Garrett Nussmeier has the "keys to the car" as LSU's QB1

LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels is in Tampa for the ReliaQuest Bowl, but the Heisman Trophy winner won’t suit up on Monday vs. Wisconsin.

As Daniels prepares for the NFL Draft, redshirt sophomore Garrett Nussmeier takes the reins as LSU’s starting quarterback.

Nussmeier appeared in five games this season for LSU, with his most notable action coming when Daniels was injured in the fourth quarter at Alabama. Nussmeier entered off the bench and went 5-for-10 passing for 53 yards in the loss.

Now, Nussmeier – for the first time in his college career – will get the starting nod.

As the Tigers prepare for a January 1 matchup with the Badgers, head coach Brian Kelly opened up on what he’s seen from Nussmeier – and what LSU fans can expect from him on Monday and beyond.

“He’s got the keys to the car going forward in ’24,” Kelly said. “The offense, he knows it well. He’ll be able to do the things that we need to do offensively, run it, throw it, do the things that are necessary to be a championship football team.”

Nussmeier, who has been tabbed as a “gunslinger” who pushes the ball down the field while also taking chances in the passing game, has shifted that mindset over the past month.

Now, it’s a new approach, one that combines assertiveness with the reality that the outcome of the game is put in his hands.

“I think it’s different,” Kelly said of Nussmeier’s shift from QB2 to QB1. “Going from being the backup to the starter, everything is a little bit faster. I think there’s a little bit more of a need to communicate and take the reins.

“When you’re a backup, you can kind of muddle your way through it a little bit, fake your way through it. There’s no faking now. You’re running it.”

After 14 practices during bowl season, Kelly said Nussmeier’s confidence is already shining through as he prepares for the New Year’s Day outing against the Badgers.

“He walks around the building a little bit differently, there’s no doubt,” Kelly said. “But he hasn’t played. So the game is different than practice. He’s preparing. When it’s live, and Wisconsin’s got a great scheme, they do a lot of really good things defensively, and he’ll be challenged.

“He’s got a lot of pressure on him. But that’s why he’s here. He loves the bright lights. He kind of rises to that kind of occasion.”

As for the future, Nussmeier is currently the veteran in a quarterback room that includes a freshman in Rickie Collins and will soon add a high school early-enrollee in Colin Hurley.

That said, Vanderbilt transfer AJ Swann is transferring to LSU after committing to the Tigers in December – and he brings double-digit starts from Nashville as he adds to the competition for the starting job next season.

“It’s very similar to last year where Jayden came back, but we gave Nuss a fair shot at competing for that starting position,” Kelly said. “Nuss pushed it, but Jayden was better.

“We’ll have the same situation where AJ will have a chance to take that job from him. It is not a closed position. We were transparent with him. Nuss knows that, too. We’re going to be honest and open about the competition. You don’t bring in a guy who started at Vanderbilt and say, ‘Listen, you’re coming in, but you have no chance.’ That doesn’t make any sense. Nuss knew that, too.”

Competition this offseason and into fall camp is a discussion for another day.

For now, all eyes are on the presumed heir apparent to Daniels as Nussmeier steps into the driver’s seat in LSU’s ReliaQuest Bowl matchup with Wisconsin.

“It will be fun to watch him play on Monday,” Kelly said.