The LSU Tigers welcomed the Grambling State Tigers to Baton Rouge Saturday night in an historic, yet one-sided affair. The FCS squad was no match for LSU’s offense, which scored at will in a 72-10 win in their home opener.
LSU QB Jayden Daniels only needed half the game to put it out of reach, finishing the first half with five passing touchdowns. The game didn’t start out like the scoreboard would indicate as Grambling showed some bite early, scoring on their first two possessions. LSU would then go on to score 58 straight points and send both Tigers fans home early.
We got to see a number of LSU players get into the end zone including freshman RB Kaleb Jackson, who scored twice in his first career game in Tiger Stadium. Back-up QB Garrett Nussmeier took over in the second half in his first playing time of the season and finished with a rushing touchdown. There’s no doubt that Daniels has the keys to this LSU offense even after the criticism the Tigers faced with their loss to FSU.
We’ll break down all the highlights and problems the Tigers still face in this week’s good, bad and ugly.
GOOD
Jayden Daniels
Daniels is the obvious choice for player of the game even with only one half of action on the night. Daniels led the Tigers on scoring drives in every possession in the first half. WR Brian Thomas looked to be his main target adding two of the five passing touchdowns. Malik Nabors, Kyren Lacy and Chris Hilton all found the end zone on a Daniels pass.
There was a lot of criticism last week about the amount of dropped passes and Daniels’ ability to throw the ball downfield. He answered those critics with this performance and set a career record. Daniels will face his first SEC opponent next week, the Mississippi State Bulldogs. That battle in Starkville will give us a good idea of where the Tigers offense stands.
Kaleb Jackson
The freshman running back from Baton Rouge looked impressive in his first game in Tiger Stadium. Jackson missed his entire senior season of high school due to an injury and returned finding the end zone twice Saturday night. Jackson finished the night with 62 yards on 11 carries.
The LSU backfield has been a mixed bag with John Emery being unavailable for the first three games of the season. We didn’t see Noah Cain until late in the 4th quarter, and Josh Williams has looked averaged in his two games. This could be an opportunity for Jackson to see more snaps next week before Emery returns to the LSU backfield.
BAD
LSU Secondary
The LSU defense didn’t help itself early in the ball game, allowing Grambling to march up and down the field on their first two drives. Grambling totaled 173 yards of offense on their first two possessions, and they were able to muster up their only 10 points of the game.
The Tigers are dealing with some new faces in the secondary as highly touted transfer Denver Harris got to see plenty of playing time. They’ll need to find which defensive backs between Harris, Zy Alexander, Deuce Chestnut and Sage Ryan fit best, because allowing 259 yards of offense at halftime isn’t what LSU would consider DBU.
Mason Taylor:
The LSU tight end, famously known for his catch defeating Alabama last season, went into the locker room in the 1st half, after rolling his ankle, and didn’t return to the field. Taylor was trying to catch a pass from Daniels and ending up leaving the game as the Tigers were up 35-10.
Hopefully, his injury isn’t two serious as Taylor is a weapon in Brian Kelly’s offense. The Tigers don’t have much experience behind Taylor, if he happens to be out in the upcoming weeks. Taylor was seen jogging back to the sidelines after coming out the locker room.
UGLY
Grambling State Defense
Boy, that was a bad performance from Hue Jackson’s team. LSU was able to score touchdowns on the Grambling defense on ten straight drives. The Tigers finished the game with 622 total yards of offense. It’s great to see the LSU offense clicking, but in games like that, it’s hard to take much away due to the discrepancy in talent on field.
The Mississippi State Bulldogs are up next for LSU, with an early 11am kickoff in Starkville. The Tigers will face one of the better QBs in the SEC in Will Rogers. Rogers holds nearly every passing record in Mississippi State history, so it’ll be a test for the Tigers’ secondary. The Bulldogs are coming off an overtime win against the Arizona Wildcats that kept them undefeated.
