LSU has one of the least productive offenses in the SEC, while Vanderbilt has one of the most productive.
Contrasting styles will collide when the No. 10 Tigers (5-1, 2-1) and the No. 17 Commodores (5-1, 1-1) meet Saturday afternoon in Nashville, Tenn.
LSU is 12th in the SEC in both total offense (373.5 yards per game) and scoring offense (25.8 points per game), and Vanderbilt is fifth in total offense (467.5) and second in scoring offense (43.2).
Tigers coach Brian Kelly was encouraged but not satisfied by his team’s season-high 166 rushing yards in a 20-10 victory against visiting South Carolina last week.
“The run game has got to be central to our overall offensive efficiency,” Kelly said. “We’ve got some work to do.”
LSU’s season-high rushing total was still 44 yards less than the Commodores’ rushing average.
The passing game has been the strength of the Tigers’ offense even though quarterback Garrett Nussmeier has been inconsistent. Kelly said Nussmeier regained his “swagger” against the Gamecocks after playing “a little bit robotic” previously.
“We said, ‘Listen, you need to be Garrett Nussmeier,'” Kelly said. “And he was. Unfortunately, some of that comes with some mistakes.”
Nussmeier threw two interceptions against South Carolina but threw only three in the first five games combined. He has been playing through an abdominal strain and sustained a minor ankle injury against South Carolina, but the quarterback is expected to be the healthiest he has been this season on Saturday.
“I like the version of Garrett Nussmeier we saw,” Kelly said. “He was a lot more confident. He was a lot more active in the pocket. That’s the version we want. We’re trying to balance this. He’s better with a swagger.”
LSU’s defense has been playing with a swagger. The Tigers are third in the SEC in scoring defense (11.8 ppg) and sixth in total defense (297 ypg).
They’ll be tested by quarterback Diego Pavia, who is fourth in the conference in total offense (293.5) and second in passing efficiency (168.7). LSU is third in defensive pass efficiency (105.6) while the Commodores are 15th (137.4)
As a team, Vanderbilt is fourth in the SEC in rushing yards per game, and the Commodores’ average of 6.55 yards per rush is the best in the conference.
“You’ve got to be able to throw the ball and run the ball,” said Sedrick Alexander, who is second to Pavia on the team in rushing yards (319 vs. 352). “You can’t do (just) one. When both of those are hitting, the sky’s the limit.”
The Commodores had an open date last week after suffering their first loss of the season a week earlier, 30-14 at Alabama.
Vanderbilt is ninth in the SEC in total defense (313.3) and 10th in scoring defense (19.3).
“This is going to be two methodical offenses,” Commodores coach Clark Lea said. “So possessions are going to be hard to come by. We need to fight for those possessions with our defense, getting the ball back for our offense so we can get in rhythm and hopefully have success that way.”
