LSU football preview: Tigers look to bounce back against Nicholls in first home game
Coming off of a disappointing loss to USC, LSU football is looking to start a win streak at its first home game of the season against Nicholls State.
Following the Tigers’ season opener in Las Vegas, running back John Emery Jr. tore his ACL in practice, ending his sixth season in purple and gold. Emery led the Tigers in rushing yards against USC and was the most efficient running back for LSU.
Senior Josh Williams and sophomore Kaleb Jackson will continue to switch off as rushers. The Tigers also moved freshman safety Ju’Juan Johnson to running back for extra depth.
Even with Emery on the field against USC, the Tigers struggled to gain yards with their running game and are looking to improve against Nicholls.
“It’s really trying not to be in such a predictable formation,” head coach Brian Kelly said. “I’m very confident as time moves on, the offense, in particular the running game, is going to be the strength.”
Besides Emery being out, the only other two players on the injury report are offensive lineman Garrett Dellinger (questionable) and wide receiver Chris Hilton (out).
With the remaining healthy players on the field, LSU is expected to dominate on its home turf.
“We expect our football team to be a better football team this week,” Kelly said. “More consistent… and attack Nicholls State based upon what they have shown us.”
Saturday will mark the first time that these Louisiana teams meet.
Nicholls is also coming off of a loss, but LSU is nonetheless treating them as a valuable opponent.
“They’re a good defense, they’re well coached, you know it’s a team that knows how to win,” Kelly said. “We’re gonna have to execute our offense and what we do… and really concern ourselves with what is important.”
The Colonels have 17 returning starters from the 2023 team, including quarterback Pat McQuaide. In the 2023 season, McQuaide threw for over 2,000 yards and 13 touchdowns.
Nicholls also has a very aggressive defensive line. In its season opener against Louisiana Tech, the Colonels recorded 3 sacks and a pick-six.
Their aggressive defense is complete with multiple blitz packages, something that the Tigers’ offensive line should be prepared for.
The Colonels offense is geared more towards their running game. In their game against LA Tech, senior running back Collin Guggenheim got 18 carries, averaging 4.4 yards per carry.
Although LSU’s experienced offensive line isn’t expected to struggle stopping the Colonel’s run game, its season-opener against USC proved that the offense still has weaknesses.
The Tigers are expected to easily walk away from their first home game with a win, but the Colonels are bringing their A-game to Death Valley and won’t go down without a fight.
