LSU head coach Brian Kelly was not having any of the Garrett Nussmeier ‘doubts' after the No. 4 LSU Tigers fell 24-19 to the No. 13 Ole Miss Rebels in Oxford. The head coach said the standard wasn’t met across the board, and he made sure everyone heard it.
“Look, Garrett Nussmeier’s got to play better. Every player on offense has got to play better. And then we have to be more consistent on defense,” Kelly said postgame.
“There’s not one guy that you would put out and go ‘well, that was the reason we lost.’ There’s many, many players that have to play their best when their best is needed……This is not a Garrett Nussmeier problem. This is an entire football team of guys doing their job at a higher level.”
Kelly’s message matched the tape. LSU never found its rhythm and managed just 254 total yards, a season low, while converting 2-of-11 on third down. Ole Miss kept the Tigers bottled up on early downs and forced long-yardage spots that stiffened every drive. When LSU needed a counterpunch, it didn’t land enough of them.
If Kelly sounded urgent, it’s because he has been preaching ‘complementary football' for weeks. LSU’s offense didn’t help a defense that logged long series, and the defense didn’t flip field position with takeaways. Special teams offered no freebies, either. Kelly has said repeatedly that the formula requires all three phases to stack good reps, and Saturday night, they didn’t stack enough.
The quarterback always gets the spotlight, which is why Kelly tried to spread it. Garrett Nussmeier had flashes, but the protection leaked, the run game never scared Ole Miss, and the Tigers’ spacing got tight as the Rebels sat on routes. That’s the ‘team' part Kelly leaned on. He needs cleaner pockets, a steadier ground game, and receivers winning on time to unlock the offense he expects.
The bigger-picture takeaway: this is a September gut check, not a season obituary. LSU still has its goals in play, but the margin shrinks in a hurry in the SEC. Kelly’s call-out sounded less like blame and more like a demand for urgency.
What’s next is accountability. Kelly put it on everyone, not just the quarterback. Now the Tigers have to match the talk with a clean week and a sharper Saturday.
