After a relatively nail-biting win against Southland Conference powerhouse Nicholls State, Tiger Stadium’s newly unveiled slogan “It Never Gets Old” may already be being put to the test – especially as LSU’s struggles with running the football are beginning to take on epic proportions and are wearing thin only two weeks into the season.
It seems like only yesterday when LSU boasted about its dominant offensive line and its plans to “lean” on any opponent in their path as it ran the football down their throats.
But two games into the season it’s already becoming old news that the Tigers simply have no rushing game. At all.
LSU’s game against Nicholls proved to be a challenge as the No. 18 team in the nation struggled first to establish a lead and then had to work hard for a measly nine-point lead at halftime.
Luckily, LSU’s passing game came through with Garrett Nussmeier’s impressive six touchdown passes. Nuss tied Jayden Daniels for second place in school history with his half-dozen TD tosses, behind only Joe Burrow’s seven TD performance against Oklahoma in the 2019 College Football Playoffs.
But let’s talk about the elephant everyone can’t help but not see in the room.
LSU’s running game was once again non-existent. LSU had a measly 64 yards on 21 carries.
As he is wont to do, Brian Kelly took full responsibility, acknowledging his need to improve as a coach. He also pointed out Nicholls’ defensive strategy of crowding the box and playing man-to-man coverage as a reason for LSU’s inability to run the ball effectively.
Before the season even started, LSU star left tackle Will Campbell was playing a prophet of sorts and boasting about LSU’s powerful rushing game to come. Talk about putting all your eggs in one basket. Now, Kelly is scrambling to fix this issue after it faltered against USC in Vegas and fell completely flat against the Colonels.
The departure of Daniels made finding balance in the offense even more crucial for LSU this season because That Kid was LSU’s rushing offense the past two seasons. But despite incorporating new plays and utilizing their experienced offensive line, the Tigers have yet to find any semblance of a rushing attack.
Against Nicholls, LSU honestly didn’t even try to run the ball.
In the end, it was Nussmeier’s arm that saved the day.
But if LSU doesn’t learn how to run the ball and balance its offensive attack quick like, this entire season is going to get old quick.
The only thing LSU did worse than run the ball Saturday night against Nicholls was stop the run.
The truth is LSU’s overall performance against Nicholls State was a mixed bag.
Zavion Thomas’s explosive kickoff return following the safety that put LSU up 2-0 in the first quarter and Garrett Nussmeier’s six-touchdown outing stood out as bright spots. Ju’Juan Johnson excelled in his running back debut, with PJ Woodland and Zy Alexander standing out at cornerback. Kyren Lacy’s three TDs led the Tigers and he looked like a top-notch receiver and like he would look good anywhere.
Weaknesses emerged, though. False starts repeatedly hindered the offensive line, and injuries to key players like Jacobian Guillory will likely have costly consequences.
Defensively, LSU struggled badly early on, allowing long, time-consuming drives from an FCS opponent and failing to contain Nicholls’ wildcat offense. Penalties and poor execution plagued LSU on both sides of the ball.
LSU’s play Saturday night heightened concerns about its readiness for SEC play. And, as Kelly said in postgame press conference, the clock’s ticking.
To succeed against tougher opponents, LSU needs to improve its discipline, its defense, its rushing attack and overall consistency across the board.
But, Kelly warns, you must be careful that you don’t buy into these constant weekly narratives that dominate news cycles about teams.
He insists LSU is going to be a good football team, careful to point out they are not one yet.
We’ll see soon enough. Next week’s game at South Carolina suddenly looks like a much bigger game than it did a few days ago.
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