{"id":82802,"date":"2025-11-21T11:00:10","date_gmt":"2025-11-21T16:00:10","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=82802"},"modified":"2025-11-20T22:34:30","modified_gmt":"2025-11-21T03:34:30","slug":"four-reasons-to-watch-lsu-vs-western-kentucky","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2025\/11\/21\/four-reasons-to-watch-lsu-vs-western-kentucky\/","title":{"rendered":"Four Reasons to Watch LSU vs. Western Kentucky"},"content":{"rendered":"
With apologies for bearing bad news, we have reached the November cupcake week for the SEC. The conference currently has five teams ranked in the College Football Playoff\u2019s top 10, but some teams have the audacity to schedule lesser competition<\/a> before rivalry week. LSU will welcome the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers to Baton Rouge for a 6:45 p.m. (CST) kickoff on the SEC Network. Obviously, this game won\u2019t have playoff implications nor national appeal, but there are still plenty of reasons to watch.<\/div>\n

Four Reasons to Watch LSU vs. Western Kentucky<\/h2>\n

Strength on Strength<\/h3>\n
Although we\u2019ve made light of the matchup, Western Kentucky has shown that it\u2019s no joke while sitting in the thick of the Conference USA race. The Hilltoppers are currently 8-2 on the season and 6-1 in the league. Make no mistake, this is a team that LSU must take seriously. Thanks to Troy and UAB, we\u2019ve seen the Tigers lose to teams from smaller conferences once their bigger goals have faded. It can happen again if the Tigers aren\u2019t focused.<\/div>\n
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If Western Kentucky pulls off the upset against LSU, it\u2019ll be because of its offense. To be more specific, the Hilltoppers\u2019 passing offense is one of the best in the country. Freshman quarterback Rodney Tisdale<\/a> has stepped in impressively the last three games for injured starter Maverick McIvor<\/a> in WKU\u2019s 11th-ranked passing offense.<\/div>\n
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The Hilltoppers have an impressive group of wide receivers to match up against LSU\u2019s defensive strength, its cornerbacks. Like LSU, Western Kentucky hasn\u2019t had extensive success in the running game. But its passing attack can present a challenge for any team at any level.<\/div>\n

Quarterback Development<\/h3>\n
Speaking of young quarterbacks getting thrown in the fire, LSU\u2019s Michael Van Buren was also forced into action as a freshman last year while at Mississippi State. Van Buren will get his second start in two weeks on Saturday, as all signs point towards Garrett Nussmeier<\/a> focusing on getting completely healthy to prepare for the draft. There will continue to be snap judgments from fans and media alike when it comes to Van Buren, but that doesn\u2019t change the fact that he\u2019s still a young player.<\/div>\n
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Despite Van Buren\u2019s inexperience as a full-time starter, there\u2019s a lot to like about him. He puts bad plays behind him, as evidenced by his efficient play after a rough start against Arkansas<\/a>. Ball security is at a premium, and Van Buren has not thrown an interception this season. Of course, his mobility is invaluable behind the leaky LSU offensive line.<\/div>\n
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We won\u2019t assume that Van Buren will make the routine throws more consistently as he gets more reps with the first-team receivers, but it\u2019s a natural progression that\u2019s typical at the position. If he can make his layups, it\u2019s only a matter of time before we see more deep shots to an underutilized wide receiver group.<\/div>\n

Young Stars<\/h3>\n
Our next reason to watch could very well be the determining factor that tilts the scale in LSU\u2019s favor for its next head coach. The Tigers have young talent on both sides of the ball who can serve as keystones to build around for the future. There will be a maximum of three more opportunities to watch these explosive playmakers in 2025. Here\u2019s your next chance.<\/div>\n
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Freshman running back Harlem Berry<\/a> has teamed up with sophomore running back Caden Durham to form one of the most talented yet frustrating duos to watch at the position. Competent run blocking would allow this tandem to be appreciated at a much broader level, but they\u2019re talented nonetheless. Tight end Trey\u2019Dez Green<\/a> has changed games in his short career, even with no recent discernible game plans that are intentional about getting him involved.<\/div>\n
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Defensively, DJ Pickett has lived up to his five-star status at cornerback as a true freshman. Sophomore PJ Woodland<\/a> has been targeted at times. But that\u2019s inevitable when playing among future day-one draft picks like Mansoor Delane and Pickett. While we might not know who the next coach will be for LSU, we know the cupboard won\u2019t be bare.<\/div>\n
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Photo Credit: Ken Ruinard-USA TODAY Network via Imagn Images<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n

Seriously, It\u2019s College Football<\/h3>\n
Do we really have to campaign for this? There are two games left in the best regular season in the existence of sports. Nothing can match the passion and unpredictable nature of college football, despite what the playoff expansion-crazed higher-ups would like you to think.<\/div>\n
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One of the differentiating factors for college football compared to the NFL is that there are no \u201cCinderella\u201d stories at the next level. A win for WKU in Tiger Stadium would live on in the hearts of its Bowling Green faithful for generations. In an age of greater parity than ever, there are no guaranteed wins.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
LSU\u2019s seniors who came directly from high school have now seen two transitions from one regime to another. They won the long, lost SEC West in 2022, broke offensive records in 2023, and faced bitter disappointment in 2025. Sports can mirror the highs and lows of life. In that same vein, opportunities must be seized and appreciated. On Saturday, we\u2019ll have the chance to watch the last home game of LSU\u2019s eventful and dysfunctional 2025 regular season.<\/div>\n
<\/div>\n
How to Watch:\u00a0<\/strong><\/div>\n
\n

Opponent: <\/b>WesternKentucky
\nDate and Time:<\/b> Saturday, Nov. 22nd | 6:45 p.m. CST
\nLocation: <\/b>Tiger Stadium, Baton Rouge, LA
\nTelevision:<\/b> SEC Network<\/p>\n

Main Photo: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

With apologies for bearing bad news, we have reached the November cupcake week for the SEC. The conference currently has five teams ranked in the College Football Playoff\u2019s top 10, but some teams have the audacity to schedule lesser competition before rivalry week. LSU will welcome the Western Kentucky Hilltoppers to Baton Rouge for a […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4690,"featured_media":82806,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[2,35584,17,3],"tags":[32984,33811,35073,32954],"class_list":["post-82802","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-lsu-tigers","category-news","category-sec","tag-caden-durham","tag-dj-pickett","tag-mansoor-delane","tag-michael-van-buren"],"modified_by":"Kate Pearson Halyburton, Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82802","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4690"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=82802"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82802\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":82807,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/82802\/revisions\/82807"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/82806"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=82802"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=82802"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=82802"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}