Predicting the Tigers’ starting quarterback in 2022
For the second year in a row, the LSU Tigers have quarterback competition on their hands.
Last year it was Myles Brennan, TJ Finley, Max Johnson and Garrett Nussmeier. Fast forward a full calendar year and Johnson and Finley have been off the program since the spring. Johnson came on after the season finale.
Brennan is coming back for another run at the position, this isn’t his first quarterback competition, so that should feel normal at this point. He fought Joe Burrow in 2018 and was the starter for 2020 before injury ended his season. Last year he was in the thick of it before a broken arm ended his 2021 campaign.
Nussmeier should have a better chance of getting the job done than he did as an incoming rookie. He opted for the red shirt after the Arkansas game, where he played the vast majority of snaps. He and 2022 signee Walker Howard will complete the trio of quarterbacks battling for the starting position.
With spring football slated to begin in March, LSU Tigers Wire staff weighed in on who could win the job.
Patrick Conn
Carmen Mandato/Getty Images
I think the obvious answer here would be Myles Brennan. After all, new head coach Brian Kelly convinced him to remove his name from the transfer portal for his sixth season at Baton Rouge. Kelly is known to accompany the veteran quarterback. Those are many reasons to ride with him, but I recently had the idea of riding with Garrett Nussmeier.
“He’s a great quarterback, a great young quarterback,” former head coach Ed Orgeron said recently. “He’s kind of, I’m not going to compare him to the quarterback you see right now, but he’s a style of quarterback that can move, that can make plays.”
Therein lies the catch for me, Nuss can move and make plays. Ultimately, I think it could come down to this. Over the past four seasons at Cincinnati, offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock has a QB that could work. He knows how to set up the offense for a mobile quarterback. The staff just need to reign it in a bit.
Tyler Nettuno
Jay Biggerstaff – USA TODAY Sports
Myles Brennan’s LSU career has certainly been frustrating as his last two seasons have essentially been lost to injury. He’s shown promising signs to start the year in 2020, and it seems unlikely that Garrett Nussmeier or Walker Howard will be able to beat him in the fall.
Howard, a true five-star freshman, is likely the future of the program, but there’s no need to rush when you already have a serving veteran on the roster at Brennan.
Kyle Richardson
(AP Photo/LG Patterson)
Myles Brennan, Senior
I think Myles Brennan is winning the QB battle. Not because I think he’s the most talented QB on the roster, but because I think his seniority will win him the job, at least to start with. When you have a new head coach and brand new staff, that comes with a whole new set of games and formations to learn.
I don’t want to throw Nussmeier and Howard to the wolves too soon. I don’t want them to come out too soon and have their desire to be big stifled by SEC defenses. By the middle of the season, they might have a better understanding of things and end up taking the starting job. But I think Brennan starts on day one.
Will Rosenblatt
Frederick Breedon/Getty Images
I think I have to go with Brennan here. He came back for a reason, and it wasn’t to hold a notepad.
I liked what I saw from him in 2020 and I think he could only get better over time. I’m not promising the senior will finish the season as a starter, but with inexperience behind him, Brennan should cement himself in the spring.
LaMarr Fields
Clause Scott / The Advertiser
I’m going with Walker Howard, I think he could have a good spring and get back on the attack quickly. Myles Brennan is the easy pick because of his experience, but Howard is the future of the program and if he picks things up quickly, roll with Howard.