be a little bit more interested in what this process looks like.”
You get the same stock answer from any LSU offensive starter on how the Tigers’ offense can flip from being a burning wagon flying off a cliff to a frequent end zone infiltrator.
“It’s really just focusing on details, everybody getting on the same page and executing,” Tigers’ wide receiver Kyle Parker said.
If that sounds like three cliches in one quote, it’s also what Kelly has been selling daily.
“It’s having focus, one play at a time, it’s four to six seconds,” Kelly said. “You can’t let the next play affect the play that’s coming up.
“That’s competitive maturity and growing as an individual. We have some guys who can do that and lock in every single play, not letting their play go up and down.
“It’s a process of guys playing and understanding when they see that they’re not playing well. They have to remind themselves to lock back in, keep this to a four to six-second play, and move on to the next play. A number of our veteran guys have it. We’ve got to get all of our guys on the same page.”
South Carolina’s offense statistically is worse than LSU’s. In total offense, the Tigers are 81st nationally (364.2 yards per game) and the Gamecocks are 125th (308.6 ypg) in total offense, 120th in rushing offense (99.8 ypg). and 91st (24.8 ppg) in scoring offense.
Yet, because of dual-threat QB Sellers, South Carolina has a huge advantage over LSU at starting quarterback.
After five games for both teams in the big plays category (pass completions of 15 or more yards and rushes of 10 or more yards, Sellers has 30 (22 passing, 8 rushing) in 40 possessions, Nussmeier has 26 (24 passing, 2 rushing) in 52 possessions.
Besides Sellers’ obvious edge in rushing big plays because he’s a dual threat, and Nussmeier isn’t even when he’s healthy, there’s a vast difference in the length of the passing big plays.
For Sellers, 68 percent of his passing big plays (15 of 22) have been for 20 yards or more, including 8 of 30 yards or more. Just 46 percent (11 of 24) of Nussmeier’s passing big plays have been for 20 yards or more, including only four of 30 yards or more.
Clearly, LSU’s defense is on high alert since Sellers’ running ability creates chaos.
“If he gets out in open space, he’s fast,” LSU rush defensive end Jimari Butler said of the 6-3, 240-pound Sellers. “He has a big (throwing) arm, so we have to mix our coverages and hopefully get him to hold the ball until our pass rush gets home.”
If LSU uses a spy whose sole job is to track Sellers’ every move, it will likely be hybrid linebacker/safety Harold Perkins Jr.
“Most teams play you with a SAM linebacker or a nickel back depending on your formation,” South Carolina coach Shane Beamer said. “They (LSU) don’t have to do that because Perkins is one of those rare guys that’s a SAM and a nickel who can stay on the field against any formation.”
GO FIGURE
4: Pass completions of 30 yards or more by South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers vs. Missouri on Sept. 20, the same amount LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier has had all season
6: Non-offensive TDs (3 punt returns, two fumble returns, one interception return) by South Carolina, which leads the nation in that category
8: Straight wins for LSU over South Carolina
75.5: LSU’s all-time winning percentage (360-112-13) in Tiger Stadium night games
33: Points by South Carolina vs. LSU last season, the most they’ve ever scored against the Tigers
347: Career kicking points for LSU placekicker Damon Ramos, second in school history and needing 17 points to pass all-time leader Colt David (363 points)
Contact Ron at ronhigginsmedia@gmail.com