GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor
If LSU is a top 10 college football team with how poorly it has played throughout this season on offense, if the Tigers ever light it up a scoreboard against a quality team and win – look out top five, right?
The Tigers (5-1, 2-1 Southeastern Conference) jumped from No. 11 back into the top 10 at No. 10 in the Associated Press top 25 poll on Sunday. That was on the heels and trips and falls of an uninspiring, 20-10 win over South Carolina Saturday night in a game that drew boos from LSU fans at Tiger Stadium.
LSU Offense and Garrett Nussmeier – “One Step Up, And Two Steps Back.” But Nussmeier did look better. Column:https://t.co/mmevLsvr8l
— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) October 12, 2025
That was after LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier on 3rd-and-goal at the 10-yard line threw behind open tight end Trey’Dez Green at the 3-yard line for what would have likely been a touchdown and 7-0 lead early in the first quarter. Instead the Tigers, who have struggled to score touchdowns in the red zone most of the season, settled for a 28-yard field goal.
Green, though, may have finished his route wider to Nussmeier’s left than he was supposed to, though, according to SEC Network announcers. LSU outgained South Carolina, 420 to 317, but blew three scoring opportunities inside the Gamecocks’ 10-yard line in the first three quarters to come away with just three points over that trilogy.
That first field goal came after LSU reached the South Carolina 10-yard line following a fumble by South Carolina quarterback LaNorris Sellers at the Gamecocks’ 17.
LSU reached a 1st-and-Goal at the South Carolina 1-yard line on its next possession, but running back Ju’Juan Johnson fumbled at the goal line into the end zone for a touchback with 1:51 left in the first quarter. After scoring on a 6-yard touchdown pass from Nussmeier to Green early in the second quarter for a 10-7 lead, LSU drove to the South Carolina 9-yard line late in the third quarter for a potential 24-10 lead. But on 2nd-and-8, Nussmeier was intercepted at the 1-yard line.
“Certainly, you can’t get down on the 1-yard line three times and come up with three points,” LSU coach Brian Kelly said. “But what I loved was our compete. I loved the way our guys competed for four quarters.”
A True Grit win for LSU with defense and the run. But not exactly caviar to the palate. @racertodd https://t.co/si15tBqnA5
— Glenn Guilbeau (@SportBeatTweet) October 12, 2025
LSU finally took a two-score lead at 20-10 with 1:50 to play in the game on a 22-yard field goal by Ramos. But that was afer reaching the 1-yard line again. After the 1st-and-Goal at the 1, LSU lost four yards on three running plays up the middle.
“It is what it is,” Kelly said. “Find a way to win, and we found a way to win.”
LSU did do something different after coming into the game No. 117 of 134 major programs in rushing with 104.8 yards a game. The Tigers rushed for an SEC season-high 166 yards on 30 carries to control the game. Eight of LSU’s 22 first downs came on runs.
“I was pleased with some things that we did that we hadn’t been doing,” Kelly said. “We ran the ball with much more effectiveness.”
Still, though, too often when LSU needed a yard, it couldn’t just line up and get it up the middle. And there were three turnovers – the fumble at the goal line and two interceptions by Nussmeier – and the red zone issues.
“We have to be cleaner in the score zone,” Kelly said. “Three times inside (the 10), and we get three points. Those things are catastrophic.”
Yet, LSU is right there in striking distance of the top five with the first rankings for the 12-team College Football Playoffs coming out on Nov. 4 and already in the top 12 with breathing room. Just think if the Tigers actually start playing like a top 10 team.
LSU, which has no wins over teams currently ranked, will have its opportunities now. The Tigers play three consecutive ranked teams over the next four weeks with No. 17 Vanderbilt (5-1, 1-1 SEC) in Nashville on Saturday (11 a.m., ABC), No. 4 Texas A&M (6-0, 3-0 SEC) on Oct. 25 in Tiger Stadium and No. 6 Alabama (5-1, 3-0 SEC) on Nov. 8 away after an open date.
“We clean those things up, we’re moving in the right direction,” Kelly said.
The rest of the top 10 had Big Ten defending national champion Ohio State (6-0) staying at No. 1 with Miami (5-0) staying at No. 2. Newfound Big Ten power Indiana jumped four spots to No. 3 and its highest ranking in school history after a stunning, 30-20 win at No. 3 Oregon. Texas A&M moved up one spot to No. 4 after beating Florida, 34-14, and Ole Miss (6-0, 3-0 SEC) dropped a spot after struggling to a 24-21 win over Washington State.
Alabama is up two spots to No. 6 after beating No. 14 Missouri (5-1, 1-1 SEC) by 24-21. Texas Tech (6-0) is No. 7. Oregon (5-1) dropped to No. 8. Georgia (5-1, 3-1 SEC) went up a spot to No. 9 after winning, 20-10, at Auburn.
The second 10 featured No. 11 Tennessee (5-1, 2-1 SEC) after beating Arkansas, 34-31, No. 12 Georgia Tech (6-0), No. 13 Notre Dame (4-2), No. 14 Oklahoma (5-1, 1-1 SEC) after losing to unranked Texas (4-2, 1-1), 23-6, No. 15 BYU (6-0), No. 16 Missouri, No. 17 Vanderbilt, which went up three spots after an open date, No. 18 Virginia (5-1), No. 19 South Florida (5-1) and No. 20 USC (5-1).
The bottom five had Texas at No. 21, even though it beat Oklahoma convincingly at a neutral site in Dallas and has only one more loss than the Sooners. And one of Texas’ losses is to No. 1 Ohio State. Sometimes voters get paralysis via over-analysis and forget common sense.
Memphis is No. 22 at 6-0 with Utah (5-1) at No. 23, Cincinnati (5-1) at No. 24 and Nebraska (5-1) at No. 25.
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