After just his first game as LSU's interim head coach, Frank Wilson seems to already be dealing with every coach's worst nightmare: a quarterback controversy.
Wilson pulled Garrett Nussmeier for Mississippi State transfer Michael Van Buren in the third quarter of the Tigers' 20-9 loss to No. 4 Alabama on Saturday in Tuscaloosa. And with only three games left on the 2025 schedule, Wilson didn't make it clear postgame if Van Buren is the plan going forward or if this is still Nussmeier's team.
Possible LSU QB battle brewing between Garrett Nussmeier and Michael Van Buren
Nussmeier was 18-for-21 with 121 passing yards before getting benched.The final straw was Nussmeier rolling right into a sack that forced LSU to settle for a field goal. Van Buren then trotted out there the next drive.
“As we discussed as a staff, we knew there could opportunities in the quarterback run game, and then at the back end as they tried to bring closure to it, they would make it difficult to just sit in the pocket," Wilson said. "We wanted to move them around and do some things, and we thought (Van Buren) gave us a chance to do those things, so that went into the thought of it."
Van Buren finished the game and completed 5-of-11 passes for 52 yards. He also had six carries for one yard, but fumbled the ball after getting hit in the pocket.
“I thought he was solid,” Wilson said. “There was some things that were obvious: pushing the pocket, stepping up, delivering passes escaping, extended plays and picking up first downs with his legs.
"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.”
This is Van Buren's first season at LSU as a sophomore, while Nussmeier is a senior who entered the season with Heisman Trophy aspirations and first-round NFL Draft pick expectations. But with Brian Kelly out, it's clear no one's job is safe in Baton Rouge and it's unclear who will be the Tigers' starting quarterback against Arkansas.