LSU lost its season opener and wasn’t overly impressive even as the Tigers won their second game against an outmanned opponent.
South Carolina nearly lost to an outmanned opponent in its opener, then had an impressive road victory last week.
Both teams are still figuring some things out as the No. 16 Tigers (1-1) and the Gamecocks (2-0, 1-0 Southeastern Conference) meet in a league game on Saturday afternoon in Columbia, S.C.
LSU lost to Southern California 27-20 in Las Vegas on Sept. 1 before defeating FCS opponent Nicholls 44-21 in its home opener six days later. The Tigers scored the final 21 points after leading by just two points in the third quarter.
Now they play their first true road game.
“There are a lot of guys that have played on the road and know what it takes to win on the road,” LSU head coach Brian Kelly said. “It requires a focus and an understanding that you are in it every single play. I am not dealing with a group of players that will be surprised, but it will take a group of guys that will be playing their best when their best is needed.”
LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, who will be making his fourth career start and first on an opponent’s home field, is tied for first in the nation with eight touchdown passes, six of which came against Nicholls.
“If people want to keep playing us the way they are (focusing on the run),” Kelly said, “(Nussmeier) is a very good passer and we have a lot of receivers.”
One of those receivers is Kyren Lacy, who is among three players who lead the country with four touchdown receptions.
The game against Nicholls allowed Kelly to give additional playing time to a bunch of inexperienced players.
“We had a number of first-time players step and play really good football for us,” Kelly said.
South Carolina, which has lost its last seven meetings with LSU, held on to edge visiting Old Dominion 23-19 in its opener before opening SEC play with an eye-opening 31-6 victory at Kentucky last Saturday.
“It’s not about worrying about what anybody’s saying,” Gamecocks head coach Shane Beamer said. “Last week it was, âWhat the heck’s wrong with ya’ll?’ Whereas this week it’s, âMan, ya’ll are the greatest.’
“We just have to continue to work and continue to get better — just worry about what we can control.”
ESPN’s Gameday program will be on hand for Saturday’s game.
“The key for us Saturday is we have to handle success the right way,” Beamer said. “There’s a lot going on this week that we didn’t get to deal with last week. We need to get used to it, but we need to make sure that we’re handling the distractions the right way and not get caught up in being in the national spotlight and the hoopla.”
