Instant Reactions: LSU 30, Georgia 50

That went exactly as I thought it would

Welp, LSU couldn’t hold a candle to Georgia. Get in line.

The game was a bit even in the first 5-10 minutes, with LSU moving the ball well (as they did all day, by the way) and getting down with a chance to take a 7-0 lead. They stalled out, attempted a field goal, it got blocked, nobody knew you could return those except for Georgia’s Chris Smith, and that went the way you could imagine it went. 7-0 Georgia. LSU tied it with a long TD to Kayshon Boutte, who F I N A L L Y re-broke out, and it was all Bowers and Washington from there.

Georgia, as they have to everyone this year, was able to create conflict in personnel, forcing LSU to spend the game in base (3-4-4), which opened favorable pass looks for Georgia, which they took and took and took again. It was a masterful gameplan from Todd Monken, and LSU had no answer. I’m not mad about it, nobody has a matchup answer for Georgia when they have their two tight ends on the field, and you know that’s what the filmer will be about this week. Your only hope is that Stetson Bennett plays poorly and he didn’t! The only reason they scored so much more on LSU than they do on most teams is simple, LSU scored back, and kept them from being able to sit back and ice the game away. Good for them, and good for Garrett Nussmeier, Malik Nabers, and Kayshon Boutte. Nabers has emerged as a true star, blowing through multiple brackets for big plays.

As for Nussmeier: wow. The arm talent and explosive out-of-structure playmaking were on full display. When combined with their (finally) explosive receivers, they created big play after big play. They did it when Daniels was in the game too, easily the best game of the year for the LSU passing game when considering it faced the BEST defense in the nation and an exciting thing to build on going into next season. No matter who the QB is, it’s exciting, I’m good with either.

As for the blowout? Yeah so what, they’re probably going to do it to their opponent in the CFP too, and that’s the CFP. We should reflect on where LSU was a calendar year ago, and where LSU is now. You should be excited, you should have confidence in Brian Kelly and his staff, you should have confidence in these kids, the equipment staff, the video staff, the recruiting staff, and everyone around LSU football.

Now let’s build on it. As Brian Kelly said after the game: