The LSU Tigers took care of business on Saturday night, shutting out an overmatched New Mexico in about as dominating a fashion as you could imagine. The Lobos’ offense was no match for the Tigers, failing to score on all nine of their possessions.
Even more impressive in the LSU win: Starters BJ Ojalari and Jay Ward didn’t play.
While the game itself wasn’t always pretty, the offense and defense were both efficient and cleaned up their mistakes from last week’s win against Mississippi State. The Tigers will gladly use this momentum as they head into Auburn next weekend, a game that could be a pivotal moment for whichever teams walks away with a win. But before we look ahead, let’s break down the good, bad and ugly from LSU’s 38-0 shellacking of New Mexico tonight.
THE GOOD: LSU Defense
When you shut out your opponent – it really doesn’t matter who – you’re going to get praised for that accomplishment. The last time the Tigers held an opponent scoreless was back in 2018 when they defeated Southeastern 31-0.
Freshman linebacker Harold Perkins led the Tigers with 8 tackles. The LSU defense also registered four sacks on New Mexico QB Miles Kendrick. The Lobos were held to just 88 total yards and two first downs. The Tigers played their most complete defensive game of the season and that really can’t be debated.
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MORE GOOD: LSU Offense
It didn’t matter who was at quarterback or the skill positions, the Tigers were able to do whatever they wanted against the New Mexico defense. Jayden Daniels was very efficient in the first half, completing 18 of his first 21 passes. Daniels finished the game 24 for 29 with 279 yards passing.
Backup quarterback Garrett Nussmeier came in midway through the second quarter when Daniels exited with an injury. There is no quarterback controversy, but Nussmeier made sure to shine in relief, going 9-of-10 for 135 yards and a touchdown. It was a much-needed boost of confidence after he struggled in a similar situation two weeks ago in a matchup against Southern.
LSU relied mostly on the running game, which featured all four backs on Saturday night. Noah Cain and Armoni Goodwin logged two touchdowns apiece. John Emery Jr. and Josh Williams handled mop-up duty, both averaging close to 5 yards a carry. Emery did have a rough moment with a fumble in the second half.
THE BAD: injuries
There wasn’t much to complain about in this one but the injuries stood out. We saw Daniels come out of the game after being thrown to the ground hard on a first down run. He didn’t return to the field, but did have his helmet with him on the sideline. Head coach Brian Kelly said he was dealing with a lower back sprain and had been cleared to return if he was needed, but that clearly wasn’t the case.
LSU wide receivers Brian Thomas Jr. and Malik Nabers both left the game with upper-body injuries. We’ll likely learn more from Coach Kelly on Monday.
Finally, after scoring twice on the night Armoni Goodwin looked to have hurt his knee/hamstring after a reception. He went to the locker room following the play and we saw LSU use the remaining trio of RBs to pick up the slack.
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THE UGLY: mental mistakes
There wasn’t too much to complain about in a shutout, but it could have been much worse for the Lobos. LSU had two scores taken away in the first half due to penalties. Jack Bech had a long punt return for a touchdown, but a blindside hit negated the play.
The second score taken off the board was a Kole Taylor score, which was nullified due to offensive pass interference. That would have been Daniels’ only touchdown pass of the night. The Tigers were able to get a passing touchdown later in the game from Garrett Nussmeier.
With another tune-up game in the rear-view mirror, the focus will shift back to SEC competition with the Tigers set to face their first true road test of the 2002 season. The hot seat seems warm for Auburn head coach Bryan Harsin. Could he be the next coach in college football to be let go with a rough loss in the Tiger Bowl? Look for LSU to carry their positive momentum into what is always a wild battle at Jordan-Hare.