HOUSTON — Garrett Nussmeier threw for 304 yards and three touchdowns as LSU beat Baylor 44-31 in the Texas Bowl on Tuesday.
Nussmeier, who finished 24 of 34, tossed scoring passes of 10 yards and 1 yard to Trey’Dez Green and 41 yards to Chris Hilton Jr. in the first half as LSU (9-4) built a 34-17 halftime lead.
Nussmeier said the win gives LSU a “confidence boost” heading into next year.
“It’s definitely a good feeling to end the season with a win,” said Nussmeier, selected the game’s MVP. “It’s definitely something that we were looking forward to doing. It was one of our goals. Coach (Brian) Kelly said before the game that this is the start of 2025, so we wanted to make a statement. We talked about having that killer instinct.”
Hilton caught four passes for 113 yards and a touchdown. Aaron Anderson had eight receptions for 91 yards for the Tigers, who finished the season with a three-game winning streak. LSU has won three straight bowl games.
Kelly was pleased with how the Tigers wrapped up 2024.
“I know cynics would say it’s disappointing,” he said. “It wasn’t disappointing. It was a team that was less than perfect because of inexperience. A team that gained experience. … To win nine games and win three in a row at the end, I’m just happy for our football team.”
Sawyer Robertson was 30 of 51 for a career-high 445 yards and two touchdowns for the Bears (8-5), who had their six-game winning streak snapped.
“I thought he battled,” Baylor coach Dave Aranda said. “I thought he was able to put balls where they needed to be. … I thought he was patient under pressure, he stepped up in the pocket. He took some hits, got back up and rallied the troops. I think the best for him is yet to come.”
Dawson Pendergrass rushed for 63 yards and two touchdowns, and Josh Cameron caught eight passes for 111 yards and a TD.
“I think with this game it’s just way too many mistakes,” Aranda said. “Just so unfortunate. Hasn’t been a game like this in a while. We’ve played complementary football and this is not that. I think you take away just one of the mistakes that we had, and then we’re going to go win the game at the end of the game.”
Baylor closed to 34-24 on a 4-yard touchdown pass from Robertson to Ashtyn Hawkins with six minutes left in the third quarter, and after Garmon Randolph intercepted Nussmeier to give the Bears the ball on the LSU 26, Baylor had a chance to cut into the lead further.
However, on 4th-and-1 from the LSU 17, the snap went over Robertson’s head for a loss of 36 yards, and LSU capitalized on the mistake with Josh Williams scoring on a 4-yard touchdown run to start the fourth period.
Takeaways
Baylor: The offense, which entered averaging 434.5 yards per game this season, finished with 507. But the defense had trouble slowing down LSU, which gained 418 yards.
LSU: The Tigers scored in all three phases. Davhon Keys returned an interception 41 yards for a touchdown midway through the first quarter, and Zavion Thomas brought back a kickoff 95 yards for a score with 1 1/2 minutes left in the first half.
