It was all Bulldogs in the SEC Championship game, simple as that.
Kirby Smart’s team showed why they’re the top-ranked team in all the land. The Tigers can walk away saying they managed to put up 30 points on the No. 4 defense in the country with a backup quarterback playing the entire second half, but it wasn’t enough. Georgia QB Stetson Bennett had a huge first half and the Bulldogs never looked back, winning their second SEC Championship under the current coaching regime and with eyes on a repeat College Football Playoff title.
The Tigers early mistakes were too much to overcome and they went into halftime trailing 35-10. A blocked field goal led to Georgia’s first 7 points of the game on a 96-yard return with LSU appearing to be unaware the ball was still live. Another blunder was the Jayden Daniels interception, which somehow bounced off Jack Bech’s helmet and into the hands of Smael Mondon Jr.
Coach Brian Kelly’s team did fight, actually outscoring the Bulldogs 20-15 in the second half. Garrett Nussmeier came in for an injured Daniels and played some of his best football in an LSU jersey.
We’ll break down all that in more in this week’s good, bad and ugly from the SEC title game.
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THE GOOD: LSU Passing Attack
The Tigers faced one of the best defenses in college football and finished with over 500 yards passing in the game. It set a new record for passing yards in an SEC Championship game, easily eclipsing the mark set by Alabama a year ago. Even with his first half injury Daniels was able to throw for 200 yards and a touchdown before exiting. Kelly said he re-injured the same ankle that he dinged up late in the loss to Texas A&M last week.
Nussmeier came in for a snap late in the first half and took the reins for the entire second half, showing off the gunslinger reputation that is well-earned. Nussmeier connected on two big passes to Malik Nabers and Jaray Jenkins. Both Nabers and Kayshon Boutte finished the game with over 100 yards receiving and had catches go for over 50 yards.
It’ll be interesting to see what Kelly does in the bowl game, as both QBs are capable of running the LSU offense. With Daniels dealing with an ankle injury, I wouldn’t be surprised if we see Nussmeier getting the start, though there will be plenty of rehab time over the next month.
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THE BAD: LSU Pass Defense
It wasn’t just the LSU QBs who were able to throw all over the yard. Bennett was nearly perfect in the first half, throwing four touchdowns on the Tigers defense. Bennett finished the game with a QB rating of 204 while completing 23 of 29 passes for 274 yards.
The Tigers just couldn’t get any momentum and that resulted in the defense landing in some bad situations, particularly in the first half. It took just one play for the Bulldogs to cash in after the helmet interception. The Bulldogs went 94 yards on another drive after the Tigers were stopped on a 4th and short attempt inside Georgia’s 5-yard line. At that point midway through the third quarter the Tigers had actually trimmed the Bulldogs’ lead to 18 and a score would’ve had them back within striking distance, but Georgia’s long drive seemed to take all the wind from the sails of a potential comeback.
The LSU defense wasn’t able to get much pressure on Bennett, either, and he was not sacked in the game. The lack of depth on LSU’s defense definitely showed its face in this one.
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THE UGLY: LSU Special Teams
The common theme all season, beginning in the opener against Florida State all the way to the SEC title game, was poor special teams execution.
The blocked field goal for the Georgia scoop and score was the cherry on top of the Tigers’ troubles in that department. We’ll see what Kelly decides to do with special teams coordinator Brian Polian after the season, but Tigers fans will be calling for changes in that department.
Up next for LSU will be a bowl game, which seems likely to be a Citrus Bowl visit to Orlando. While it isn’t a CFP or Sugar Bowl invite, playing in a new year’s bowl is something Kelly can build off in his first season at LSU.