LSU Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier looks to Limit Catastrophic Mistakes in Year 2

By ANDRE CHAMPAGNE, TIGER RAG STAFF REPORTER

LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier has always dreamed of playing for the Tigers in Baton Rouge. He’s getting to do it again this season, hoping to help bring LSU its fifth national championship.

Nussmeier looks to improve not only his play in year two, but he is also becoming more vocal as a leader. During Wednesday and Thursday’s practice session, Nussmeier could be seen and heard vocally in the huddles and even on the field with his offense. He made sure his offense was hustling to the line and could be heard throughout the practice facility identifying defensive sets the Tiger defense brought.

Head coach Brian Kelly emphasizes that Nussmeier will have to make some major improvements to his game going into season two of starting, something that former LSU quarterbacks Joe Burrow and Jayden Daniels did exceptionally well.

Last season, Nussmeier forced lots of throws that led to either interceptions or negative plays, which is where Kelly says he needs to improve at.

“His worst play needs to be zero. And zero is okay. We can live with zero. What we can’t live with is catastrophic mistakes,” Kelly said about his quarterback.

Kelly stated that Nussmeier had to go through the struggles, making mistakes while getting SEC experience, to be able to blossom as the player they want him to be this season. Because Nussmeier saw his mistakes – whether it was forcing throws or taking unnecessary sacks – he focuses his attention on becoming technically sound.

“On-time throws, never turn down a profit meaning if there’s a check down, take it. It doesn’t always have to be down the field,” Kelly added to the technicalities Nussmeier has been working on.

Nussmeier has been doing just that in the first two practice sessions. During Wednesday’s 11-on-11 and 7-on-7 sessions, Nussmeier did not force bad throws downfield but instead took the checkdowns to his running backs when pressured by the LSU defensive line. Nussmeier’s ability to recognize one-one-one matchups downfield was also apparent, most notably, when zipping it perfectly thirty yards downfield to the back shoulder side of Chris Hilton Jr.

Nussmeier not only has been focusing on improving decision-making in his quarterback play, but he is also focusing his attention on using his legs more.

“Physically he has taken care of his body. He ran 21.4 miles per hour which is high 4.5’s. He can run,” Kelly said.

Kelly says he believes Nussmeier can be an effective runner, where he could add another dangerous element to his game. If Nussmeier could effectively extend plays with his legs along with his cannon of an arm, defenses will be in for a rude awakening. Kelly believes that his quarterback is in a great position to improve drastically as a more complete quarterback. Although only time will tell, Nussmeier and the LSU offense will have to figure things out as they will be tested in four weeks against what is expected to be an elite Clemson defense.