After its devastating loss to Florida State University, many fans thought the possibility of LSU being a “second half team” was an impossible task. The Tigers have proven them wrong, though.
In the season opener, LSU was leading by a field goal at the end of the second quarter. However, after coming out of the locker room, things began to spiral.
“In the second half, we didn’t play with a sense of urgency,” head coach Brian Kelly said. “You’ve got to be able to make those adjustments, and we failed to get that done.”
LSU didn’t produce any points in the third quarter, and was outscored by a whopping 24 points in the second half.
After facing the defeat, the Tigers were forced to reevaluate their second half strategies.
LSU vs. Grambling State
LSU is 3-0 in its past three games. It outscored Grambling State by 62 points, and even scored an extra 30 points in the second half with backup quarterback Garrett Nussmeier.
LSU’s defense didn’t allow Grambling to score another point after the 10 that it scored in the first quarter.
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Although the Tigers played better as a whole against Grambling, it wasn’t until they played Mississippi State that they proved their ability to successfully perform in the second half.
LSU at Mississippi State
The Tigers changed their approach after half time, and it proved to work well for them.
“We stretch now when we come out,” Kelly said. “It’s a whole new way of presenting our mindset going into the third quarter.”
LSU kept the lead against Mississippi State the entire game and continued to execute after half time.
LSU quarterback Jayden Daniels rushed for two touchdowns and kicker Damian Ramos successfully completed a 41-yard field goal.
The Tiger’s defense didn’t back down either. They added the fourth sack of the game, and until about four minutes left in the fourth quarter, LSU didn’t allow Mississippi State to score, other than its first touchdown of the game.
LSU outscored the Bulldogs by 10 points in the second half, and ended the game with a 41-14 win.
“It’s four quarters, and they’re playing better in the second half,” Kelly said.
LSU vs. Arkansas
LSU proved Kelly right in its game against Arkansas on Saturday night.
The Tigers didn’t score a touchdown until late in the second quarter. With only 30 seconds remaining in the half, Daniels completed a pass to wide receiver Brian Thomas Jr.
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“He was out of rhythm,” Kelly said. “He was rushing into his throws.”
The Tigers ended the first half down by a field goal, but the Razorbacks didn’t keep their lead for long.
Early in the third quarter, Daniels completed a pass to Thomas Jr. for a 49-yard touchdown. He threw another touchdown pass to Malik Nabers at the end of the quarter, increasing LSU’s lead to 24-16 going into the fourth.
LSU and Arkansas tied twice in the final quarter, but LSU ultimately ended the game the same way it has the past three years- by kicking a field goal.
“We didn’t have our best performance early on, but I thought we really played well at the end of the half and in the second half in particular on offense,” Kelly said.
The Tigers are ranked No. 38 overall and No. 4 in the SEC West of college football teams with most scored points in the second half, according to Team Rankings.
Ole Miss
Despite being ranked No. 5 in the SEC West, Ole Miss is ranked No. 2 overall with the most points scored in the second half.
This is partially due to the fact that the Rebels scored 35 points in the second half of their season opener against Mercer and since then have played some high-scoring games.
However, in their previous game against Alabama, the Rebels were outscored 18-3 in the second half after leading in the first.
Alabama
The Crimson Tide are ranked No. 2 in the SEC West behind LSU. They are 3-1, and continue to dominate in the second half.
Although early in the season Alabama lost to Texas, its second half performance was nothing to be ashamed of. After being down by seven points going into halftime, the Tide ended up taking the lead late in the third quarter and were only outscored by three points in the second half.
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Similar to LSU, Alabama changed its approach and came back stronger against Ole Miss.
“I was really proud of the way the team played in the second half,” head coach Nick Saban said. “The guys competed and were really physical.”
Texas A&M
Texas A&M is also 3-1 and ranked No. 3 in the SEC West, with its only loss being to the University of Miami.
The Aggies started the game against Miami strong with a 17-14 lead, but after the Hurricanes scored a touchdown late in the second quarter, they couldn’t recover.
Despite the loss, Texas A&M’s defense has been able to keep its opponent’s second half scores relatively low. Without the Miami game, Texas A&M’s other three opponents have only scored a combined total of 10 points in their second halves.
These teams’ ability to perform in the second half holds a lot of weight because of how competitive the SEC is. It is often a determining factor of whose season will last the longest.
Compared to the rest of the SEC West, the Tigers’ performance in the second half has proven to be dominant, and many expect Saturday’s game against Ole Miss to be a battle until the end.
