Three observations about LSU football’s Week 14 win over Oklahoma

The LSU Tigers (8-4, 5-3) wrapped up the regular season with a 37-17 win over the Oklahoma Sooners on Saturday night behind a gutsy performance from quarterback Garrett Nussmeier.

Nussmeier and Co. handled business from start to finish against the Sooners. Despite the adversity in the second quarter, the Bayou Bengals bounced back the way Kelly trained his program to do so.

Now LSU will finish the regular season on a positive note after back-to-back wins over the Vanderbilt Commodores and the Oklahoma Sooners.

What were the three biggest takeaways from Saturday night in Death Valley?

No. 1: The complete performance LSU was looking for

LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier had a rollercoaster 2024 season and, despite the rough patches, has emerged as one of the most productive signal-callers in the Southeastern Conference.

After arguably his most complete performance in Week 13 against the Vanderbilt Commodores, all attention turned to the regular season finale against the Oklahoma Sooners. How would Nussmeier react? Would he carry the momentum?

LSU’s QB1 won over the locker room this offseason with his courage and fearlessness. On Saturday he showed why that was so.

Midway through the second quarter, LSU offensive lineman Will Campbell allowed a sack that resulted in Nussmeier hitting the ground with force.

The sack took Nussmeier out of the game and into the medical tent, where he eventually went back to the locker room to get an X-ray, according to LSU head coach Brian Kelly.

He was 10 of 15 for 87 yards and a touchdown in a quarter and a half, though his status seemed in doubt.

Then, less than three minutes before halftime, Nussmeier marched out of the tunnel, told Kelly he was ready to go and returned to the field at Tiger Stadium.

A flip switch for Nussmeier that had him clicking on all cylinders. He used his legs to get first downs, leaping across the turf and getting to the top of the defense on deep balls to widen Chris Hilton.

It was as heroic a performance as LSU could ask for to cap off the regular season in the win column.

Nussmeier finished the night with 277 yards on 22 of 31 passing and three touchdowns through the air. It was as complete a performance from the Tigers’ signal-caller as LSU hasn’t seen all season.

On defense, it was The Whit Weeks Show from start to finish.

He finished the night with 15 tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack, but it was the energy that paved the way for the defense.

It was a complete performance for coordinator Blake Baker’s unit. The scoreboard doesn’t tell the whole story after Oklahoma scored a scoop-and-score touchdown after a strip sack by the Sooners defense.

Baker’s group wreaked havoc in the backfield for four quarters, with the linebacker trio of Weeks, Greg Penn III and Davhon Keys performing when called upon.

Penn recorded eight tackles, while true freshman Keys posted an impressive nine tackles, a tackle for loss and a sack.

LSU’s defense forced the Sooners to go 4-for-11 on third down while totaling just 277 yards on the day.

Oklahoma signalman Jackson Arnold recorded 131 rushing yards on 25 carries in a win against Alabama last week. On Saturday night, LSU held him to 69 total yards on 16 carries.

It was a masterful performance by the defense, with the second division team making the most of their chances.

#2: Chris Hilton makes a statement

LSU wide receiver Chris Hilton Jr. was virtually non-existent in 2024 after missing the first seven games of the season with an ankle injury.

The redshirt-junior wideout suffered the injury during fall camp before rehabilitating for over two months.

When Hilton returned to the field, it was clear his timing was off with Nussmeier and the rest of the offense.

In Week 14, he showed why it’s better late than never.

Hilton scored two 40-yard touchdowns, with Nussmeier putting the nail in the coffin against the Sooners with his potent threat.

He finished the night with two receptions for 85 yards and two scores, both of which gave the program a needed boost.

“I think we’ve talked about it all year. The big threat was missing from our offense and it was difficult,” head coach Brian Kelly said Saturday. “The teams got involved with us. Teams made it difficult for us because we didn’t have that vertical threat. He’s been away for eight weeks and it’s taking a while to get back into the rhythm. Either we missed him in crashes or something.” The timing wasn’t quite where it needed to be.

“It usually takes about four weeks to get to that (rhythm). That’s why there’s a preparation camp and he missed the whole time. I’m happy for him. He got the ball and made two big plays. “That’s a part of the offense that we were missing and that we desperately needed. Being able to push the ball down the field and having the other options that we have within our offensive structure allows you to play the football. I had that intermediate passing game and then the vertical route. It was huge. We’re excited to see that for Chris.”

Bend, don’t break mentality

When LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier briefly exited Saturday night’s game against the Sooners, the Tigers could have easily turned around and shut down.

Instead of giving in, the Bayou Bengals earned a defensive stop and held their heads high while Nussmeier sat in the locker room.

LSU entered the game with a record of 7-4 and had a chance to fall to an abysmal 7-5 on the year. Although there were no significant opportunities to play after the season, the program played for the three letters on their chest.

It started with Nussmeier recovering from an injury and ended with the Tigers putting on arguably their best performance of the season.

“There was no way I was sitting outside. A lot of these guys busted my butt last year, and a lot of these seniors,” Nussmeier said Saturday. “LSU means a lot to me. It means the world to me and I bleed those colors no matter what anyone says about me.”

“I didn’t have the opportunity to watch the rest of the game from the sidelines and let the seniors go out without me playing. In my head there was no real option, whatever we had to do to get me back outside.”

LSU dominated the stats and ultimately won the game, but their fight until the clock reached zero amid the adversity stole the show.

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