LSU Drills Florida In Old School SEC Style In Which Charles Alexander Would’ve Felt At Home

GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor

Former LSU great Charles Alexander may have carried the football 40 times in this one.

No. 3 LSU rode a Charles McClendon-like defense and just enough offense to a 20-10 victory over Florida in front of 102,158 Saturday night at Tiger Stadium.

Sophomore safety Dashawn Spears returned one of his two interceptions 58 yards for a touchdown and the 20-10 lead midway in the third quarter, and the Tigers coasted to their first 3-0 start since 2019 in their Southeastern Conference opener behind ball control and 93 yards on 15 carries by running back Caden Durham.

Alexander, who became the SEC’s first 4,000-yard rusher as a senior in 1978, was on hand to have his No. 4 retired and placed on the south end zone facade next to 1962 Heisman Trophy runner-up running back Jerry Stovall (No. 21), three-time All-American cornerback Tommy Casanova (No. 37) in the 1970s and LSU’s first Heisman Trophy winner in 1959 – running back Billy Cannon (No. 20).

LSU 20, Florida 10 late in 3rd … this is the type game in which Charles Alexander would carry 40 times for 186 yards. His No. 4 retired tonight. pic.twitter.com/I6eDpXPTzp

— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) September 14, 2025

LSU won in this fashion time after time with Alexander from 1975-78 under McClendon. And LSU coach Brian Kelly loved it.

“Yeah, that was one of the SEC classics, right? Just two teams battling,” he said. “We did whatever was necessary to win the game.”

Part of that was five interceptions in all – the most by LSU since five in a win over Ole Miss in 2020. The other three were by transfer safeties A.J. Haulcy and Tamarcus Cooley and freshman cornerback DJ Pickett.

“I knew it was coming,” Spears said of his pick six on a quick pass by Lagway while not under pressure. “If you watch it back, I was creeping towards it. The slant was coming from the boundary, and I just made the play.”

“We played to our defense,” Kelly said. “Grant Chadwick (LSU’s punter) was outstanding. Sorry, that doesn’t sound appealing to you folks, but I don’t care. We’re trying to win football games, and you have to flip field position.”

It surely would’ve appealed to McClendon and former coaches Bill Arnsparger and Nick Saban, who tended to put defense first.

“Grant had four punts inside the 20. He was our weapon on offense,” Kelly said. “That’s how we needed to win the game.”

LSU’s defense harassed Florida quarterback DJ Lagway throughout the night with three sacks and four hurries that led to four of the the five interceptons. Lagway completed 33 of 49 passes for 287 yards and a touchdown.

LSU stuffed the Gators running game to the tune of 79 yards on 27 carries. And coordinator Blake Baker’s unit did that without All-SEC linebacker Whit Weeks, who was ejected just 1:55 into the game for targeting.

And LSU is doing this – leading Florida 20-10 in the 4th without top LB Whit Weeks, who was ejected in 1st 2 minutes of game for targeting.https://t.co/WFSLabC0kZ

— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) September 14, 2025

“Just really pleased with our guys , and the way they handled things,” Kelly said. “You lose arguably your best defensive player (Whit Weeks) on the first series. Then his brother (linebacker West Weeks) goes down.”

The elder Weeks injured his calf and left the game. True freshman Zach Weeks – the third brother – then came in.

“Not sure he knew exactly what was going on, but he’s game, which is great,” Kelly said. “And that’s what I love about this group. They just kept battling, where a lot of teams would’ve been deflated. They kept playing and believed they were going to win.”

LSU WON DESPITE GARRETT NUSSMEIER HAVING OFF GAME

And the Tigers did all of this while quarterback Garrett Nussmeier had another so-so night, completing just 15 of 27 passes for 220 yards with a touchdown and an interception in Florida territory in the fourth quarter.

But Nussmeier did find wide receiver Zavion Thomas for a 23-yard touchdown and 10-3 lead midway through the second quarter after directing a 76-yard drive in 10 plays. He completed 6 of 7 passes on the possession for 75 yards, including a 23-yard strike to wide receiver Aaron Anderson for a first down at the Florida 31 on 3rd-and-8.

LSU’s only other points came on a 45-yard field goal by Damian Ramos as time expired in the first half for a 13-10 lead and a 47-yard field goal by Ramos for a 3-3 tie early in the second quarter.

Florida (1-2, 0-1 SEC) took a 3-0 lead shortly after Weeks’ ejection and 15-yard penalty on a 45-yard field goal by Trey Smack with 11:34 to go in the first quarter. Lagway found wide receiver Aidan Mizell for a 10-yard touchdown pass with 3:25 left before halftime to tie it 10-10.

LSU hosts Southeastern Louisiana (2-1) Saturday (6:45 p.m., SEC Network) before returning to SEC play at No. 17 Ole Miss (3-0, 2-0 SEC) on Sept. 27. The Rebels outscored Arkansas (2-1, 0-1 SEC) by 41-35 on Saturday.

“We were very smart in the way we managed the game,” Kelly said. “There are ways to lose that game if we are not smart, and we earned that win by managing the game.”

“Charles Alexander is probably the greatest running back in the history of the SEC.”
-Gainesville Sun columnist Jack Hairston in 1978. https://t.co/cGJXGL3Ejc

— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) September 12, 2025

Durham, like Charles Alexander before him, iced the game on 3rd-and-1 with 1:49 to play when he rushed over left guard for 51 yards to the Florida 3-yard line. Nussmeier knelt three times, and it was over.

“Holding someone to 10 points, and finding a way to win, I am extremely proud of our group,” Kelly said. “It is extremely difficult to win a game in the SEC.”

That’s Old School LSU, and after years of poor defense and having to outscore teams in the 30s and 40s, it was a welcome sight … like seeing Alexander again.