Brian Kelly shuts down speculation about Garrett Nussmeier sitting Week 4
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As LSU prepares for a buy game against Southeastern Louisiana on Saturday, calls to rest quarterback Garrett Nussmeier have grown a bit louder.
The third-ranked Tigers (3-0, 1-0 SEC) host the Lions from the FCS ranks, then travel to Oxford to face Ole Miss on Sept. 27. A bye week arrives after that game. When coach Brian Kelly revealed on Monday that Nussmeier is dealing with a “torso injury” that has “slowed” him in recent weeks, Kelly claimed that Nussmeier would not be able to “shut it down until the bye week.”
But with LSU expected to roll against an outmanned opponent, some fans have suggested giving Nussmeier an early break. ESPN’s EJ Manuel said the same thing Wednesday morning on SiriusXM’s College Sports Radio.
Kelly told reporters during the SEC Coaches Teleconference on Wednesday that he expects Nussmeier to play.
“I think he needs to play,” Kelly said. “Garrett wants to play. He’s capable of playing. As I said, the torso injury slowed him up and it slowed up, in some instances, the development of the offense because we needed to be very careful with him.
“… We dialed back practice. We dialed back what we were doing to make sure that we protected him. He’s now on the other side of it because we were able to do that. This week is an opportunity for him. He’s doing some things in practice he hasn’t been able to do in the last month. We’re pretty excited about what he could do this weekend.”
The injury to Nussmeier would certainly help explain why LSU has been off this season. The Tigers have averaged 20 points a game through their first 3 — 10.5 points off last season’s pace. Nussmeier is nearly 100 passing yards per game below his average last season. His yards-per-attempt average is also down by more than a yard, though his completion percentage is 0.9 percentage points higher.
For LSU, the more pressing issue with the offense has been the lack of a run game. The Tigers rank 109th nationally in rushing efficiency, averaging just 3.7 yards per game. Only Alabama has fewer explosive runs in the SEC through the first 3 weeks.
Presumably, the Tigers could accomplish multiple goals this weekend against the Lions — keep Nussmeier in the plan without overloading his plate, focus on the run game, and put a much-needed dent in the scoreboard.
Kickoff on Saturday is set for 7:45 p.m. ET on SEC Network.
Derek Peterson does a bit of everything, not unlike Taysom Hill. He has covered Oklahoma, Nebraska, the Pac-12, and now delivers CFB-wide content.
