Here’s what Nussmeier and Brian Kelly had to say about Chris Hilton after bowl win
Playing without its top two pass catchers, LSU needed new threats to emerge to defeat Baylor in the Kinder’s Texas Bowl on Tuesday.
In the Tigers’ 44-31 win, [autotag]Chris Hilton[/autotag] hauled in a game-high 113 receiving yards, including one for 43 yards and a touchdown. The redshirt junior’s performance against the Bears continued a late-season surge after dealing with an injury during fall camp and early in the year.
“We knew he was going through something, and we stood by him,” LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier said. “We did whatever we could to help him get back to him. When he was ready and was able to get back to himself, I think you can see what we’ve all seen from him.”
For Nussmeier, it was deja vu from last season’s ReliaQuest Bowl when Hilton totaled 56 receiving yards and a touchdown with an explosive play for 43 yards. Developing the chemistry started toward the end of last season and continued during the offseason.
After an injury sidelined him the first seven games of 2024, Hilton played every game for the rest of the season, starting with Texas A&M. Through six games, he totaled nine receptions for 243 yards and three touchdowns, averaging 27 yards per catch.
Head coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] remained confident that Hilton would make an impact upon his return and looks forward to his future donning the purple and gold.
“Chris has been waiting for these opportunities, and he got his chance and was able to do the things he’s capable of doing,” Kelly said. “When he ran the inside stop route, and we saw burst from him, that was electric, so big things for him to come.”
Texas Bowl Preview: Three things to watch for when LSU takes on Baylor
The countdown is on for LSU football’s game against Baylor in the Kinder’s Texas Bowl on New Year’s Eve.
The 8-4 Tigers can end the season on a three-game win streak with a victory over the Bears in Houston. Following a midseason skid where it lost three straight SEC games, LSU recovered to defeat Vanderbilt and Oklahoma in Death Valley.
Since its final game, the Tigers saw parts of its roster depart for the NFL Draft and enter the transfer portal. They will be without three starting offensive linemen and its top two receiving threats, along with both starting defensive ends.
Head coach Brian Kelly’s team made several transfer portal acquisitions, but now is the time for the current roster to make a lasting impression heading into the offseason.
Baylor brings almost its full roster to Tuesday’s contest, with the exception of a starting safety and defensive end depth piece, both of whom entered the portal. By ending the regular season on a six-game win streak, the Bears bring a heap of confidence into the matchup. Will it be enough to defeat LSU?
Here are three things to watch in the Texas Bowl between LSU and Baylor.
LSU’s passing attack
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Garrett Nussmeier will play quarterback for LSU after announcing his return for the 2025 season. But who will catch the passes?
The gunslinger’s two favorite targets in Kyren Lacy and Mason Taylor declared for the NFL Draft. Three wide receivers and a tight end entered the portal, leaving a relatively inexperienced group of pass catchers.
Baylor doesn’t boast a high-powered passing defense, which may give the Tigers time to establish rhythm distributing the ball. [autotag]Chris Hilton[/autotag] hauled in two catches for two touchdowns of 40+ yards and [autotag]Aaron Anderson[/autotag] could continue his breakout campaign as well.
A key to success in the passing game is the offensive line’s ability to protect Nussmeier. It will be playing without its two starting tackles and a starting guard as it attempts to hold a Baylor defensive line in check that boats one of the best interiors in the Big 12.
Baylor Run Game
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For the Bears’ offense to be successful, it must establish the run with Bryson Washington. He finished sixth in the Big 12 with 1,004 rushing yards and averages 5.9 yards per carry. Dawson Pendergrass also has 100 attempts on the season and averages 6.1 yards per carry.
A point of emphasis for Kelly on defense was for the secondary to shorten the field and make open-field tackles. With [autotag]Sage Ryan[/autotag] entering the portal and [autotag]Major Burns[/autotag] opting out, the Tigers will be without two of its veteran defenders. Up front, defensive ends Bradyn Swinson and Sai’Vion Jones are slated to play.
Washington is hard to take down as he averages 4.13 yards after contact, good enough for third in the Big 12. LSU needs to make contact early to combat the run while also relying on a young group of safeties to lock down in pass defense. True freshmen Da’Shawn Spears and Javien Toviano will be the two players to watch for the Tigers.
Special Team Battle
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Since Kelly’s arrival to Baton Rouge, he’s aimed to strengthen the special teams units in order to make game-changing plays. The units, especially in punt returns, will need to lock in for the contest against the Bears.
Baylor allows just 5.9 yards in punt returns per game while averaging 20.67 yards itself. Josh Cameron returned 14 punts for 290 yards, averaging 20.71 yards per return. He took one for 73 yards.
That success extends to kickoffs as well. In 2024, Jamaal Bell returned one for a touchdown and averaged 24.5 yards per return through 20 attempts. Punter Palmer Williams averages 49.61 per kick and had 21 go for over 50 yards. He totaled 2,034 punting yards on the season.
Should LSU need to punt the ball often, it needs to stay disciplined in its defense and make tackles early to eliminate the Bears’ threats in the return game. Winning the field position battle through special teams will give the Tigers an even better chance to end their season on a high note.
Is LSU wide receiver Chris Hilton Jr. expected to return in 2025?
This is roster movement season. Hundreds of players around the sport announce their intentions to enter the transfer portal, enter the NFL Draft, or return to school for another year.
We’ve heard decisions from several key LSU players. LT Will Campbell, RT Emery Jones, and TE Mason Taylor all declared for the draft. CJ Daniels entered the transfer portal. Starting QB Garrett Nussmeier decided to return to school for a fifth year.
One Tiger we’ve yet to hear from is wide receiver Chris Hilton.
Hilton just completed his redshirt junior year with the Tigers and has another season of eligibility remaining.
LSU had high hopes for Hilton in 2025. With [autotag]Malik Nabers[/autotag] and [autotag]Brian Thomas Jr[/autotag]. off to the NFL, Hilton was supposed to replace that big play potential. Unfortunately, Hilton dealt with an injury for most of 2024 and struggled to settle back into the lineup.
Finally, in LSU’s regular-season finale win over Oklahoma, something clicked.
Nussmeier connected with Hilton for two deep touchdown shots. The big play threat LSU was seeking all year was there.
Hilton is yet to have a true full-time role with LSU, but there’s one waiting if he returns. LSU is losing [autotag]Kyren Lacy[/autotag] and [autotag]CJ Daniels[/autotag] and had to turn to the transfer portal to restock the receiver room.
Players like [autotag]Aaron Anderson[/autotag] and [autotag]Barion Brown[/autotag] will come up big for LSU in the quick game and over the middle, but the Tigers need that burner that can take the top off a defense and make a play down the sideline.
That’s [autotag]Chris Hilton.[/autotag]
Tiger fans should expect clarity on Hilton’s future in the coming weeks, but LSU head coach Kelly has yet to reveal anything.
What did Brian Kelly and Garrett Nussmeier say about the LSU QB’s performance?
LSU quarterback [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag] headed to the locker room in the first quarter of Saturday’s game against Oklahoma with an apparent shoulder injury.
It appeared doubtful that he would return to the game but the redshirt junior gunslinger found his way back to the field and finished the game with 277 yards and three touchdowns.
Two of those touchdown passes went to junior wide receiver [autotag]Chris Hilton[/autotag] for big plays with the pair finally establishing a deep-ball connection.
Head coach Brian Kelly praised Nussmeier for his “grit and toughness” against the Sooners.
“That’s an easy tap-out for most people,” Kelly said. “That’s an easy one to say, ‘I’m not coming back’ but that’s the kind of player he is. That’s the kind of competitor he is.”
Following the game, Kelly and Nussmeier acknowledged the noise surrounding the program from LSU’s midseason three-game losing streak to the recruiting trail.
Despite the chaos, the Tigers stayed the course and finished the 2024 regular season with two wins in Death Valley and await their bowl game selection.
“When they’re talked about in a manner that they have been over the past two to three weeks, you want them to buckle down, but on their mouth guard and go out there and play,” Kelly said. “That’s what they did and that’s what he [Nussmeier] did.”
Saturday marked the final home game for several LSU seniors, which made Nussmeier push even harder to return in order to help “send these seniors out on the right note.”
“I wanted to be out here for these guys,” Nussmeier said. “I’m going to miss these seniors. LSU means so much to me, these colors mean so much to me. I couldn’t imagine sitting there and watching some of my teammates play their last game without me.”
What did LSU head coach Brian Kelly say about Chris Hilton’s breakout performance?
LSU needed a boost heading into halftime in its final game of the regular season.
[autotag]Chris Hilton[/autotag] gave LSU that spark when he caught a 40-yard touchdown pass from quarterback Garrett Nussmeier and gave his team a seven-point edge at the break over Oklahoma.
With under seven minutes left in the third frame, the redshirt junior wide receiver hauled in a 45-yard strike to put the game out of reach and accounted for the only points of the third quarter.
Hilton led all receivers with 85 yards on those two touchdown receptions. Saturday marked his fifth game of the 2024 season as he missed the first half with an injury that also held him out of preseason camp.
LSU head coach Brian Kelly said Hilton got the game ball for his performance and praised the Zachary, LA native for his effort in the win.
“He was out for eight weeks and it takes a while to get back into rhythm,” Kelly said. “We either missed him on overthrows or the timing wasn’t quite where it needed to be. It normally takes about four weeks to get that.”
In an offense that performed lackluster in a midseason losing streak, Kelly said finding Hilton with the deep ball created space within the rest of the offense.
“The deep threat has been missing from our offense,” Kelly said. “Teams have sat down on us, teams have made it difficult for us because we haven’t had that vertical threat.”
LSU turned in a balanced offensive performance in Saturday’s victory. Nussmeier threw for 277 yards and three touchdowns and the run game totaled 110 yards, including a game-high 50-yard Ruch by Caden Durham.
Kelly credited the deep ball connections as the reason for the efficient showing, saying it was “needed desperately.”
“When you can push the ball down the field and have the other options within our offensive structure,” Kelly said. “It allows you to run the football, it allows you to have the intermediate passing game and vertical passing game.”
The depth of the LSU receiver room will be tested against the hungry USC secondary.
Matt Mascona of LouisianaSports.net has an important piece of information to pass along. Moscona explained to Trojans Wire on Monday night that there is a concern wide receiver Chris Hilton might not play on Sunday against USC. That would be a notable injury absence if Hilton can’t play. We will obviously learn more about Hilton’s playing status in the days ahead, but for now, we don’t know.
How can LSU adjust to this situation, if indeed Hilton can’t play? We know that LSU is always stocked with difference makers outside.
Mascona explained that Kyren Lacy will be the main playmaker and focal point for LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier on Sunday versus USC.
The Trojans and their secondary, coached by Doug Belk and assisted by Taylor Mays, get a first big chance to show how much they have improved in the offseason by going against a school which has been every bit as successful as USC in cranking out elite NFL wide receivers. The best love being tested. The secondary, which could be the Trojans’ best defensive position group, can make an early statement versus the LSU wideouts.
Here’s our segment at The Voice of College Football:
Is LSU wide receiver Chris Hilton Jr. a breakout candidate in 2024?
LSU’s wide receiver room will look different in 2024. The gap left by [autotag]Malik Nabers[/autotag] and [autotag]Brian Thomas Jr.[/autotag] is a big one, which has led to many calling for a breakout year from receivers like [autotag]Kyren Lacy[/autotag] and [autotag]CJ Daniels[/autotag].
As far as breakout candidates go, Lacy and Daniels make sense. Lacy, a fifth-year senior, will enter his third year at LSU. He knows the offense, knows quarterback [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag], and his 18.6 yards per catch in 2023 lead all qualified SEC returners.
Daniels was one of the top receivers on the transfer market after racking up 1,000 yards and leading the country in yards per route run at Liberty.
It’s understandable why those two are getting most of the preseason hype, but does that leave some other receivers flying under the radar? That could be the case with [autotag]Chris Hilton Jr.[/autotag], who’s finally getting his chance in 2024.
Hilton arrived as a member of that 2021 recruiting class that was loaded at receiver. Along with Nabers and Thomas, that class included blue-chips [autotag]Jack Bech[/autotag] and [autotag]Deion Smith[/autotag]. Three years later, Hilton is the last one standing at LSU.
He was a highly touted recruit and 247Sports ranked Hilton as the top receiver in the class. He didn’t make much noise as a freshman, catching just two passes for 81 yards in a touchdown.
That touchdown came in garbage time against Kansas State in the bowl game, but Hilton put his speed on display.
In 2022, Hilton was set to be a part of the rotation. He was targeted eight times in Week 2 before getting the start against Mississippi State in Week 3. But in Week 4 against New Mexico, he tore his ACL and his year was done.
In 2023, we know what the deal was. Nabers and Thomas were a historic duo, swallowing up the majority of the targets. Throw in Lacy with tight end [autotag]Mason Taylor[/autotag], as well as the rushing ability of [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag], and there wasn’t much offensive production left for players like Hilton.
That chance is there now. Hilton is projected to start for LSU and if the bowl game was any indication, he has a decent rapport with Nussmeier.
Nussmeier had some praise for Hilton after that performance.
"He did an amazing job. I'm super proud of Chris."@LSUfootball Garrett Nussmeier on wide receiver Chris Hilton Jr. and his first #LSU start at quarterback.
According to PFF, Hilton’s top two graded games in 2023 were his final two. That strong finish could be indicative of more to come in 2024.
With Daniels gone, LSU needs to find a way to drum up big plays. Having a receiver with Hilton’s size on the outside that can fly is one way to do that.
Nearly 40% of Hilton’s targets in 2023 were deep balls. He’ll be tasked with becoming a more complete pass catcher this fall, but that go-ball ability will be critical to LSU’s offense.
Lacy is the favorite to be LSU’s No. 1 target, but Hilton should be in the conversation too. Hilton’s yards per route run was just ahead of Lacy in 2023 and it wouldn’t be a shock if Hilton put it all together to have an all-conference campaign.
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Liberty transfer CJ Daniels is coming off a 1,000-yard season with the Flames.
LSU took a much more methodical approach to the transfer portal this offseason, taking significantly fewer players than it has in the previous two cycles. But that doesn’t mean the transfer haul is devoid of star talent.
Arguably the Tigers’ most prized addition in that group is [autotag]CJ Daniels[/autotag], a receiver from Liberty who is coming off a 1,000-yard season with the Flames. Both [autotag]Malik Nabers[/autotag] and [autotag]Brian Thomas Jr.[/autotag] are set to move on, and that could open the door for Daniels to emerge as the team’s top wideout next season.
CBS Sports’ Will Backus recently broke down a number of transfers who will make noise in the SEC this season, and Daniels was listed among them.
The 6-foot-2 Daniels spent the past three seasons as one of Liberty’s top offensive playmakers, though he battled through an injury-riddled campaign in 2022. He had his first 1,000-yard receiving performance in 2023 with 10 touchdowns and a whopping 19.4 yards per catch. He should thrive in LSU’s big-play offense with his combination of size and explosive ability. There’s plenty of opportunity for Daniels to shine with both Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr. off to the NFL. They’re taking a combined 2,746 yards receiving — 62.3% of LSU’s 2023 team total — and 31 total touchdowns with them.
Daniels will still be competing with the likes of [autotag]Kyren Lacy[/autotag], [autotag]Chris Hilton[/autotag], [autotag]Aaron Anderson[/autotag] and others, but he immediately becomes the most experienced and proven player in the room.
That should help a lot with a new quarterback set to take over in [autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag].
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Former LSU receiver Deion Smith will be joining Lane Kiffin at Ole Miss.
A former LSU receiver finally found a new home on Monday.
[autotag]Deion Smith[/autotag], a former four-star recruit, committed to Ole Miss. Smith began his career at LSU in 2021 before transferring and spending the next two years at the JUCO level.
Smith was a member of LSU’s deep receiver class in 2021, that also included [autotag]Malik Nabers[/autotag], [autotag]Brian Thomas Jr.[/autotag], [autotag]Chris Hilton[/autotag] and [autotag]Jack Bech[/autotag].
At LSU, Smith appeared in six games, catching 11 passes for 186 yards and two touchdowns.
Smith left LSU after some academic issues boiled up but showed promise on the field when he got his chance.
NEW 4-star JUCO WR Deion Smith has committed to Ole Miss
As a recruit, Smith was the top-ranked player in Mississippi and the eighth-ranked receiver nationally. He now gets back to SEC ball, joining Lane Kiffin’s high-powered offense at Ole Miss.
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The Tigers have some banged up players after Saturday’s loss at Ole Miss.
LSU was finally getting back closer to full health last week, but several Tigers players got banged up in the 55-49 loss, leading to a more crowded Monday injury report than we saw last week.
Addressing the media, coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] listed receivers [autotag]Chris Hilton[/autotag], [autotag]Aaron Anderson[/autotag] and [autotag]Omar Speights[/autotag] as questionable. Speights made his return to the field after missing back-to-back games with a hip flexor while Hilton also played Saturday.
Anderson missed the game after a hamstring injury suffered in practice on Thursday.
We’ll be monitoring the progress of those players throughout the week, but if Hilton or Anderson aren’t able to go, the Tigers should have [autotag]Kyren Lacy[/autotag] available, who was listed as probable alongside redshirt freshman former walk-on receiver [autotag]Javen Nicholas[/autotag], who could see his number called depending on the status of other players.
Kelly said that all five players are dealing with lower-body injuries but declined to go into further detail.
The Tigers will look to bounce back in Week 6 as they hit the road to take on a ranked unbeaten team in Missouri.
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