Garrett Nussmeier raves about LSU's offseason growth, leadership

Garrett Nussmeier continues to work throughout the summer months with his teammates as he steps into the QB1 spot for LSU in 2024. On Friday in Thibodaux, Louisiana he was in attendance helping to coach at the annual Manning Passing Academy and had some time for media availability to discuss his offseason and the progress from his offense.

After getting quality starting reps as a starter in the bowl game last year, there’s a sustained level of confidence from the team that had the nation’s best offense in 2023, despite losing three first round draft picks and its offensive coordinator. Nussmeier sees the talent LSU has, but more than that, he sees the continuity and chemistry from the most experienced group especially.

“I think as an offense we’ve really come together,” Nussmeier said. “I give a lot of credit to the O-line, Will and Emery, Dellinger, Miles, DJ, all those guys, they’re really the core for us. They keep us together. When you have guys like that, guys that have played for so long up front, they can kind of lead and tie everybody together and it’s huge when you have an offensive line with that kind of mindset. They call themselves the Bomb Squad and I love all of them and they do a really, really good job of tying our offense together. So I think we’ve done a really good job as a team, also just continuing to build relationships with the freshmen and things like that. I feel like there’s a sense of we’re ready to go, I guess you could say, and we’re really excited for September.”

While LSU’s offensive line has continuity, the rest of the offense is in the process of gaining comfort with one another in their new roles. With Nussmeier at quarterback, players like Kyren Lacy, CJ Daniels, Chris Hilton, and Zavion Thomas all looking to step up on the outside, and even players like Mason Taylor and Kaleb Jackson ready for more on their plate, the process of growing into one unit takes time, but it’s already taken significant strides forward.

“It’s not even just on the field either. It’s just spending time with them and getting to know them,” Nussmeier said. “I’ve only known CJ for three or four months now, and Zavion the same. So just getting to learn who they are as a person, what they like, what they don’t like, just things like that. And it sounds so simple and so cliche, but that’s the things that matter in this sport, especially in my position. I feel like it’s my job to make sure I know who my teammates are and make sure I can be there for them when they need me. And I think it’s even beyond me. It’s just CJ getting to know Will, or CJ getting to know Emory, or Zavion getting to know Will, or Zavion even getting to know the other guys in the receiver room, like Chris and Kyren, and just all of us just getting to know who we are and spending time together outside of the building.”

LSU’s offensive line nicknamed itself “The Bomb Squad” entering 2024 and over the summer they’ve been sure to step up as leaders of the team in order to live up to their lofty expectations. Nussmeier sees it every day and believes it helps set the foundation for everyone doing their jobs.

“Just having that core up front, it’s almost like a force, it’s almost like a police department,” Nussmeier said. “They’re policing everybody because they don’t care. That’s who they are, the bomb squad, they’re gonna make sure we’re doing things the right way. And Coach Davis has done an unbelievable job with them. And all of those guys, all five of those guys have stepped up tremendously. All credit goes to them. They’ve done an amazing job. So I’m excited to continue to see how they can continue to lead us.”