Indiana, Tennessee and Arizona State deserve your attention in Week 3 | Before the Snap
Indiana, Tennessee and Arizona State deserve your attention in Week 3 | Before the Snap
- Brian Kelly saved face as LSU beat South Carolina, but why are the Tigers still a recipe for disaster? Too many mistakes.
- South Carolina can’t defend lead after injury to LaNorris Sellers.
- September remains a difficult month for Brian Kelly at LSU.
The South Carolina train was packed to the last standing spot for several hours on Saturday, while Brian Kelly’s train emptied faster than a bottle of liquor at an LSU party.
Kelly saved face by leading No. 17 LSU to a thrilling 36-33 road win, but his program continues to have flaws.
LSU’s running game came late into the stadium. The offensive line, a supposed strength, had its hands full with South Carolina’s disruptive defensive front. Mistakes came early and often.
LSU plays like a team that isn’t interested in tackling or fundamentals. Close quarters plays and their execution remain a trap.
LSU is lucky it didn’t have to face LaNorris Sellers in the second half. South Carolina’s quarterback helped the Gamecocks to a 24-16 halftime lead, but an ankle injury sidelined Sellers for the final two quarters.
The Gamecocks were floundering without him.
South Carolina outdid LSU’s self-inflicted injuries. The Cockaboose fell thanks to 13 penalties, including an unnecessary personal foul in the fourth quarter that negated a pick-six for a two-possession lead.
LSU avoided disaster, but the performance did not exactly inspire confidence that Kelly will be in the playoffs at the end of his third season.
A game marked by a total of 22 penalties and five turnovers ended with South Carolina missing a 49-yard field goal.
Brian Kelly, LSU football still too chaotic
There’s no reason to panic about Kelly’s tenure yet, but why is the first month of the season still a recipe for high blood pressure? He now has a 5-4 record at LSU in September games against Bowl Subdivision opponents.
It says a lot about Kelly that his teams have improved over the last two seasons, but those teams had Jayden Daniels. He filled a lot of holes. LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier isn’t the problem, but he’s not a superhuman like Daniels.
The reinforcements Kelly is assembling in a highly touted 2025 recruiting class won’t arrive in time to save this season. He’ll have to learn to cook with those imperfect ingredients. At least he has freshman running back Caden Durham, who gave LSU a late-arriving running game.
Although the Tigers (2-1) outscored South Carolina (2-1) in the second half, they insisted on making their way out dangerous.
They failed to convert a fourth down attempt a foot from the goal line, allowed Rocket Sanders to run 66 yards untouched for a touchdown, and somehow lost control of the run, even though backup quarterback Robby Ashford was no passing threat.
In a play that encapsulated the dark side of LSU’s first three weeks, Nussmeier was unprepared for a snap that bounced off his face mask and led to a fumble that South Carolina recovered and converted into a field goal.
Oh, I almost forgot to mention that South Carolina blocked a punt, LSU missed an extra point, and the Tigers completely missed two red zone opportunities.
As LSU’s mistakes piled up, Beamer grinned like the Cheshire Cat while Kelly turned red in the face.
Shane Beamer makes bold announcements, but South Carolina can’t quite deliver
Beamer exudes unabashed bravado and, true to his reputation, strutted his stuff after his team’s loss to Kentucky a week ago. Then he made a bold statement.
“The train is getting full,” Beamer said this week.
Fans flocked to the game during the first half, in which the Gamecocks built a 17-0 lead. Sellers ran so fast on a 75-yard touchdown run that he could have been caught for speeding in a school zone.
However, Beamer gave a prescient warning at half-time.
“We’re trying to screw this up,” he told ABC before heading to the locker room.
This was also true for Kelly’s Tigers, but without Sellers, South Carolina lacked the necessary punch.
Kelly raised his fists and smiled for perhaps the first time that day as Alex Herrera’s field goal attempt narrowly missed the goal post as time expired.
Sweet relief.
The Tigers scared Kelly more than they had all season for three stressful hours, but at least they avoided a loss that would have not only emptied the train but ruined the season.
Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s national college football columnist. Email him at [email protected] and follow him on Twitter. @btoppmeyer.
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