LSU football ended the 2024 season on a high note with a solid 37-17 win over Oklahoma.
Even after losing their fifth straight season opener to USC and the tough three-game losing streak that crushed their playoff hopes, the Tigers pulled off two wins over Vanderbilt and Oklahoma teams that were better than people thought they were going to be.
LSU finishes year three of the Brian Kelly era 8-4, which is not up to the usual standard of playing for championships, or at least 10 wins, but the team is still excited for the future.
“I didn’t come down here to go 8-4,” Head Coach Brian Kelly said. “I’m not happy about 8-4. Nobody in that room is happy about being 8-4. What they’re happy about is that they played well after a three game losing streak and they bounced back.”
“This game teaches you lessons about grit and toughness and perseverance and not letting go of the rope. Right? They easily could’ve fractured. Instead, they stuck together and they stayed committed.”
Despite recent questioning of the overall health of the program, the team sees things differently.
“When we do things the right way and we’re about our process the right way, then we’re a dangerous football team,” Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier said.
“When we look back on it and there are three quarters of football that we want back that could completely change our season and the way it would look right now. I think that’s the frustrating thing, but that’s the motivating thing because we were right there.”
The matchup with Oklahoma also served as the Senior Night celebration for the Purple and Gold, which gave them an even bigger reason to finish the season with a win.
“That team meeting really changed, I mean we came out here and won one, two games in a row and finished the season off right,” Linebacker Whit Weeks said.
“Whenever we got the guys in there we just told them, ‘Look. There’s dudes in this room who have been fighting for so long. We need to go out there and play for these guys.’”
With the seniors moving on, the team already has young players who are taking on bigger roles and stepping up as leaders.
“It’s only gonna go up from here really,” Linebacker Greg Penn III said. “Especially finishing the season off well, then whatever bowl game we’re playing in, finishing that off well.”
“Just moving on from there, I think Coach Kelly and the staff are in a great position. Especially with some of the players they have coming back, I think it’ll be a great season next year for them.”
With eight wins, LSU will now look to start preparations for their bowl game. It has not been announced which bowl they will play in.
After the bowl game, the Tigers will move on to year four of the Brian Kelly era, continue developing the players already on the roster and make some moves in the transfer portal during the offseason.
