You wouldn’t expect LSU to be on upset alert facing an FCS school like Grambling. By the second quarter, matchups of that nature are typically well in hand.
Still, with about 12 minutes left in the second frame, Grambling put itself into a goal-to-go situation and threatened to pull within 21-17 in a surprisingly contentious game. After a failed third and goal try from the five, the Grambling Tigers tried for a 23-yard field goal, which missed. Despite the relatively comfortable 21-10 lead, LSU was not off the hook by any stretch of the imagination.
PLAY BY PLAY: LSU vs Grambling State
Grambling had pushed within LSU’s 10-yard line on each of its first three drives, gashing the defense for long gains both through the air and on the ground. LSU’s offense had more than done its job, but the Tigers needed to do something more and take control of the game somehow.
LSU did just that by pounding the ball in the ground game. On its next drive, the Tigers marched 80 yards downfield, running on seven of the drive’s 10 plays for 63 rushing yards, all from junior transfer Logan Diggs, who didn’t play for LSU’s opener against Florida State while recovering from a hamstring injury.
The drive marked a turning point, with LSU finally establishing its superior strength in the trenches. Though the defense pitched a shutout the rest of the way en route to a dominant 72-10 win, LSU’s rushing attack determined the pace of the game and flipped the momentum.
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Diggs, who spent the last two seasons at Notre Dame, was the leader of the rushing turnaround. He finished the game with 115 yards and a touchdown on the ground, adding an 18-yard reception.
“I knew what we were going to get from him. It was just a matter of getting healthy,” head coach Brian Kelly said. “He prepared the right way and he was ready to play. We saw the kind of back that is going to help us.”
Having accounted for over 1,000 yards last year for the Fighting Irish, Diggs provides a level of skill that might be among the most valuable in LSU’s running back room. His control and shiftiness flashed, and even though it was against an FCS defense, his performance demands a greater role going forward.
In the opening loss against FSU, LSU’s lack of a threatening running game was apparent. The Tigers finished with 49 non-quarterback rushing yards, compared to 253 against Grambling, with 125 coming in the first half with the starters.
Though some of that was due to game script, as LSU had to prioritize the pass in a game in which they were always close or trailing, it’s clear that the Tigers did a much better job of getting to the second level and clearing lanes for their running backs against Grambling.
The offensive line as a whole had an improved performance. Considered a strength before the season with five returning starters, the unit had a concerning showing against FSU, failing to get any significant push, most notably on a handful of pivotal fourth downs.
LSU rotated freshman Zalance Heard in at right tackle, continuing its experimentation with the offensive line unit with Emery Jones at right guard in place of Miles Frazier. The Tigers saw success with both looks, but Heard was particularly effective in the run game as he continued to make his case to be a permanent starter.
“Tiger Stadium is unreal, and I think he did a great job handling that,” quarterback Garrett Nussmeier said about Heard. “I think he did a great job sticking to his techniques, sticking to the play. I’m really proud of him.”
The Tigers also made use of a healthy amount of screen plays and jet sweeps, plays that are essentially extensions of the run game, which was effective. With elusive receivers such as Malik Nabers and Aaron Anderson on LSU’s roster, this will be a consistent wrinkle of the playbook going forward.
The success of the running game continued into the second half with freshman Kaleb Jackson, a fall camp standout, taking the bulk of the third quarter’s carries and contributing 62 yards and two touchdowns. Josh Williams added to the total with an efficient 43 yards on 7.2 yards per carry, and Noah Cain put forth 33 yards and a touchdown.
Going forward, LSU will need to maintain its rushing success as it heads into the meat of its schedule. Controlling the pace and dictating the physicality level is pivotal in the Southeastern Conference, and the Tigers will need to do that if they want to get back on track with a successful showing in conference play. The offensive line getting on the same page against Grambling and Diggs’ emergence will be instrumental to that end.
