GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
Good morning, LSU Football Fans, your team 94th in the nation and 15th in the 16-team Southeastern Conference in total offense with 345.7 yards a game.
Your Heisman Trophy winning quarterback to be Garrett Nussmeier is 88th and 13th in the SEC in pass efficiency at 125.3 with 689 yards for46th in the nation and ninth in the SEC.
But, your defense is No. 5 in the nation and No. 1 in the SEC against the run with 56 yards allowed a game. It is also 11th in the nation and No. 2 in the SEC in points allowed at 9.0 and 25th nationally and sixth in the league in total defense with 260 yards allowed a game.
Oh, and the Tigers (3-0, 1-0 SEC) are No. 3 in the nation and off to their best start and highest ranking since 2019 when they won the national championship.
Great comeback by talented veteran Michael Cauble @Cauble in his @WBRZ report Saturday night after exchange with Brian Kelly. LSU stays No. 3 in A.P., though Cauble “not sure this is a top ten team with that offense.”https://t.co/DXbY2ycNYM
— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) September 14, 2025
“We’re leaning on the defense to win,” LSU coach Brian Kelly said Saturday after the Tigers beat Florida, 20-10, in Tiger Stadium with one offensive touchdown, a pick six and four other interceptions while holding the Gators to 79 yards rushing.
LSU GOES OLD SCHOOL TO BEAT FLORIDA
And what a drastic culture change that is for LSU, which had one of the worst defenses in the nation and in school history just two seasons ago in 2025 while having one of the greatest offenses in the nation and in school history with dual-threat quarterback Jayden Daniels, who won the Heisman.
But LSU lost three games that season – allowing an average of 47.3 a game in that trilogy – and did not come close to the playoffs. This year LSU has allowed 10 points or less in the first three games of a season for the first time since 2007 when the Tigers won the national title. LSU’s defense shut out both No. 4 Clemson and Florida in the second half to win, while the Tigers’ offense scored no touchdowns in the second half Saturday and two at Clemson.
“Guys, you guys were here when we had a prolific offense,” Kelly said. “That doesn’t work. You can’t outscore people and be a championship team. You can build your offense around the defense, if it’s that good.”
BRIAN KELLY FIRES BACK AT OFFENSIVE QUESTIONS
And this season so far, LSU’s defense is that good – perhaps as good as one of LSU’s greatest defenses in 2011. That season also saw one of LSU’s worst-ever offenses and one of its worst-ever starting quarterbacks on a good team in Jordan Jefferson. This offense can’t be that bad. But it is off to a slow start.
“And that’s what we’re going to do,” Kelly said. “We’re going to get better on offense – be more efficient. But at the end of the day, we’re not going to put our defense in a bad situation. And that’s what we have to better at. If there are some takeaways from here, it’s really about ball control, flipping the field, doing a better job of being more efficient in third down situations when we can run it on third and short.”
LSU running back Caden Durham gained 93 yards on 15 carries Saturday with a 51-yard run out of the old-fashioned I-formation with 1:49 left to end it.
“Maybe we’ve got to get in the I like we did at the end there with a fullback back there and pound the football,” he said. “If that’s what we have to do, that’s what we’re going to do.”
Kelly then had some fun with the media, which is not used to such low scoring affairs.
“Have you ever won a game here with only scoring nine points?,” he asked.
A reporter mentioned the 7-6 win over Auburn in 1988 in the Earthquake game.
“But that was a long time ago,” he said.
“So, we’ve been down this road before,” Kelly said. “We scored 20.”
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