Scouting Report: LSU
Oklahoma made it through the heart of its schedule with three consecutive ranked wins. With last Saturday’s win over Missouri, the Sooners (9-2, 5-2 SEC) are just one win away from solidifying a College Football Playoff berth?
The last thing standing in their way? A home date against LSU.
It’s no secret that the Tigers are struggling to keep things together. The Tigers are 7-4 and 3-4 in SEC play. Former head coach Brian Kelly has been gone for a month. Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier is hurt and his season is likely over. And the Tigers barely escaped with a 13-10 win at home over Western Kentucky over the weekend.
The Sooners have certainly faced tougher tests this season, and they’re a 10.5-point betting favorite this weekend. But they’ve learned that it’s not easy to win in the SEC, no matter the opponent. And the Tigers will still present their fair share of challenges.
Here’s an overview of the Tigers and what the Sooners will face this weekend:
GAME INFO
When: 2:30 p.m. Saturday
Where: Gaylord Family Oklahoma Memorial Stadium
TV: ABC
LSU OVERVIEW
Scoring offense: 22.6 points per game (106th nationally)
Scoring defense: 18.5 points per game (T-16th)
Total offense: 344.9 yards per game (102nd)
Total defense: 313 yards per game (23rd)
Rushing offense: 108.2 yards per game (123rd)
Rushing defense: 121 yards per game (31st)
Passing offense: 236.7 yards per game (62nd)
Passing defense: 192 yards per game (30th)
Key Players
— Michael Van Buren Jr., QB
647 passing yards, 64% completion, 4 TD, 1 INT, 72 rushing yards, 1 TD
— Caden Durham, RB
100 carries, 463 yards, 3 TD
— Harlem Berry, RB
87 carries, 423 yards, 2 TD
— Barlon Brown, WR
49 receptions, 486 yards, 1 TD
— AJ Haulcy, DB
81 tackles, 2 INT, 1 forced fumble
— Harold Perkins, LB
50 tackles, 7.5 TFL, 4 sacks, 2 INT
— West Weeks, LB
68 tackles, 7.5 TFL, 2.5 sacks
Scouting Report
— It’s no longer Nussmeier at quarterback
Coming into the year, Nussmeier projected to be a first or second-round pick in next year’s draft. Instead, Nussmeier never found a rhythm this season and never regained his form from last year. He’s been out since Nov. 8 with an injury, and he’s unlikely to play this weekend.
With that, Van Buren is slated to make his third consecutive start. The former three-star prospect has been fine in Nussmeier’s place. Over the last two weeks, he has 423 passing yards, 48 rushing yards and two touchdowns while completing 63% of his passes. The Tigers have scored 36 points over that span.
Van Buren can run it a little bit, although he had a fumble against Western Kentucky. But he’s certainly not as explosive or as accurate as Nussmeier from the pocket. For the Sooners, the gameplan should be simple — generate pressure on Van Buren and force him to make quick decisions.
— LSU’s defense has been good
Is the defense perfect? Certainly not. But it’s pretty low on the list of LSU’s biggest issues.
The defense has been pretty solid all season, outside of allowing 49 points to Texas A&M. They’ve given up 24 points or fewer in nine of their 11 games this season. That includes just 24 points allowed to Ole Miss and 20 points allowed to Alabama. They only allowed 22 points to an Arkansas team that hung 37 on Texas and 42 on Texas A&M.
The Tigers have simply been good-to-very good across the board. They rank 31st in rushing defense and 30th in passing defense. They’ve forced 18 turnovers this season, which ranks 27th. They’ve done a decent job of limiting explosive plays.
Essentially, they don’t have an obvious weakness. That’s not ideal for an OU offense that has struggled to generate any kind of rhythm over the last two weeks.