LSU QB Jayden Daniels "day-to-day" ahead of Florida game

LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels was knocked out of the game and put into concussion protocol vs. Alabama in the fourth quarter.

On Monday, head coach Brian Kelly updated the status of the team’s starter.

“He’s day-to-day,” Kelly said. “This is a process. He has made improvements. He has made some progress.”

LSU backup quarterback Garrett Nussmeier finished the final 13 minutes of the game, going 5-for-10 passing for 53 yards.

“I think every week is important for him in terms of preparation,” Kelly said when asked about Nussmeier if he’s the starter vs. the Gators. “We will take Jayden’s situation day-by-day. We are hoping things keep moving in the right direction.

“Garrett really knows there are things he has to work on during the week, so we will be a lot more focused. He knows he’s a snap away from getting into the game.”

LSU doesn’t practice on Mondays, and the Tigers will put Daniels through another round of medical tests on Tuesday ahead of the team’s practice. From there, he will know his starting quarterback’s availability for practice.

“We won’t know those answers until he goes through the next step in the protocol,” Kelly said.

LSU is set to face Florida (5-4 overall) on Saturday in Tiger Stadium. Kelly will meet with the media again on Thursday to updates the injury status to Daniels and the Tigers ahead of the matchup with the Gators.

Daniels still shined in LSU’s loss to Alabama

Daniels passed for 219 yards and two touchdowns while rushing for 163 yards and a touchdown, keeping the Tigers in a tight game with the Tide that was still tied 28-28 with two minutes left in the third quarter.

While Daniels was unable to finish the game (concussion protocol), he still leads the NCAA in total yards averaged per game (386). His 2,792 passing yards rank Top 5 nationally, and his 27 passing touchdowns are second in the NCAA to only USC quarterback and reigning Heisman Trophy winner Caleb Williams (28).

With 684 rushing yards, only one quarterback in the FBS has more rushing yards in Boston College’s Thomas Castellanos (760).

Jayden Daniels and the Heisman Race

After another big weekend of college football games, LSU dropped to 6-3 on the season.

But with LSU still leading the NCAA in total offense at 545 yards per game, should Daniels still have a seat in New York for the Heisman Trophy presentation – and perhaps a shot to win it?

Five On3 experts gathered to give their weekly Heisman Trophy ballot following all the action from the weekend, and four are sticking with Daniels as the No. 1 name on the ballot.

Matt Zenitz

1. Jayden Daniels, LSU
2. Bo Nix, Oregon
3. Ollie Gordon, Oklahoma State

“It’s not Daniels’ fault that LSU’s defense has now given up more than 40 points in three separate games. In fact, if not for Daniels continuing to play like at a first-round draft pick type level, the Tigers could easily have five losses instead of three.”

Jesse Simonton

1. JJ McCarthy, Michigan
2. Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State
3. Jayden Daniels, LSU

“It feels gross to penalize Daniels after he had over 300 total yards in the first half against Alabama, and once again tried to single-handedly will the Tigers to a victory. But even though the stats are eye-popping, LSU now has three losses and Daniels is hurt, with his availability against Florida this weekend in question.”

Andy Staples

1. Jayden Daniels, LSU
2. Michael Penix Jr., Washington
3. Caleb Williams, USC

Hopefully Daniels will be back soon. He was carrying LSU against Alabama before his injury, and he still looks like the best player in the country this season.

Charles Power

1. Jayden Daniels, LSU
2. Michael Penix Jr., Washington
3. Marvin Harrison Jr., Ohio State

“Jayden Daniels looked like the best player in the nation before going into concussion protocol in Saturday’s game against Alabama. We’ll see if he can get back in action, but Daniels is having the best season of any quarterback nationally, both statically and with the eye test.”

JD PicKell

1. Jayden Daniels, LSU
2. Bo Nix, Oregon
3. Michael Penix Jr., Washington

“No. 1 I’ve still got Jayden Daniels. I know that he didn’t finish the game against Alabama, but just the way that he is still putting up stupid numbers, the way that he took over at multiple points during that game for LSU and kept them in it, I think with the way that he’s producing if he’s able to get back and if they’re able to finish strong, I think there’s a very real case for him to still win the Heisman Trophy kind of like Caleb Williams did last year without being on a winning team. Twenty-seven touchdown passes and he’s ran for six more on the ground. So 33 total touchdowns, only four interceptions. Dude is balling.”