After a monumental 17-10 win over the Clemson Tigers in week one, the LSU Tigers returned to Baton Rouge for their home opener. Their opponent was the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs. LSU managed to take home the 23-7 win to improve to 2-0 on the season.
HOW IT HAPPENED:
The Tigers received the ball first and turned the ball over on the fourth play from scrimmage. Caden Durham moved the chains on third down, and Garrett Nussmeier took a shot down the left sideline. Michael Richard intercepted the pass at the Bulldogs’ 29-yard line. Louisiana Tech went three-and-out after Omiri Higgins dropped Trey Kukuk’s pass on 3rd & 1.
On LSU’s second drive, Nussmeier found Zavion Thomas on a whip route for an 11-yard pickup and a first down. A defensive holding penalty moved the offense to within field goal range. Kicker Damian Ramos lined up to kick four plays later. The senior’s 51-yard attempt missed and set up Louisiana Tech at their 34-yard line.
The Bayou Bengals took the lead late in the opening quarter as they drove 98 yards in 11 plays. Nussmeier connected with Barion Brown across the middle for 16 yards to get the offense out of the opposing endzone. Thomas had multiple big plays on the scoring drive, including taking a handoff 48 yards to the Bulldogs’ 12-yard line. Nic Anderson closed the possession with a seven-yard touchdown to put the Tigers ahead by seven with 12 seconds to go in the first.
Louisiana Tech couldn’t put together a scoring drive after picking up a pair of first downs. LSU added to its lead after another punt by the Bulldogs. The Tigers drove another 85 yards in 13 plays. Tech was flagged three times on defense, resulting in 45 penalty yards that set up 1st & GOAL from the seven-yard line. Nussmeier’s passes on second and third down fall incomplete in the end zone, and Ramos lined up for his second field goal of the night. The 23-yard kick was good, and the Bayou Bengals were ahead 10-0 with 6:24 left in the second quarter.
LSU was forced to punt after stalling on its final drive of the first half. Louisiana Tech’s Jojo Odom and Jadon Mayfield combined to sack Nussmeier on 2nd & 8, then Nuss was pressured again and threw the football out of bounds to avoid going to the ground again. The Bulldogs were called for a block in the back on the punt and were pinned at their 10-yard line with 32 seconds to go.
Tech’s coaching staff decided to take a knee and go into the half as LSU held a two-score lead at the break.
The Bulldogs continued to struggle to begin the second half. On its first two drives of the third quarter, Louisiana Tech punted, including going backwards and going three-and-out after West and Whit Weeks combined to sack Trey Kukuk on third down.
LSU was stalled on its first possession of the second half as Nussmeier’s passes on second and third down fell incomplete. The offense started strong with a 23-yard catch by Aaron Anderson and a 15-yard run. Head coach Brian Kelly elected to punt instead of trying for another 50+ yard field goal.
The Tigers extended their lead late in the third once they got the football back on a punt. LSU began the drive at Tech’s 33-yard line. Caden Durham would punch it into the end zone from three yards out and put the Bayou Bengals ahead 17-0 with 1:58 to go in the third quarter.
Another three-and-out punt by Louisiana Tech led to another scoring drive for LSU. Aaron Anderson came down with a 21-yard catch to put the ball near midfield. A holding by the Tigers set up 1st & 20, but Brown nearly moved the sticks with a 19-yard catch and run. Nussmeier drifted to the right and was sacked by Mekhi Mason on third down. Ramos would knock through a 46-yard field goal. The Tigers held a 20-point advantage with 11:14 to go in the fourth.
Backup Blake Baker went in at quarterback for the Bulldogs and led them to their first scoring drive. Tech went on a 13-play 74-yard drive that was capped off with a 33-yard touchdown catch by Devin Gandy with 4:02 remaining.
Brown had a big kick return to midfield following the Louisiana Tech scoring drive. Harlem Berry cut across the field and rushed for 43 yards to set up 1st & GOAL from the six-yard line. LSU was stuffed three times on the ground, and Ramos made one more chip-shot field goal to put the Tigers ahead by 16 with under two minutes to play.
The Bulldogs punted one more time, and the Tigers took a knee to secure a 23-7 win.
BIG NUMBER: 154
Louisiana Tech’s offense was shut down by LSU’s defense. The Bulldogs managed to record just 154 yards throughout the game, with 96 of those yards coming through the air. The Tigers had 366 yards of offense. The play disparity also favored LSU as they ran 75 plays compared to Tech’s 53.
PLAYER OF THE GAME: Barion Brown
Brown was LSU’s leading receiver in Saturday’s game as he had 94 receiving yards on eight catches. The senior receiver also had a 42-yard kick return as the Tigers improved to 2-0 with a 23-7 win over the Louisiana Tech Bulldogs.
UP NEXT: The LSU Tigers will welcome in their first SEC foe of the 2025 season, the Florida Gators. Kickoff from Tiger Stadium is scheduled for 6:30 PM on Saturday, September 13th. The action can be heard on ESPN 103.7 Lafayette 104.1 Lake Charles.