LSU Injury Update: The Latest on Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier's Status

LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier exited Saturday night's Southeastern Conference showdown against the Oklahoma Sooners with an apparent shoulder injury.

The redshirt-junior signal-caller went down following a sack by the Sooners that saw him head virtually straight to the locker room.

After undergoing X-rays, Nussmeier returned to the sideline to warmup prior to returning to the field near the two-minute warning of the first half.

"There was no way I was sitting out. A lot of these guys have busted their butts for the last year, and a lot of these seniors," Nussmeier told reporters following the game. "LSU means a lot to me. It means the world to me, and I bleed these colors, no matter what anybody has to say about me.

"There was no way that I was going to watch the rest of that game from the sideline and let those seniors go out without me playing. There was no option really in my head, you know, whatever we had to do to be able to get me back out there."

Will Campbell gives up the sack and Nussmeier leaves the game injured. pic.twitter.com/ZO5gwlMypb
— Matthew Brune (@MatthewBrune_) December 1, 2024

Nussmeier will undergo further testing, but after returning to the contest on Saturday night, it's a positive result for the Tigers' QB1.

"He's a tough kid and he wants to be on this field," Kelly said. "It's his dream to play here at LSU. He was going to do whatever is necessary. His doctors looked at him and cleared him ... he said, 'I can throw it, I can play.'"

It certainly wasn't the season Nussmeier and Co. had hoped for after wrapping up the year with an 8-4 record overall while going 5-3 in Southeastern Conference play, but the Tigers' signal-caller utilized it as a learning experience.

"This year was a huge growth year for me. I said it in September, and I still stand on it. I hope that I would be a better player now than I was in September, and I think that that was proven to be true. I think that our team got better throughout the year. We got closer, and we got better," Nussmeier said on Saturday.

"Whatever things we had to fix and the red zone scoring, we have improved on that a lot. So, I am so happy for us, so happy for our team, and the things that we have worked on. For me, personally, I think that I have continued to get better, and I have continued to grow my game. I am looking forward to continuing to do that heading into the off-season."

Nussmeier confirmed on Saturday night after the game that he will suit up for LSUs bowl game, but has not yet made a decision for his future.

He will either return to LSU or enter the 2025 NFL Draft, but he'll begin evaluating his options as early as this week, he told reporters on Saturday night.

For LSU, the program will now await a bowl game reveal after ending the 2024 regular season on Saturday night with a 37-17 victory over the Oklahoma Sooners.

More LSU News:

Paul Finebaum: LSU, Brian Kelly in a "Really Bad Spot" Moving Forward

LSU Dishes Out Offer to No. 1 Quarterback in America

Nick Saban Calls LSU Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier a "Sleeper" Ahead of 2024 Season

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