By GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
It’s starting to look a lot like 2024.
The No. 13 and likely falling LSU baseball team faces an 0-3 start in the Southeastern Conference for the first time since 2011 on Sunday when the Tigers (13-7, 0-2 SEC) play at Vanderbilt (13-7, 2-0 SEC) in the third game of the series (3 p.m., ESPN2).
Vanderbilt won the first two games, 13-12 on Friday and 11-3 on Saturday.
LSU lost three at Florida, 5-4, 1-0 and 7-3 to open SEC play in 2011 under coach Paul Mainieri before finishing 36-20 and 13-17 and out of the SEC or NCAA postseason for the first time since Mainieri’s first season in 2007. Mainieri’s South Carolina team, by the way, is 12-8 and 0-2 in the SEC now after a 1-0 loss in 10 innings Friday and a 3-0 loss Saturday at No. 23 Florida.
“See you this spring.”
— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) March 14, 2026
-Possible future former NC State coach Will Wade to certain LSU folks as LSU – to the surprise of no one – has somehow found the money … again. https://t.co/ORUa0U69DX
The Tigers have lost two SEC opening series since Jay Johnson became coach in 2022 – two of three against Texas A&M in his first season and two of three at Mississippi State in 2024 before a 2-7 start in league play. They swept Missouri last year and took two of three at A&M in 2023.
Sophomore William Schmidt (3-1, 2.45 ERA, 33 strikeouts, 22 innings) will try to get one win at Vanderbilt today against sophomore Nate Taylor (0-3, 4.91 ERA, 24 strikeouts, 18.1 innings).
LSU mustered just four hits on Saturday and committed two errors while its pitching walked 11 batters with two wild pitches and a hit by pitch. On the weekend, LSU pitching has walked 21 and allowed 24 runs on 19 hits. The Tigers have lost four of five games and six of eight.
In other words, the Tigers are playing like they’re on spring break, which ends Sunday for the general student population.
“We want to be better. Our players want to be better,” Johnson said after the game Saturday. “And we will continue to put in the work we need to do in order to get better. I need to do what’s best for our players, so helping them to play better baseball via shifting personnel, via coaching development, is really important. I can tell you that is taking place in a very serious and thoughtful manner.”
LSU has been struggling offensively since an 8-0 start. Only two of LSU’s nine players who have started 10 games or more are hitting above .292 – junior returnee Jake Brown at .415 and sophomore returnee Derek Curiel at .333.
“We got out-baseball-ed,” Brown said Saturday night. “They played better ball than we did, and we’ve got to fix that.”
Vanderbilt freshman Wyatt Nadeau, who has not been projected to be a regular member of the weekend rotation, struck out 10 and held LSU to four hits over seven innings with two walks.
“They’ve got a really good lineup,” said Nadeau, who started over injured regular sophomore starter Austin Nye (1-0, 0.00 ERA). “I trust my stuff. I’ve got confidence in me, and I just felt like I attacked. And the results speak for themselves.”
Nadeau struck out the side in LSU’s first inning and retired the first nine he faced with four strikeouts before Steven Milam doubled to lead off the LSU fourth. He later scored on a pick-off throwing error by Nadeau to tie the game, 1-1. Nadeau started five of his seven innings by retiring the first LSU batter and surprised his coach, Tim Corbin.
“Like, he’s the best coach since Skip Bertman in college baseball, in my opinion.”
— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) March 12, 2026
-Jay Johnson on Tim Corbin, whom Skip once interviewed to be LSU’s coach.https://t.co/WjBStG6EjG
“I don’t know if I had visions of Wyatt going seven innings against this team right here,” Corbin said. “He was efficient. He just had one inning where he got into trouble. He controlled the first hitter. When you control the first hitter, you do away with a third of the offense. It was just very impressive for a young kid. I thought he crossed new barriers for himself personally, getting into the depth of the game. He limited free traffic for the most part.”
LSU pitching did just the opposite. Starter Cooper Moore allowed lead-off singles in the second, third and fourth and walked a batter to start the fifth. Vanderbilt took a 2-1 lead in the fourth and scored six in the fifth for an 8-1 lead. Moore (3-2) took the loss, allowing seven hits and four earned runs in four innings with two walks and four strikeouts.
LSU relievers ignited more than quelled anything for the second straight night, allowing six earned runs on eight walks and only two hits.
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