Anyone else ready for all this talk, whether it be on social media or the talking heads on television to be over and to spot the dang ball? I know that can’t be just me.
Well, it’s here ladies and gentleman. Opening Day in the (real) Death Valley. Our Tigers against one of the 27 teams named Tigers from the SEC, Saturday night.
As of Friday night, the “get in” price for tickets on third-party sites was hovering around $500.
Two highly ranked, albeit pre-season rankings, teams. Two highly regarded quarterbacks. ACC vs. SEC.
Here is a look at everything you will need to know about the Tiger’s Week 1 Opponent, the LSU Tigers:
Louisiana State University
School Location: Baton Rouge, Louisiana
Time: 7:30 ESPN
2024 Record – 9-4; (5-3 SEC) Last Game: Bowl Game vs. Baylor – W 44-31
9 Wins against: Nicholls, South Carolina, UCLA, South Alabama, Ole Miss, Arkansas, Vanderbilt, Oklahoma, Baylor
4 Losses against: USC, Texas A&M, Alabama, Florida
Head Coach: Brian Kelly – 4th Season – 29-11 at LSU – Previous: Notre Dame HC
Coach Kelly, in his fourth season in Baton Rouge has had mixed results in his first three years. He has lost the opener in each of his first three years at LSU. He has had some good teams but overall has probably under-achieved if you polled the Tiger fanbase. A highly thought of coach who has nearly as many accents as he got transfer portal players this year. The last time Kelly came to Clemson was the 2015 Hurricane game in which our Tigers beat his Notre Dame Fighting Irish in a deluge.
Offense
Offensive Coordinator: Joe Sloan – 2nd year as OC – Previous: LSU QB Coach
Coach Sloan enters his first year at LSU replacing Mike Denbrock who left Kelly to head to Notre Dame. Coach Sloan was responsible for the development of Jayden Daniels while at LSU. QB Garrett Nussmeier is his latest protege. There are many weapons at Sloan’s disposal, and with the addition of a few players from the portal, it will be interesting to watch it all come together.
LSU averaged 30.5 points per game (47th nationally) with 116.4 yards per game rushing (107th nationally) and 315.2 through the air (7th nationally) for an average of 431.6 yards of offense for the season, good enough for 25th nationally in total offense.
Here is a look at the projected starters for the LSU Tigers as well as their 2024 statistics:
| Quarterback | Garrett Nussmeier | RS Senior | #13 | 34 rush, 100 yds net, 2 TDs | 337-535 64.2%, 4052 yds, 29 TDs, 12 Ints |
| Running Back | Caden Durham | Sophomore | #29 | 140 rush, 771 yds, 6 TDs | 28 rec. 260 yds, 2 TDs |
| Wide Receiver | Chris Hilton, Jr. | RS Senior | #3 | 9 rec, 243 yds, 3 TDs | |
| Wide Receiver | Zavion Thomas | Senior | #0 | 9 rush, 76 yd | 23 rec, 218 yds, 2 TDs |
| Wide Receiver | Aaron Anderson | RS Junior | #1 | 61 rec, 884 yds, 5 TDs | |
| Tight End | Trey’Dez Green | RS Senior | #1 | 13 rec. 101 yds, 4 TDs | |
| Left Tackle | Tyree Adams | RS Sophomore | #71 | ||
| Left Guard | DJ Chester | RS Sophomore | #79 | ||
| Center | Braelin Moore (Virginia Tech) | RS Junior | #61 | ||
| Right Guard | Josh Thompson (Northwestern) | RS Senior | #76 | ||
| Right Tackle | Weston Davis | RS Freshman | #75 |
Defense
Defensive Coordinator: Blake Baker – 2nd Year – Previous: Missouri DC
Coach Baker came in two seasons ago, coming back to LSU after a stint as the Mizzou DC. Baker is known for running an aggressive, blitz-heavy and disruptive defense focused on creating havoc in the backfield. He employs a vertical, one-gap scheme that allows his play makers to attack forward and try to disrupt an offense’s rhythm.
The LSU defense has given up an average of 24.3 points through the 2024 season (59th nationally). They gave up an average of 140.1 yards per game on the ground (51st nationally) and 224.3 yards through the air (76th nationally). Opponents averaged a total of 364.4 yards per game (61st nationally).
Here is a look at the projected starters for the Tigers on defense along with some stats from the 2024 season:
| Defensive End | Jack Pyburn (Florida) | Senior | #44 | 60 tackles, 4 TFLs, sack, FR, Int |
| Defensive Tackle | Dominick McKinley | Sophomore | #90 | 7 tackles, 3 TFLs, 3 sacks, FR |
| Defensive Tackle | Bernard Gooden (Wake Forest) | RS Senior | #88 | 35 tackles, 10 TFLs, 1.5 sacks |
| Defensive End | Gabriel Reliford | Sophomore | #19 | 10 tackles, TFL, 0.5 sack |
| Weakside Linebacker | West Weeks (Virginia) | Graduate | #33 | 15 tackles |
| Middle Linebacker | Whit Weeks | Junior | #40 | 125 tackles, 10 TFLs, 3.5 sacks, 2 FFs Int |
| STAR Linebacker | Harold Perkins Jr. | RS Junior | #7 | 17 tackles, 1.5 TFLs |
| Cornerback | Ashton Stamps | Junior | #1 | 51 tackles |
| Strong Safety | Jardin Gilbert | RS Senior | #2 | 55 tackles, 1.5 TFLs, 0.5 sack, FF, FR, Int |
| Free Safety | Tamarcus Cooley (Maryland) | RS Sophomore | #0 | 39 tackles, 2.5 TFLs, sack, Int |
| Cornerback | Mansoor Delane (Virginia Tech) | Senior | #4 | 54 tackles, TFL, 2 FFs, 4 Ints |
Turnovers
The Tigers were -3 in turnover margin in 2024 (T-81st nationally), having thrown 12 interceptions and picking off 7 opposing passes, as well as having caused 8 fumbles and have lost 5 fumbles.
Special Teams
Here is a list of the specialists for the Tigers along with statistics from 2024 Season:
| Kicker | Damian Ramos | RS Senior | #34 | 23-29, long of 50 yds |
| Punter | Grant Chadwick (Middle Tennessee) | Sophomore | #90 | 51 punts, 43.4 yd avg, long of 60 yds |
| Punt Returner | Zavion Thomas | Senior | #0 | 14 returns, 4.7 yd avg, long of 17 yds |
| Kick Returner | Zavion Thomas | Senior | #0 | 24 returns, 26.4 yd avg, long of 95 yds, TD |
Summary
This is a huge opener for both teams. I have been told by all of the talking heads that if one team can “afford a loss” it’s Clemson. I’m tired of the SEC narrative always shoving down our throats that their schedules are so tough.
I don’t like moral victories. Our boys need to get out there, get Cade in a rhythm, get the playmakers the ball early and often, and have the defense stop the run. The run was the Tigers achilles heel last season, and as hard as it will be to fix in week 1, improvement is a must to live up to the lofty expectations many have put on our Tigers.
Let’s go. Spot the dang ball!
