LSU head coach Brian Kelly was pissed off at his postgame press conference after USC’s defense kept stopping the Tigers’ offense in key situations, after USC’s defense spent all game long, in fact, refusing to let LSU’s vaunted offensive line push them around.
“We put way too much pressure on our defense,” Kelly said in between pounding his fists on the press conference table.
“We had over 400 yards in total offense. (But) we weren’t able to put the ball in the end zone when we really needed to, So this is much more about being a much better and efficient offense in the red zone than it is the failings of the inability to run. We ran the ball well enough to set up everything else that we needed to do. Do I want to run the ball better? Absolutely. There’s no doubt. I think our execution needs to get better.
“But having said that, we ran the ball well enough to win this game,” Kelly said.
LSU rushed for 117 yards total. John Emery, Jr. had 61 yards rushing to lead the Tigers. He picked up almost 50 of those yards on one drive.
LSU dreams of controlling USC’s defense by leaning on them and running on them will? That didn’t really ever happen.
Had it happened, LSU would have likely won because the Tigers would have scored touchdowns on their first drive of the game when the Tigers came up empty after driving down to the USC three-yard line, and then late in the game before having to kick a field goal to tie the game 20-20 and hope it could force overtime.
But LSU’s dreams of winning a season opener were crushed in the final seconds when USC drove the length of the field in the final 1:47 to score a rushing TD with eight seconds left and win 27-20 on Sunday night.
Despite having plenty of chances to take the lead in the second half, LSU’s offense stalled, making it their fifth loss in a row in season openers. Kelly still has not won a season-opener in his career at LSU.
The game was tied at halftime, but USC’s quarterback Miller Moss had a huge night, throwing for 378 yards and one touchdown. He took advantage of LSU’s struggling defense and made them pay.
USC took the lead with six minutes left in the fourth quarter, and even though LSU tied it up with a field goal, they couldn’t stop USC from scoring the winning touchdown with just eight seconds left.
It was a tough start for LSU, who really wanted to win their first game. Now they’ve gone three years without a win under head coach Brian Kelly.
There were some bright spots, like John Emery Jr.’s amazing comeback from an ACL injury and Kyren Lacy’s and Aaron Anderson’s great performances. But LSU’s offense struggled in the second half and couldn’t convert on third downs.
Overall, it was a tough loss for LSU and a great win for USC to start their season.
LSU responded to USC’s first touchdown with a strong drive led by Nussmeier’s great passing. Tight end Mason Taylor was his go-to guy.
The Tigers charged into the red zone, and Nussmeier threw a perfect pass to the left side of the end zone. Lacy made an awesome catch, tying the game. But Lacy got too excited and got a penalty, setting LSU back 15 yards on the next kickoff.
Despite this, freshman kicker Aeron Burrell made a huge tackle in open space, stopping USC returner Zachariah Branch from scoring. Stamps also made a big play, breaking up a potential touchdown and forcing USC to kick a field goal.
The game was tied 10-10 at halftime, and it was clear both teams were evenly matched.
But in the third quarter, USC took the lead again with some great plays on third downs. LSU’s defense held strong in the red zone, but they couldn’t capitalize on their chances.
In the end, LSU just couldn’t convert their chances into points and fell short against USC.
Be the first to comment