Brian Kelly again watched his LSU squad begin the football season with a loss.
For the fifth straight year, the Tigers are 0-1 after a Week 1 shortcoming. They fell 27-20 to USC at Allegiant Stadium on Sunday night.
Each team received positive results from its new starting quarterback. However, Kelly left more impressed with USC’s Miller Moss than LSU’s Garrett Nussmeier. The head coach made an eye-raising statement to reporters in his post-game press conference.
“I thought the quarterback played well tonight. He outplayed our quarterback,” Kelly said, via College Transfer Portal. “He made the plays when he needed to.”
Observers were baffled by Kelly’s comments, especially considering how well Nussmeier played in the loss.
“Did Brian Kelly really throw his QB under the bus?” a fan asked.
“This is a wild statement after the game Nussmeier had,” another fan wrote.
“I don’t understand the point of this,” a fan wondered.
Kelly’s assessment isn’t necessarily wrong. Moss looked sensational on Sunday, completing 27 of 36 passes for 378 yards, a touchdown, and no turnovers.
Lincoln Riley appears to have found a star replacement for Caleb Williams, but Kelly shouldn’t be disappointed by what he saw from Jayden Daniels’ successor.
Nussmeier went 29-of-38 for 304 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. The junior even recorded a higher QBR (88.1) than Moss (79.2) in Las Vegas.
LSU allowing 450 total yards and committing 10 penalties played bigger factors in yet another Week 1 letdown. The SEC team hasn’t commenced a season with a win since Joe Burrow steered the Tigers to a perfect year in 2019.
Kelly’s last two teams responded to the opening setback with a multi-game winning streak. Nussmeier will look to get LSU back on track when hosting Nicholls on Saturday.
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