LSU Football: Three Observations From The Tigers' Victory Over Army
The air was different in Baton Rouge on Saturday night with LSU hosting the Army Black Knights. A day of respect and admiration for storied program, LSU honored them with class.
But after the opening kickoff, the Bayou Bengals went to work on the gridiron after dominating in every facet of the game in their 62-0 victory.
Three Observations From Week 8:
Offensive Onslaught, Jayden Daniels Heisman Buzz
There was no question the LSU offense would step up to the plate against Saturday’s non-conference foe and this group rose to the occasion once again. The Bayou Bengals went into halftime with a 38-0 lead with big contributions from Jayden Daniels and Brian Thomas Jr.
Daniels’ Heisman-like season continued, and despite only playing in the first half, he made the most of his snaps through two quarters. The one-two punch of Malik Nabers and Thomas Jr. has been elevated to another level over the last handful of games with the Army secondary having no answer for the tandem.
Once the second half rolled around, it was the Garrett Nussmeier show. The third-year Tiger made the most of his reps, and on his first drive of the game, he dropped a 51-yard pass right into Nabers’ hands for a touchdown. He isn’t scared to take shots and proved that once again against the Black Knights.
The Tigers didn’t utilize their rushing attack at a significant rate, but when LSU relied on it, Logan Diggs and John Emery carried most of the weight.
The Numbers:
Jayden Daniels… 11/15 (73%), 279 passing yards, three touchdowns and one interception.
Garrett Nussmeier… 7/12 (58%), 90 yards and a touchdown.
Brian Thomas Jr… Three receptions, 122 yards and two touchdowns.
Malik Nabers… Four receptions, 121 yards and two touchdowns.
Rushing numbers… 33 rushing attempts for 201 yards and four touchdowns (seven rushers).
Trouble in the Cornerback Room
LSU cornerback Zy Alexander exited Saturday night’s contest with an ankle injury. The injury occurred on the final play of the first half and Alexander remained in the locker room for the rest of the game.
Come the second half, LSU fell back on true freshman Jeremiah Hughes to take first-team reps. For the Tigers, Saturday's contest was against an inferior opponent, allowing them to get away with the lack of stability in the secondary, but moving forward things will get tricky.
Transfer corner Denver Harris wasn't seen with the team on Saturday on the sidelines. JK Johnson is out for the foreseeable future with an ankle injury. Duce Chestnut is inactive. Now, your fourth transfer in Alexander suffers an ankle injury with his status up in the air.
LSU has worked in Sage Ryan at cornerback and will utilize a trio of Ashton Stamps, Laterrance Welch and Jeremiah Hughes at the moment. Stamps, another true freshman, is working his way back from a minor injury.
The cornerback room remains a piece to the puzzle that has been a struggle, but with a bye week ahead, it gives this program time to sort things out.
Defensive Discipline, Improvements
With Army’s unique offensive approach, LSU knew they would need to get production from the linebackers in order to slow down the triple option. On Saturday, the Bayou Bengals received that and then some. Omar Speights, Harold Perkins and Greg Penn III handled business for this unit. Speights ended the night with nine tackles with Perkins tallying seven of his own. For Penn, he recorded four tackles and a tackle for loss to add to an impressive night for this group.
If there was an MVP on defense for LSU on Saturday night, it was safety Andre Sam. The first-year Tiger started the game shot out of a cannon and made the most of his chances. Sam ended the game with a pair of interceptions and a pass breakup. For a secondary that has struggled this season, it was a bright spot to see Sam shine.
It was a productive night for the LSU defense, and despite facing an inferior opponent in the Black Knights, this group handled business on defense after allowing zero points scored.
