Danny Kanell 'cautious' on Garrett Nussmeier, expects bumps in the road for LSU's offense

The SEC is home to some serious quarterback talent this year. Recently, former Florida State quarterback Danny Kanell appeared on The Ryen Russillo Podcast to share his thoughts on which quarterbacks he was most fond of in the conference. When it comes to LSU‘s starting signal caller in 2024, Kanell appears to be a bit lukewarm on Garrett Nussmeier.

“I’m more tentative on Nuss than most people are,” said Kanell. “Just from the standpoint of I’m always a little bit cautious with players that we’ve only seen a little glimpse of, and they’ve been good. But like how is it going to translate over the course of a year when you are under scrutiny like you’ve never seen before. By the way, there’s also two incredible wide receivers that are gone.”

Nussmeier and the Tigers did lose their top two receiving threats from 2023 — Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. However, LSU has done an exceptional job lately of refilling the cupboard at wide receiver. And while those two may be off to the NFL, head coach Brian Kelly fully anticipates wide receiver Kyren Lacey and tight end Mason Taylor to step in and be the new leaders on the outside.

Kanell does not appear to question whether Nussmeier has the talent to be great at LSU. His concern is between the ears; whether the Tigers’ new starting quarterback can handle the pressure if they struggle this season.

“I think they’re gonna have to rely on the run game a little bit more,” Kanell said. “And then, most importantly, like how do you do under the scrutiny of being the starting quarterback? I think he’ll be able to handle it. But there’s always that: do you get gunshy? Does it change your outcome? I’m just a little bit more skeptical of he’s going to step in and LSU gonna be the exact same offensively. I think it could be a little bit of a bumpy ride for them on the offensive side of the ball I think that offense is going to take a step back.”

The pressure of being a quarterback at an elite college football program such as LSU, which typically is a threat to win the national championship, can be tough to manage. It is even more difficult when the program has been home to two of the last four Heisman Trophy winners (quarterbacks Joe Burrow in 2019 and Jayden Daniels in 2023). Still, it remains to be seen they are not smarter and can handle that pressure. And until Kanell sees it for himself, he’s going to be wary of the hype surrounding the LSU QB.