By RON HIGGINS, Journal Sports
NASHVILLE – Brian Kelly’s football team is ranked No. 10 nationally, quite an accomplishment for a squad that has considerably more punts (25) than offensive touchdowns (17).
LSU’s fourth-year head coach was encouraged by the positive bits and pieces he witnessed in the Tigers’ 20-10 win over South Carolina last Saturday in Tiger Stadium.
“(Quarterback) Garrett (Nussmeiier) plays better with a swagger,” Kelly said.
And?
“We’re at the point now where we can talk about sustaining blocks, which is simply determination,” Kelly said.
And?
“Our guard/center play was the best it’s been all year, and it happens in the triangle,” Kelly said. “That group right there has got to get off the ball and get you some initial movement.”
And?
“So, we’re at the next stage if we continue to do what we’re doing, which puts us in a really good place,” Kelly said.
But?
The problem for the Tigers (5-1 overall, 2-1 SEC) in Saturday’s 11 a.m. CT game against No. 17 Vanderbilt (5-1, 1-1 SEC) here in First Bank Stadium is that they can’t sustain any offensive success
It’s not just game-to-game. It’s series to series.
Against its five FBS (Division 1-A) opponents this season, LSU has yet to score touchdowns on consecutive offensive possessions.
For the most part, it’s been a perfect storm of bad offense – a quarterback who has been playing hurt, an offensive line that hasn’t gotten push in the running game, and an offensive coordinator whose playcalling became stale as he desperately tried to find plays that would work.
Some of the problems seemed to be solved last week when healthier starting quarterback Garrett Nussmeier showed the ability to make every pass, even deep ones.
“There is a little bit of confidence booster there when I’m starting to feel better,” said Nussmeier, who threw for 254 yards, two TDs, and two interceptions. “I’d be lying if I said differently.”
While the two picks were disconcerting, it may be something LSU has to survive with the rest of the season if Kelly wants Nussmeier to play with “swagger.”
“The stuff I was dealing with in the first couple of weeks was definitely frustrating,” Nussmeier said. “The biggest thing for me was just allowing myself to go out there and have fun playing football again. Whenever I do that, I play a lot more freely and play better.”
While Kelly doesn’t condone Nussmeier committing turnovers, he might be willing to live with the mistakes more because LSU has one of the best defenses in the nation.
The Tigers are No. 5 nationally in scoring defense (11.8 points allowed) and No. 21 in total defense (297 ypg allowed). Last weekend, they held South Carolina’s 6-3, 240-pound dual-threat QB LaNorris Sellers to 143 yards total offense. They sacked him five times.
LSU’s defensive challenge vs. Vandy is against a smaller, yet just as explosive package.
Diego Pavia, a 6-foot, 207-pound slithering signal-caller, has spearheaded the Commodores’ remarkable turnaround since transferring from New Mexico State a year ago.
Since Pavia took over as the starting QB, Vanderbilt is 11-7 overall and 4-6 in the SEC, including last year’s 40-31 win over then-No. 1 Alabama.
One of the Commodores’ losses last season was a 24-17 decision at LSU on Nov. 23. Pavia entered that game slowed by injuries, but still finished with 229 total offense yards (186 pass and 1 TD, 43 rush and 1 TD).
This season, Pavia leads the team in passing (115 of 164 for 1,409 passing yards, 14 TDs, four interceptions), rushing (352 yards and two TDs on 50 carries), and total offense (293.5 ypg).
“You’re in trouble with those dual-threat quarterbacks if they can do both,” Kelly said. “Not to say that he can’t throw the ball, because he can.
“If you are trying to choose one or the other, he’s going to kill you if he runs. So, we’re going to take the path that we need to be really good against the run, and then put him in predictable situations.”
Vanderbilt head coach Clark Lea, who had once been an assistant on Kelly’s Notre Dame staff before Kelly took over at LSU in 2022, said he expects an even-tempo game.
“This is going to be two methodical offenses, and so possessions are going to be hard to come by,” Lea said. “We need to fight for those possessions with our defense, getting the ball back to our offense so that we can get in rhythm and hopefully have success that way.
GO FIGURE
1: Sack allowed by LSU in three SEC games
6-1: Vanderbilt’s home record vs. LSU
10: Second-half points allowed in SEC games this year by LSU.
16: Consecutive field goals made by Vandy’s Brock Taylor, the fifth-longest streak in the country.
36: Passes defended by LSU, most in the SEC (eight interceptions, 28 passes broken up)
1947: The last time LSU and Vanderbilt played each other as ranked teams
Contact Ron at ronhigginsmedia@gmail.com