South Carolina's defense has been great so far. But can it contain Nussmeier and LSU?
Clayton White understands what his defense did last Saturday doesn’t happen too often.
Going up against Kentucky’s offense, South Carolina held the Wildcats to only 44 total passing yards in a 31-6 win. It’s the lowest mark given up by White’s defense and only the third time the Gamecocks have allowed less than 100 passing yards by a starting quarterback since 2021.
As they turn the page to this weekend’s matchup, they’ll be facing another offense likely to try and throw the ball, only this time, a little more effectively. While a two-game sample size, LSU has noticeably averaged more than 300 passing yards compared to 88.5 rushing yards per game.
The Tigers will make the trip to Columbia on Saturday (noon, ABC) to face the 2-0 Gamecocks. Pinning LSU’s passing offense up against South Carolina’s tough pass coverage, something will have to give this weekend.
“I think they present a challenge for everybody they play,” White said on LSU. “The game plan is definitely changing every single week. You have to always adjust to who you’re playing and when you’re playing. You definitely want to keep the focus on yourself, your technique and how you play your coverages and be cleaner. There’s a lot of things that we could have done better in the previous two games. We feel like we’re just now getting started, but we want to continue with those small details and keep practicing hard and bringing that great energy to practice.”
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While the Tigers may not have a Heisman Trophy winner like Joe Burrow or Jayden Daniels under center this year, they’ve still managed to get by with another solid quarterback. Taking over the reins, Garrett Nussmeier has been sensational thus far, completing 75 percent of his passes for eight touchdowns with one interception and zero sacks.
Surrounding Nussemeier, there’s talent everywhere you look. His top target has been Kyren Lacy, sure to be a first-round draft pick if he stays healthy. But so far, he’s spread the ball around, with three other receivers having close to or more than 100 yards.
If there is one area where the Tigers haven’t been dominant, though, it would be in the run game. LSU will already be without its leading rusher, John Emery Jr., who tore his ACL in practice last week. With him being out, the running backs behind him haven’t been overly productive, which makes slowing down Nussemeier a priority for the Gamecocks.
“Every game, we just have to execute. So if they plan on passing the ball, we planning on stopping it. If they plan on running the ball, we also plan on stopping it,” Jalon Kilgore said. “So if they plan on passing the ball, I know our EDGE rushers, they’re going to get to the quarterback, and we’ve got good DBs that can guard on the back end.”
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Outside of one blown coverage back in Week 1, South Carolina has been good about keeping passing attacks in check. Kilgore, who’s recorded an interception in both games, said it goes back to how the defense has looked in practice.
“We listen to our rules and techniques with Coach (Torrian) Gray and just follow what he coaches and teaches us,” he said. “We just put that into the game plan and we all work together, because we’re all great players. Once we have that good chemistry and can play together as a team, I feel like we’re unstoppable.”
However, LSU is not going to be a Kentucky or Old Dominion. It will certainly be much better than anything the defense has seen so far. To find success again on Saturday, the pass coverage and rush need to be in sync with one another, White said.
“It all goes hand-in-hand,” he said. “Everybody plays a role in each turnover, each takeaway. And we just keep preaching that every single day.”
