LSU trailed UCLA 10-7 at the end of the first quarter on Saturday at home. The Tigers went into the halftime break tied, with serious questions about the defense, and little to show from its efforts on the ground against a team that had just been pushed around by Indiana the week prior.

The second half showed a different Tiger team. LSU held UCLA scoreless over the final 30 minutes and outgained the Bruins 244-89 in the second half.

When the clock hit zero, No. 16 LSU moved to 3-1 on the season with a 34-17 win. Here are 3 takes from the game.

LSU has another star at QB

Garrett Nussmeier was out-dueled in LSU’s opener against USC, but not because of anything he did. USC’s quarterback was just wonderful. A week later, Nussmeier was remarkable in a win over Nicholls. A week later, Nussmeier had warts, but led the Tigers in a comeback on the road to win an SEC game.

On Saturday against UCLA, Nussmeier was outstanding.

He completed 32 of his 44 passes for 352 yards and 3 touchdowns. He completed passes to 9 different players. He did not turn the football over.

On a day when the Tigers went for 454 yards on offense, Nussmeier operated clinically. The Tigers outscored the Bruins 17-0 in the second half. They went 7-for-9 on third down and scored on 3 of their 4 drives. The only possession that didn’t end in points ended with triple zeroes on the clock.

Nussmeier engineered a 14-play, 96-yard drive on LSU’s first possession of the second half. That drive was jump-started by a 33-yard pass to Mason Taylor on a second-and-11 and bled 6:33 off the clock. On the Tigers’ next offensive possession, LSU went 92 yards in 11 plays. Nussmeier got that drive rolling with consecutive completions of 13, 12, and 9 yards.

UCLA only ran 22 plays in the second half after getting to the break tied. LSU played a ball-control game over the final 30 minutes and Nussmeier operated brilliantly.

Swinson stands out again

Bradyn Swinson is a stud.

A stud. 

On the heels of a 3-sack game against South Carolina last weekend, Swinson was once again a menace in the offensive backfield. He finished the game with 5 tackles, 2 sacks, and another forced fumble.

Swinson had a sack on third-and-15 in the second quarter and then got to UCLA quarterback Ethan Garbers again on the next drive, stripping the football. Teammate Sai’vion Jones recovered and LSU turned the takeaway into a field goal to go up by 7.

Swinson is playing outstanding football at the moment. If it continues, he’s going to see his NFL Draft stock soar in the coming months.

Perkins exits

Harold Perkins Jr. exited LSU’s game with an apparent knee injury in the fourth quarter. It happened while he was attempting to make a tackle, but he didn’t take any contact to the knee. Perkins walked off the field with a limp and did not return.

Coach Brian Kelly did not have an update on Perkins as he was walking off the field, but his health becomes a major storyline for LSU going forward. If it’s a serious injury, the Tigers will be hurt. If Perkins has avoided something significant, LSU has a bit of time to get him healthy. LSU hosts South Alabama next Saturday before heading into a bye. LSU hosts No. 5 Ole Miss on Oct. 12.