The defense hasn’t rattled LSU football quarterback Garrett Nussmeier yet

Only South Carolina has managed to sack LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier in six games.

Defensive end Kyle Kennard got a solo sack on Nussmeier and combined with linebacker Bam Martin-Scott for another sack, but the Tigers rallied from a 17-point deficit to beat the Gamecocks on September 14 at Williams-Brice Stadium with 36:33.

Those are the only two sacks allowed by LSU.

Ole Miss entered the game last Saturday night at LSU leading the SEC with 24 sacks and leaving the game with the same number as the Tigers staged another comeback in a conference game, winning 29-26 in overtime.

“We’re really good at that,” LSU coach Brian Kelly said of protecting Nussmeier. “We are exceptional pass blockers.”

It helps to have offensive linemen who have made a combined 128 career starts, led by 31 each for left tackle Will Campbell, a preseason All-American, and right guard Miles Frazier.

The no.

LSU never led against Ole Miss until the final play of the game, when Nussmeier found Kyren Lacy for a touchdown pass on the Tigers’ only offensive snap in overtime before fans stormed the field.

Lacy, who had 5 catches for 111 yards, received a single coverage on his game-winning 25-yard touchdown.

“It’s not a 50:50 ball,” Nussmeier said. “That’s a 100-to-nothing ball.”

Nussmeier’s 23-yard touchdown pass to Aaron Anderson brought LSU to 23-22 with 23 seconds left. Kelly chose to kick an extra point to tie the game rather than try to win with a 2-point conversion.

“I just felt like our guys worked too hard to get back in the game and I didn’t want to go for two in an all-or-nothing situation,” Kelly said.

Kelly’s call was fine with LSU linebacker Whit Weeks.

“I was happy to get to play more ball,” Weeks said. “Shoot, we can’t play again until next Saturday. I like to play more football.”

The victory over then-No. 9 Ole Miss moved the Tigers up from No. 13 in the Associated Press poll and better positioned LSU to secure a spot in the expanded 12-team playoffs. Ole Miss fell to 18th.

“We are serious,” said Nussmeier. “The Tigers are real. I think we’ve proven that. There were problems and mistakes, but we found a way to win the game.”

Nussmeier completed 22 of 51 passes for 337 yards and 3 touchdowns, earning him SEC Offensive Player of the Week honors.

Ole Miss led 23-16 when Nussmeier led LSU on a 13-play, 75-yard drive that ended with his scoring pass to make it 5-8 to Anderson.

Nussmeier completed 43.1% of his passes. His last two throws were for touchdowns, increasing his SEC-leading total to 18.

This is Junior Nussmeier’s first season as a starter. He sat behind Jayden Daniels, last year’s Heisman Trophy winner and No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft, who is starting for the Washington Commanders.

“I thought Garrett had grown [against Ole Miss] than ever before,” said Kelly, who is 25-8 in his third season at LSU. “This was a growth game for him…The growth he was able to show through this game and in the end will serve him well.”

Lacy is LSU’s leading receiving threat with 30 receptions for 463 yards and 6 touchdowns. Tight end Mason Taylor has 33 catches for 323 yards and 1 touchdown.

Nussmeier is averaging 331.5 passing yards, fueling an offense that has difficulty passing the ball consistently.

The Tigers average 123.3 rushing yards, ranking 100th nationally. Their leading rusher is Caden Durham, who has 41 carries for 249 yards.

“We also need to be exceptional run blockers, and we are capable of that,” Kelly said. “But we need some help.”

Weeks, who had 18 tackles and forced a fumble, was the SEC Defensive Player of the Week.

“We are a stubborn bunch. “We’re going to keep fighting until the end,” Weeks said. “We knew the whole game, we weren’t going to lose this ballgame.”

Bradyn Swinson was the SEC Defensive Player of the Week. He had 8 tackles, including 2 sacks, and intercepted 2 passes. He leads the Tigers with 7 sacks for 56 yards.

LSU held Ole Miss to three field goals in the second half and overtime. The Rebels led 17-13 at halftime.

“When you stop them from scoring touchdowns for two quarters of the second half and overtime, you feel like you’ve won that battle,” Kelly said.

Kelly praised Missouri-hired defensive coordinator Blake Baker for using multiple looks to keep the Rebels off balance. The Tigers sacked Ole Miss quarterback Jaxson Dart six times.

“At no point did we give them a unified look,” Kelly said. “We felt the most important thing was to mix up the coverage.

“If we gave them a unified view of anything, we felt that would be the problem. In other words, they checked, we checked, and during the game a kind of chess game developed over who would get the last check-in. Sometimes they did, but sometimes we did too.”

LSU has won five straight since opening, including a 27-20 loss to Southern Cal in Las Vegas.

“Proud of our team for how we kept fighting,” Kelly said. “Our players were confident they were prepared and would find a way to win the game.

“If you think you can win these games, you just keep fighting.”