It’s great to help lead a players-only meeting and speak to the team numerous times the week after a third straight loss.
But you also have to run the run after talking the talk.
And LSU fifth-year senior running back Josh Williams did just that Saturday, rushing a season-high 14 times for a season-high 90 yards and two touchdowns while catching four passes for a season-high 61 receiving yards as the Tigers beat Vanderbilt, 24-17, in Tiger Stadium.
“He ran through the face of a number of defenders,” LSU coach Brian Kelly said after the game. “It was physicality. It was want-to. It was desire. It was all those things in one. It was just a guy who was committed to, no matter what, ‘The first guy’s not going to bring me down.’ And he set a tone for our entire team – a toughness on offense and a resolve, and he was one of our leaders this week. Spoke up many times.”
And LSU (7-4, 4-3 Southeastern Conference) now has a chance to finish strong in the regular season finale against Oklahoma (6-5, 2-5 SEC) on Saturday (6 p.m., ESPN) in Tiger Stadium.
LSU rushed for 139 yards on 32 carries and controlled the game for most of it. Freshman starting tailback Caden Durham added 58 yards on 14 carries.
Williams, junior offensive tackle Will Campbell, junior quarterback Garrett Nussmeier and senior linebacker Greg Penn III called the meeting last Monday. Then Williams spoke to the team again during the pre-game meal Saturday.
“I just spoke from the heart,” Williams said after the game. “I told them, ‘Hey, we’ve been practicing hard all week. It’s been a long season, and we have what it takes. There was some more stuff, but I don’t want to give you all the juice.”
Williams started laughing.
“But it was a good meeting,” he said. “I think all the guys responded to it, and for me personally, I wanted to run hard and play fast, free and physical. We had a lot of meetings. We trust coach Kelly, and we’re thankful for the preparation that he gave us.”
GARRETT NUSSMEIER HAD “BEST GAME”
Nussmeier also responded with his most complete game as LSU’s starting quarterback this season. He completed 28 of 37 passes (.756 completion percentage) for 332 yards and a touchdown. Nussmeier also checked into and out of running plays better than he has all season, Kelly said.
“Garrett played his best game of the year,” Kelly said. “He managed the running game as well as he’s managed it since he’s been here.”
With only Oklahoma and a bowl game left in his career, Williams seized the moment.
“I just came in their with the mentality that I was the starting back,” he said. “It was a great chance for me to show what I have.”
And his teammates followed.
“He can do it (speak to the team) from a position of he’s been down this road before,” Kelly said. “I think it really affected some of the younger players in a positive way. We saw some things from our younger players this week that we hadn’t seen – a maturity from them. And Josh set the table early on, and then he backed it up.”
Williams had 63 yards on just six carries in the first half with a 20-yard touchdown in the first quarter to tie it and a 21-yard TD in the second period to put LSU ahead for good at 14-7.
“Josh was outstanding catching the football, blocking, running with a great demeanor,” Kelly said.
Williams is hoping for the same focus this week.
“Every day we were very tight-knit and very deliberate on what we wanted to do for the game plan, and it worked out for us.” he said. “I feel like most teams, or a normal team, it would be easy to shut it down and quit after the loss at Florida. But we were more fired up than ever and wanted to prove a point. And we did.”
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