A NOTE BEFORE WE BEGIN: Zach informed us he would be unavailable Saturday night and I said I could handle the postgame recap. I completely dropped the ball and forgot to do it! So here, two nights later,
is a recap. You wanted the recap written in a timely fashion? Well maybe you’re just spoiled.
Despite a clear boost in energy from interim coach Frank Wilson, LSU failed to reach the end zone and came up short against No. 4 Alabama by a score of 20-9.
Garrett Nussmeier went 18/21 for 121 yards with no TDs, no INTs and one brutal sack. In the third quarter he was replaced by Michael Van Buren, who went 5/11 for 52 yards while rushing for 21 yards (if you removed the 20 yards lost on the two times he was sacked).
The Tigers defense came to play, stopping the Tide on 4th and short on the opening drive. The offense then had a promising start, driving 48 yards into the Alabama red zone. Then an all-too familiar scenario unfolded with Nussmeier burning a timeout before a third down, only to come up woefully short of converting following the discussion. The failure was compounded by Damian Romas missing a chip shot field goal.
After the defense stymied the Tide again, Bauer Sharp lost a fumble for the second time in 19 catches on the season. Alabama then moved backwards two yards before settling for a field goal. The offense followed that up with a second solid drive, highlighted by a 37-yard rush by Harlem Berry. Facing a 4th and 2 at the Bama 20, the interim coaching staff decided to settle for a field goal.
The Bama offense finally put a complete drive together and punched the ball in to take a 10-3 lead. After a 3 and out it looked like the game was about to turn into a laugher. The defense came up big again with two TFLs to hold the Tide to a chip shot field goal attempt that they missed this time. A defensive struggle with missed field goals. We were really playing the hits with this one, huh?
With a chance to be aggressive and drive down the field and tie the game just before halftime, the Tigers failed to move forward, and instead gave Bama the ball back. Their offense turned on the jets and went 66 yards in three plays to take a 17-3 halftime lead.
After halftime, the Tigers yet again strung some really nice plays together and reached first and goal. On third down from the 8, this offense managed to create another legendary red zone disaster by suffering s delay of game, THEN calling a timeout, THEN taking a 14-yard sack. Ramos made the field goal this time, but it was clear this offense was broken and yet again squandered its best chance at reaching the end zone.
To their credit, the defense continued to battle. After forcing another punt, Wilson finally made the once unthinkable decision of benching Nussmeier for Van Buren. While he created some things with his legs, the offense was never truly able to string a drive together. Some throws were inaccurate, others were just the result of a lack of chemistry with the receivers. Some were accurate but flat out dropped because the stink of the 2025 offense has infected everyone at this point.
Still, Blake Baker’s defense continued to battle. Harold Perkins stripped the ball from Ty Simpson, giving us yet another tiny shred of hope.
LSU once again reached first and goal, then proceeded to go backwards and settle for a field goal. The defense forced the sixth stop of the night to give Van Buren a chance to tie the game up. Pinned back on his own 3 on third and nine, he fired a perfect dart to a streaking Trey’Dez Green… who dropped it. Bama then took the ball back and kicked a field goal to put everyone out of their misery.
With all the talent assembled in the offseason, it’s easy to see what could have been. Imagine the downfield passing attack we saw last year, paired with the running game Alex Atkins schemed up at Florida State from 2022-23. That would’ve certainly been capable of scoring more than 20 points on Saturday night.
Everyone on offense failed. When everyone is making mistakes, the failure is coming from the top. That is why LSU needs to fire Bria- oh wait we did that already. Sorry, it was just a habit. Next up, Bobby Petrino-led Arkansas at 11:45 a.m. in Tiger Stadium. Sounds like a super duper fun time.
