As the bulk of SEC play gets closer and closer, confidence is essential.

On Saturday night, LSU found the confidence it needed.

With a quick start, stellar run game and a solid defense, the Tigers came away with a 42-10 win over South Alabama.

“Offensively, we did some great things tonight; running it, throwing it,” head coach Brian Kelly said. “You can characterize it anyway you want, but Nussmeier, the receivers, Durham, all of those guys were high performers tonight.”

It was the version of itself that LSU has been waiting for. 

And it came quickly.

On the first play of the game, Garrett Nussmeier threw a screen pass to Caden Durham, and the true freshman running back ran 71 yards to the end zone.

The next drive, Durham kept his foot on the gas with an 86-yard run to South Alabama’s 1-yard line. Nussmeier punched it himself to give LSU a two score lead.

Durham finished the game with 128 rushing yards on seven carries, 89 receiving yards on three catches, a touchdown on the ground and a touchdown in the air.

He was held out of the second half with a foot injury, but Brian Kelly said it’s not a major injury.

After Durham ran in for an eight-yard score on the Tigers’ third drive of the game, Nussmeier added a rushing touchdown of his own on the subsequent drive.

The redshirt-junior quarterback had six yards and two touchdowns on the ground. His two carries were valuable, as he showed a part of his game he normally doesn’t tap into.

Running back Josh Williams finished with 32 yards and a touchdown on five carries. 

For the first time this season, LSU’s ground game was in full swing. The Tigers finished with a season-high 237 rushing yards, averaging 8.8 yards per carry as a team.

And when the offense felt like it had it going, the defense did too.

LSU’s defense held the Jaguars to a season low of 10 points and 333 yards of total offense. South Alabama’s offense came into the matchup averaging 504.5 yards of total offense and 48.3 points per game.

The Tigers’ defense also got off the field quickly, as the Jaguars were held to 4-for-14 on third down.

Linebacker Greg Penn III led the defense with 14 total tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss and two quarterback hurries.

Linebacker Whit Weeks totaled nine tackles, a tackle for loss, and a pass breakup. He also came up with a tackle on 4th-and-goal from LSU’s four-yard line.

“I enjoyed that one,” Weeks said. “We had that timeout when we got down on the goal line. We told each other, ‘we’re not letting them in the end zone again.’ And that’s what we did.”

But the Tigers still thrived on what they’re good at.

Nussmeier completed 26 of his 39 attempted passes for a career-high 409 yards and two touchdowns. However, he also threw two interceptions, bringing his season total to four.

Along with Durham’s three catches for 89 yards and a touchdown, wide receiver Kyren Lacy led the receiving corps with five catches for 107 yards. Receiver Aaron Anderson also finished with six receptions for 73 yards and a touchdown.

The Tigers totaled a season-high 667 yards of total offense; 429 of those yards came in the first half. 

Heading into Saturday’s matchup, the most yards of offense LSU had this season was 454 in the Tigers’ 34-17 win over UCLA.

“We’ve gotten better over the last five weeks,” Kelly said. “And that’s what we needed to do heading into this off week as we get ready for an SEC schedule.”

Now, LSU will have this win to reference; a win that gives it the confidence needed to attack the conference opponents ahead.

And they’re coming quickly.

After LSU’s bye week, it will host Ole Miss, who suffered its first loss of the season on Saturday to Kentucky, 20-17. 

The Rebels, however, will have the chance to bounce back before coming to Baton Rouge, as they will first take on South Carolina on the road.

“It’s not really a recovery week. We’re going to practice,” Kelly said. “We’ll treat the second bye week as a recovery week.”

The Tigers will host Ole Miss on Saturday, Oct. 12, in Tiger Stadium. The time and network for the matchup is to be determined.