Garrett Nussmeier Displays Toughness and Unlocks Deep Ball Connection With Chris Hilton Jr. in 37-17 Win Over Oklahoma

Early in the game, Garrett Nussmeier was blindsided with a big hit and for the moment, had to leave the game. It looked bleak that Nussmeier would enter back in the football game after holding his arm and running to the locker room, but when the Tigers’ gunslinger came back in the game, the Louisiana native did what he does best. That is letting it rip.

“Grit and toughness. Look, what you want as a coach is you want them to resemble the traits that you think a championship team should have. At times, you’ve got to have some grit and resolve like when they’re talked about in a manner that they have been over the past two or three weeks. You want them to buckle down and bite on their mouth guard and go out there and play. That is what he did. Listen, that is an easy tap out for most people, right? That is an easy one to say, ‘I’m not coming back,’ but that is the kind of player and that is the kind of competitor he is.”

LSU HC Brian Kelly on Garrett Nussmeier’s performance

Nussmeier had one of his best games of his career completing 22/31 passes for 277 yards and three touchdowns.

“We had a talk and all I told him was that there was no way I was sitting out. A lot of these guys have busted their butts for the last year and a lot of these seniors. LSU means a lot to me. It means the world to me, and I bleed these colors, no matter what anybody has to say about me. There was not way that I was going to watch the rest of that game from the sideline and let those seniors go out without me playing. There was no option really in my head, you know, whatever we had to do to be able to get me back out there.”

LSU QB Garrett Nussmeier

Two of those touchdowns went to Chris Hilton Jr. A lot of people were waiting for the deep ball connection to hit between Nussmeier and Hilton. It finally came together for the Zachary product, who had two grabs for 85 yards and the two deep scores.

“I think we have talked about this all year. The deep threat has been missing from our offense and it has been difficult. Teams have sat down on us. He was out eight weeks and it takes a while to get back into rhythm. We either missed him on overthrows or the timing was not quite where it needed to be. It normally takes about four weeks to kind of get that rhythm. That is why you have preseason camp and he missed all that time. I am happy for him. He got the game ball, and he made two big plays. That is part of the offense that we were missing, and we needed desperately. It was huge for us, so we are happy to see that for Chris.”

LSU HC Brian Kelly on Chris Hilton Jr.’s performance

Defensively, the Tigers limited Jackson Arnold to only 185 total yards of offense. The Sooners’ dual threat quarterback was also sacked four times with two coming from Dominick McKinley, one coming from Davhon Keys, and the fourth coming from Whit Weeks. Weeks finished the game pacing the defense with 15 tackles, two tackles for loss, a force fumble, and a quarterback hurry.

“It feels so good. I mean, especially for those seniors who fought so hard. I mean, I love these guys to death and playing with them is really my pride and joy. I go out there every day and just work as hard as I can for these guys. To come out here and get a victory on their senior night, it feels good.”

LSU LB Whit Weeks

With the offense and defense playing inspired complementary football, it was the special teams that proved to be the spark plug for not only the team, but the entire stadium with a 100 yard kickoff return from Aaron Anderson.

From that point on, LSU did not look back for a 37-17 victory over the Oklahoma Sooners. After a three game losing skid, Brian Kelly was super proud of how his team was able to overcome adversity and bounce back with two straight wins over Vanderbilt and Oklahoma to finish the season.

“Well, I’m proud of my team. The last two weeks, they listened to the narratives out there that they were not excited to play for anything, that the season was over, and they simply went out and played inspired football. The last two weeks, they played well against Vanderbilt and they played well against Oklahoma, two teams that beat a team in Alabama that we lost to so I am just really proud of our football team and I am proud of the way they prepared this week.”

LSU HC Brian Kelly

Final Score: #LSU 37, Oklahoma 17

LSU finishes the regular season at 8-4 overall and 5-3 in SEC play.

More to come at https://t.co/aUuyVZb38z! pic.twitter.com/OQDKuWIwR1

— Jace LeJeune (@JaceLejeune) December 1, 2024

The LSU offense marched down the field and was able to strike first when Garrett Nussmeier connected with a wide open Kyren Lacy for the ninth time this season to give the Tigers a 7-0 lead.

However, a drive later, disaster struck for the Tigers when Garrett Nussmeier’s sack fumble was scooped for a nine yard touchdown by R Mason Thomas to tie the game up at 7 for Oklahoma.

The next drive, Nussmeier was blindsided on a hit for a sack and had to be helped off the field by trainers. For at least two drives, AJ Swann had to fill in while Nussmeier was getting evaluated. The Vanderbilt transfer did lead one scoring drive that turned out to be a 34 yard field goal by Damian Ramos, which was set up by a 50 yard run from Caden Durham. This gave the Tigers a 10-7 lead.

Oklahoma’s offense responded by marching down the field 75 yards on three plays set up by a 50 yard pass from Jackson Arnold to J.J. Hester. Xavier Robinson punched the football in for a two yard touchdown to give the Sooners a 14-10 lead.

That lead happened to be short live as Aaron Anderson returned the ensuing kickoff 100 yards to give the Tigers back the lead at 17-14.

Oklahoma would then tie the game at 17 with a field goal. With two minutes left to go until halftime, Nussmeier came back in the game and orchestrated a phenomenal drive marching the ball 66 yards in a matter of 45 seconds. After trying to connect the last couple of games, Chris Hilton Jr. was finally able to reel in the big play catching a back shoulder throw on a well placed football by Nussmeier for a 40 yard touchdown to give the Tigers a 24-17 lead at halftime.

The connection worked once again early in the third quarter as Nussmeier threw another deep ball to Chris Hilton Jr. this time from 45 yards out to give the Tigers their biggest lead at 31-17.

Oklahoma went to their bag of tricks as tight end Bauer Sharp was attempting to throw a double pass, but it was intercepted by Sage Ryan. Ashton Stamps blew up the play and forced Sharp to throw the ball helplessly up in the air.

LSU would add two Damian Ramos field goals to give the Tigers a three possession lead at 37-17 to seal away a final victory for the 21 seniors at Tiger Stadium.

Brian Kelly acknowledges that he has to replace a large senior class that only suffered two home losses throughout their entire tenure there, but he also knows that the future is also really bright in Baton Rouge.

“This team, over three years, is 19-2 at home so whatever camp you want to jump into, go right ahead. We had five freshmen and two sophomores on defense today playing their tails off. Again, we are taking receipts and we will see you at the national championship. This team is building. We are excited about them, and we are really proud of them.”

LSU HC Brian Kelly

LSU ends the regular season at 8-4 overall and 5-3 in the SEC. They will await their bowl game destination and opponent next week.

Final Stats:

Offensive Cumulative Stats

STAT	Oklahoma	LSU
NET TOTAL YARDS	277	395
NET RUSHING YARDS	167	110
Rushing Attempts	37	29
Average Per Rush	4.5	3.8
Rushing TDs	1	0
Yards Gained	193	129
Yards Lost	26	19
NET PASSING YARDS	110	285
Completion-Attempts	14-22	23-34
Completion Percentage	64%	68%
Avg Per Completion	7.9	12.4
YAC	53	134
Passing TDs	0	3
Drops (%)	1 (05%)	0 (00%)
TOTAL 1ST DOWNS	17	18
Rushing 1st Downs	12	7
Passing 1st Downs	4	11
Penalty 1st Downs	1	0
TOTAL PLAYS	59	63
Avg Yds/Play	4.7	6.3
Rushing-Passing	37-22	29-34

Offense Efficiency Comparison

STAT	Oklahoma	LSU
RED ZONE ATTEMPTS	1-2	4-4
Red Zone Points	7	16
RZ TDs Rush-Pass	1-0	0-1
RZ FG Made-Att	0-0	3-3
RZ Turns	1	0
3rd Downs	4-11	6-15
4th Downs	0-1	2-2
Penalties	1-5	6-46
Fumbles-Lost	1-0	1-1
Pts Off Turns	7	3
POSSESSION TIME	29:27	30:33

Special Teams Comparison

STAT	Oklahoma	LSU
Punts-Avg	5-42.6	3-44.3
Inside20	2	3
Field Goals	1-1	3-3
Kick Returns	2-51	3-153
Punt Returns	1-6	1-1

Defensive Comparison

STAT	Oklahoma	LSU
TACKLES	73	69
Solo Tackles	31	33
Tackles for Loss	3	10
TFL Yards	-19	-31
Pass Breakups	2	2
QB Hurries	3	4
Sacks	2	4
Sacks Yards	-17	-23
Takeaways FR-INT	1-0	0-1
Forced Fumbles	1	1
Fumble Recoveries	1	0
FR Yards	9	0
Interceptions	0	1
INT Yards	0	16
TDs INT-FR	0-1	0-0

Oklahoma Passing

#	PLAYER	C-A	YDS	TD	I	C%	RTG
11	ARNOLD,J	14-21	110	0	0	67	110.7
10	SHARP,B	0-1	0	0	1	0	-200
	PASS TOTALS	14-22	110	0	1	64

Oklahoma Receiving

#	PLAYER	NO	YDS	TD	LNG	AVG	TGT	C%	YAC	DR
88	JORDAN,J	6	42	0	17	7	8	75	32	0
21	ROBINSON,X	3	10	0	8	3.3	4	75	15	1
20	FRANKLIN,S	2	-4	0	0	-2	2	100	4	0
13	HESTER,J	1	50	0	50	50	1	100	0	0
81	RAGINS,Z	1	8	0	8	8	2	50	2	0
10	SHARP,B	1	4	0	4	4	1	100	0	0
	6 RECEIVERS	14	110	0	50	7.9	19	74	53	1

Oklahoma Rushing

#	PLAYER	ATT	YDS	TD	LNG	AVG
11	ARNOLD,J	17	75	0	28	4.4
20	FRANKLIN,S	6	61	0	34	10.2
21	ROBINSON,X	10	20	1	5	2
27	SAWCHUK,G	4	11	0	8	2.8
	4 RUSHERS	37	167	1	34	4.5

Oklahoma Punting

Punter	NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	I20	50+
ELZINGA,L	5	213	42.6	47	2	0

Oklahoma Field Goals

Kicker	Time	Dist	Result
Z.Schmit	2nd-02:13	44	GOOD
TOTAL	1-1	LONG OF 44

Oklahoma All Purpose Yards

Player	Tot	Rush	Rec	KOR	PR	IR-FR	TDs
FRANKLIN,S	108	61	-4	51	0	0	0
ARNOLD,J	75	75	0	0	0	0	0
HESTER,J	50	0	50	0	0	0	0

Oklahoma Defense

#	Player (Starter)	TotTk	Solo	Sack	TFL	Int	BrUp	QBH	FF
28	D.Stutsman (LB)	10	3	0	0.5	0	0	0	0
2	B.Bowman Jr. (DB)	7	4	0	0	0	0	0	0
10	K.Lewis (LB)	7	3	0	0	0	0	1	0
56	G.Halton	7	5	1	1	0	0	0	1
24	S.Omosigho	6	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	R.Spears-Jennings (DB)	5	3	0	0	0	0	0	0
52	D.Williams (DL)	5	0	0	0.5	0	0	0	0
22	P.Bowen	4	1	0	0	0	1	0	0
4	D.Malone (CB)	3	2	0	0	0	1	0	0
11	K.McKinzie	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
23	E.Bowen (DB)	2	2	0	0	0	0	0	0
32	R.Thomas (DL)	2	1	1	1	0	0	1	0
65	J.Jackson (DL)	2	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
1	D.McCullough	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
5	W.Washington (DB)	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
7	J.Kanak	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
12	D.Jordan	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
14	J.Hardy	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
19	J.Johnson	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
20	L.Carter	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
30	T.Ford	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
38	O.Heinecke	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
40	E.Downs (DL)	1	0	0	0	0	0	1	0
95	D.Terry	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	TOTALS	73	31	2	3	0	2	3	1

Oklahoma Punt Returns

Returner	NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	TD
BOWEN,P	1	6	06	6	0

Oklahoma Kick Returns

Returner	NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	TD
FRANKLIN,S	2	51	26	31	0

Oklahoma Team Stats By Quarter

	1st	Rush	Pass	CAI	TotY	Avg	3rds	Pens
1st	1	4-9	4-10	2-4-0	19	2.4	0-2	0-0
2nd	6	11-61	6-74	4-6-0	135	7.9	0-2	1-5
3rd	4	8-39	6-20	4-6-1	59	4.2	2-3	0-0
4th	6	14-58	6-6	4-6-0	64	3.2	2-4	0-0
Total	17	37-167	22-110	14-22-1	277	4.7	4-11	1-5

Oklahoma Scoring Summary

Qtr	Clock	Score	Type	Play	Drive	Score
1	03:26	TD	FUMB	R.Thomas 9 yd fumble return (PAT KICK by Z.Schmit GOOD)		7-7
2	07:22	TD	RUSH	X.Robinson 2 yd rush (PAT KICK by Z.Schmit GOOD)	3/75/1:17	10-14
2	02:13	FG		Z.Schmit 44 yd Field Goal	11/49/4:55	17-17

LSU Passing

#	PLAYER	C-A	YDS	TD	I	C%	RTG
13	NUSSMEIER,G	22-31	277	3	0	71	178
15	SWANN,A	1-3	8	0	0	33	55.7
	PASS TOTALS	23-34	285	3	0	68

LSU Receiving

#	PLAYER	NO	YDS	TD	LNG	AVG	TGT	C%	YAC	DR
18	WILLIAMS,J	5	16	0	9	3.2	6	83	20	0
29	DURHAM,C	4	32	0	16	8	4	100	42	0
2	LACY,K	3	41	1	18	13.7	5	60	27	0
86	TAYLOR,M	3	28	0	15	9.3	6	50	1	0
4	DANIELS,C	3	24	0	9	8	5	60	16	0
3	HILTON JR.,C	2	85	2	45	42.5	2	100	0	0
88	PIMPTON,K	2	53	0	42	26.5	2	100	16	0
1	ANDERSON,A	1	6	0	6	6	3	33	12	0
	8 RECEIVERS	23	285	3	45	12.4	33	70	134	0

LSU Rushing

#	PLAYER	ATT	YDS	TD	LNG	AVG
29	DURHAM,C	11	80	0	50	7.3
18	WILLIAMS,J	13	31	0	6	2.4
0	THOMAS,Z	1	6	0	6	6
13	NUSSMEIER,G	4	-7	0	7	-1.8
	4 RUSHERS	29	110	0	50	3.8

LSU Punting

Punter	NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	I20	50+
TODD,P	2	94	47	48	2	0
OCHSENDORF,B	1	39	39	39	1	0
TOTAL	3	133	44.3	48	3	0

LSU Field Goals

Kicker	Time	Dist	Result
D.Ramos	2nd-08:39	34	GOOD
D.Ramos	4th-14:47	22	GOOD
D.Ramos	4th-03:19	32	GOOD
TOTAL	3-3	LONG OF 34

LSU All Purpose Yards

Player	Tot	Rush	Rec	KOR	PR	IR-FR	TDs
ANDERSON,A	159	0	6	153	0	0	1
DURHAM,C	112	80	32	0	0	0	0
HILTON JR.,C	85	0	85	0	0	0	2

LSU Defense

#	Player (Starter)	TotTk	Solo	Sack	TFL	Int	BrUp	QBH	FF
40	W.Weeks (LB)	15	9	1	2	0	0	1	1
42	D.Keys (LB)	10	4	1	1	0	0	0	0
18	G.Penn III (LB)	9	5	0	1.5	0	0	1	0
2	J.Gilbert (S)	8	4	0	0	0	0	0	0
14	Z.Alexander (CB)	4	0	0	1	0	0	0	0
96	D.McKinley	4	3	2	2	0	0	0	0
4	B.Swinson (DE)	3	1	0	1	0	0	1	0
35	S.Jones (DE)	3	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
3	S.Ryan (DB)	2	1	0	0	1	1	0	0
46	T.Singleton	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
97	D.Carpenter	2	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
0	P.Shand (DE)	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
1	A.Stamps (CB)	1	0	0	0	0	1	1	0
19	J.Nicholas	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
25	J.Toviano	1	1	0	0	0	0	0	0
31	J.Suggs	1	1	0	1	0	0	0	0
93	A.Breaux	1	0	0	0.5	0	0	0	0
95	S.Washington	1	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	TOTALS	69	33	4	10	1	2	4	1

LSU Punt Returns

Returner	NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	TD
THOMAS,Z	1	1	01	1	0

LSU Kick Returns

Returner	NO	YDS	AVG	LNG	TD
ANDERSON,A	3	153	51	100	1

LSU Team Stats By Quarter

	1st	Rush	Pass	CAI	TotY	Avg	3rds	Pens
1st	6	8-7	15-87	10-15-0	94	4.1	3-5	0-0
2nd	5	8-54	7-68	5-7-0	122	8.1	1-4	1-6
3rd	6	7-19	8-123	7-8-0	142	9.5	2-3	0-0
4th	1	6-30	4-7	1-4-0	37	3.7	0-3	5-40
Total	18	29-110	34-285	23-34-0	395	6.3	6-15	6-46

LSU Scoring Summary

Qtr	Clock	Score	Type	Play	Drive	Score
1	07:09	TD	PASS	K.Lacy 18 yd reception thrown by G.Nussmeier (PAT KICK by D.Ramos GOOD)	7/53/4:06	7-0
2	08:39	FG		D.Ramos 34 yd Field Goal	5/44/1:45	10-7
2	07:08	TD	KO	A.Anderson 100 yd kickoff return (PAT KICK by D.Ramos GOOD)		17-14
2	00:45	TD	PASS	C.Hilton Jr. 40 yd reception thrown by G.Nussmeier (PAT KICK by D.Ramos GOOD)	6/66/1:17	24-17
3	06:48	TD	PASS	C.Hilton Jr. 45 yd reception thrown by G.Nussmeier (PAT KICK by D.Ramos GOOD)	9/88/4:51	31-17
4	14:47	FG		D.Ramos 22 yd Field Goal	9/54/2:35	34-17
4	03:19	FG		D.Ramos 32 yd Field Goal	6/13/3:10	37-17