LSU Interim HC Frank Wilson After 11-Point Loss to Alabama

Wilson began his press conference by praising his team for their intensity and competitive spirit throughout the game. At one point, LSU was only down by eight points in the fourth quarter after trailing 17-3 at halftime. Unfortunately for the Tigers, Alabama's defense proved too strong, forcing LSU to a three-and-out and a fumble on their last two drives of the game.

Get our free mobile app

“Here’s what we asked of our team. That they go out and compete, playing with a style and brand of football representative of our university. I thought we did that.” Wilson added, “I thought we played hard, I thought we competed throughout the duration of the game, at the end of it, our best wasn't good enough.”

LSU's interim head coach, who took over two weeks ago after Kelly parted ways with the program, highlighted the offense's struggles to score touchdowns against Alabama's impressive defense. The Crimson Tide has not allowed more than 24 points in SEC play this season. Turnovers significantly impacted the game, resulting in LSU's 11-point loss, as Alabama’s defense held the Tigers without a touchdown, forcing them to settle for nine points from three field goals.

The Tigers turned the ball over twice during Saturday’s loss. The first turnover occurred in the first quarter when Alabama linebacker Nikhai Hill-Green forced a fumble, which he recovered at LSU’s 24-yard line. This set up the Crimson Tide’s first score of the game, a 45-yard field goal by Connor Talty. The second fumble by the Tigers happened on their final drive when Yhonzae Pierre made a crucial strip sack that London Simmons recovered, which allowed Alabama to run down the clock and secure the victory.

“There are some things that we are gonna need to continue to improve on, that we have to score touchdowns and not just field goals. Glad to see the field goals go through, but we gotta be able to score touchdowns.” Wilson said, “I thought we needed to take care of the ball a lot better than we did. Three of them on the ground, two of them picked up by the opponent, and that was the difference in the game.”

Wilson was asked about freshman quarterback Michael Van Buren Jr., who stepped in for Garret Nussmeier with six minutes left in the third quarter and led the LSU offense to three points. The interim head coach spoke highly of the young quarterback, praising his performance in the pocket and his ability to step up and make throws. He noted that Van Buren did a solid job of escaping pressure and extending plays. However, he mentioned that he would like the freshman quarterback to prioritize ball security. Van Buren completed 5 out of 11 passes for 52 yards but had a crucial fumble late in the fourth quarter of Saturday’s loss.

“I thought he was solid, you know, there were some things that were obvious, pushing the pocket, stepping up, delivering passes, escaping, extending plays, and picking up first downs with his legs.” Wilson said, “I’d like him to have two hands on the ball in the pocket so we don't get that last one swatted away, but I thought he did a good job.”

When asked about Nussmeier’s performance in tonight's game, where he passed for only 121 yards on 18 out of 21 completions, leading the Tigers to two drives that ended in field goals, Wilson stated that he thought Nussmeier did a solid job at the start. However, he felt it was the right time to change things up and try to create a spark, hoping to throw off the Crimson Tide’s defense.

“I thought he did some good things early on. We moved him out of the pocket, and I thought he started the game off extremely well. As we went into the depths of the game, we just thought it was an opportunity for us to change up and throw their defense off.” Wilson added, “I don't know if it's something necessarily that he did so bad. We just thought that it would be an advantage in the things that Michael could give us.”

Wilson praised his defense, which was a bright spot in LSU’s loss on Saturday. The Tigers managed to hold the Crimson Tide to just 20 points, with only three of those points scored in the second half. Alabama totaled 344 yards and converted only 4 out of 13 on third downs during the game, while the Tigers also forced a fumble. Wilson highlighted the significant plays that contributed to Alabama’s two touchdown drives, including a 32-yard reception by tight end Josh Cuevas and a 53-yard reception by Lotzier Brooks, both of which set up touchdowns from inside the Tigers’ 20-yard line.

“I thought our defense played extremely well, you know, you take away some of those big plays that we gave up. They weren't necessarily drives that they just took down the field, but they did get behind us a couple of times.” Wilson said, “I thought they (LSU’s defensive staff) gave us opportunities to be able to compete. I think they didn't rush the ball extremely well. We contested passes like we said we wanted to do, and eventually we were able to start moving the quarterback off of his mark, which was advantageous for us.”

Wilson and the Tigers will drop their third game in a row as they fall to 5-4 and 2-4 in SEC play after tonight’s loss, while the Crimson Tide improves to 8-1 on the season and 6-0 in conference play as they pick up their eighth straight win on the season.

Follow @micahnichols0 on X and tune into Tide100.9 for all your Alabama football, baseball, and basketball coverage.