LSU Bats Dormant, Florida's Peterson Cruises in Run Rule
David Billiot Jr • May 16, 2026
Florida - 11, LSU - 1
Friday Evening Recap
Friday was a night full of recent themes. Marcos Paz got the start and his struggles that began last week at Georgia continued. The overall struggles from anyone to step foot on the mound also continued. As discussed last night, Jay Johnson would clearly love a fast-forward button to skip this weekend and get to Hoover next week. The most notable occurrence of anything regarding Tiger pitching was that Casan Evans did throw what Jay termed a “high intensity bullpen”. He had a 40-45 pitch count and that’s what he made it through.
As for the offense, there’s not a whole lot to talk about. LSU finished with just 3 hits and got dominated by Florida’s Liam Peterson. Although it has been an up and down year for Peterson, he showed tonight why he spent much of the year as the Friday night ace for the Gators. With the 7-inning 10-run rule, he went complete game and struck out 11 Tigers.
Pitching
Marcos Paz was able to retire the leadoff batter of the game after LSU’s abysmal start on Thursday night, but that success did not last long. Up 0-2 on the second hitter, he hit Kyle Jones and then Ethan Surowiec followed his 1st inning grand slam a night ago with an RBI double to put the Gators on the board. After a wild pitch and a walk, Florida had runners on 1st and 3rd with just 1 out. He induced a weak ground ball to Brayden Simpson at 3rd base, but his only play was at 1st, which brought home the second run of the game to make it 2-0. Paz was able to battle back from a 3-1 count to strike out Karson Bowen looking and prevent further damage. Unfortunately, more damage came in the 2nd. After a lead off walk and a single, the Gators quickly had a scoring threat that they cashed in on a sacrifice fly. After a flyout for the second out of the inning, Brendan Lawson hit the furthest homerun that anyone in the stadium will likely ever see with their own eyes. He unloaded on a 1-2 pitch from Paz that went 496 feet over the Intimidator. Yes, you read that right. 496 feed. A strikeout would follow, but it was already a 5-0 lead for Florida. Paz finally found some success in the 3rd by recording a 1-2-3 frame with a couple of weak groundouts and a strikeout. Despite a leadoff walk in the 4th, he retired the next three hitters with 2 strikeouts to put up consecutive zeros. The freshman returned for the 5th with his pitch count at 84, which had already eclipsed his previous season high of 79 against South Carolina. After allowing his 4th walk of the game, the 3rd of which was to lead off the inning, Surowiec continued to torment LSU with a 2-run blast off of the batter’s eye. Paz would strike out the next hitter and that would be all for his night.
- Final line: 4.1 IP / 4 hits / 7 runs / 5 K / 4 BB / 1 HBP / 99 pitches (53 strikes, 54%)
Ethan Plog took over and struck out each of the two hitters that he faced to end the inning with the Tigers now down 7-1.
- Final line: 0.2 IP / 0 hits / 0 runs / 2 K / 0 BB / 12 pitches (6 strikes, 50%)
Although he was not expected to pitch this weekend, Casan Evans took the mound to get some work in the 6th. He rolled through the first two hitters of the inning with a groundout and a flyout, but then allowed a 2-out walk. He bounced right back to strike out the next hitter on 3 pitches. The sophomore returned for the 7th and that’s when the struggles arrived. After striking out the leadoff hitter, Evans gave up a walk and a single, which set up a line-drive 3-run homerun from Gator freshman Cash Strayer to make it 10-1. Following a flyout, the Tiger ace reached his maximum pitch count and his night was over.
- Final line: 1.2 IP / 2 hits / 3 runs / 2 K / 2 BB / 41 pitches (25 strikes, 61%)
Despite not being at the ballpark on Thursday night due to sickness, Zion Theophilus was back on Friday and took the mound after Evans. Landon Stripling was the first batter he faced and three pitches in to his outing, Florida was up 11-1 with a solo homerun. That was followed by a walk, but the freshman was able to draw a flyout to end the inning.
- Final line: 0.1 IP / 2 hits / 1 run / 0 K / 0 BB / 8 pitches (4 strikes, 50%)
Hitting
Steven Milam, again, was the star of the night offensively. There wasn’t a ton going on for the team, but the star shortstop homered for the second consecutive night. This weekend has been what it was for LSU, but Milam walking out of this series with homeruns against Aiden King and Liam Peterson is quite the feather in his cap. He finished 1-2 with the 1 RBI, 1 run scored, and also drew a walk.
Jack Ruckert and Derek Curiel were the only other Tigers to record a hit. Ruckert had a line-drive single and finished 1-2, while Curiel had a 1-3 night.
Up Next
For the final time in 2026, LSU will take the field in Alex Box stadium tomorrow. First pitch is scheduled for 2:00 pm central. LSU has Zac Cowan listed as their starter, but considering all eyes are on the SEC Tournament, I would not expect him to go long. He, along with the other seniors, will be the focus of the final game of the regular season. Jay Johnson eluded to that in his postgame presser. For those interested, Senior Day festivities will begin at 1:30 to recognize multiple Tigers. The loss dropped LSU to 9-20 in SEC play, while Florida improves to 17-12.
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Returning home after a furious comeback effort in Oxford fell short, LSU was looking to notch their first SEC win under Lane Kiffin. They were welcoming the Texas A&M Aggies, who were also coming off of a loss in their conference opener. Both losses were very much different, though. The Tigers lost on the road to a top-10 Ole Miss team in what was one of the most anticipated regular season games in recent history. Kiffin’s return turned that game in to a spectacle and even if not for the extra flair, it was still a road loss to a good team that made it to the College Football Playoff semi-final last year with the best quarterback and running back in the country. The Aggies, on the other hand, fell to Kentucky as 17-point favorites at home. That’s right, the Wildcats in just their fourth game under new head coach, Will Stein, walked in to Kyle Field and dominated Texas A&M 31-21. They out-physicaled Mike Elko’s team, who prides themselves in physicality. Loser of this game was going to be in big trouble. Suffering a second loss before the calendar turns to October would be devastating. LSU seemed to be in better shape coming in, but Marcel Reed was coming to Tiger Stadium with all of the confidence in the world with what he did in this matchup for the past two years. It was this very game in 2025 that became an Aggie blowout, emptying Death Valley and eventually getting Brian Kelly fired the next day. Blake Baker’s capabilities were being called in to question, as ridiculous as that sounds. LSU needed this one and was relying on Sam Leavitt to bounce back after a shaky performance in week 3. He faced an extra hurdle in this one, but one that Kiffin joked afterwards, actually may have helped him. 1st quarter flow For the third straight game, LSU’s first possession ended in a 3-and-out. Texas A&M took over and when Marcel Reed scrambled for 12 yards on the first play, shades of the past two years quickly arose. Thankfully, the Tiger defense locked in to force a quick punt after just one first down. Taking over at their own 18, that’s when Sam Leavitt and the offense went to work. Big plays of 19, 36, and 15 yards helped set up a 1 yard touchdown run by Dilin Jones on a direct snap. After another Aggie 3-and-out, Leavitt made one of his only mistakes of the night. On a 3rd down scramble in which he easily had the first down, he slid too early and Lane Kiffin chose to punt. Reuben Owens started the Texas A&M drive with a 16 yard run, but that would be all, leading to the third punt of the opening quarter. LSU would answer with a 3-and-out of their own. A 16 yard pass from Reed to Mario Craver on 3rd and 14 extended their next drive as the quarter came to an end. 1st quarter summary Despite the one touchdown drive, the Tigers left quite a few opportunities on the field. It was clear early that they were the better team, but some rustiness out of the gates seemed to prevent them from getting off to too hot of a start. On the other side, Blake Baker’s gameplan for Reed was off to a great start. Each team punted the ball 3 times in the quarter, but LSU had outgained Texas A&M 101-55. 2nd quarter flow Following the big 3rd down conversion to end the quarter, the Aggies put together their one really good drive of the night. They gained 5 first downs and looked poised to tie the game when Reed scrambled with a clear path to the endzone, but a shoestring tackle by PJ Woodland tripped him up. After a 1st and goal from the 7 yard line, Baker’s defense bowed up and forced the short field goal attempt. David Olano booted a 24 yard field goal to make it a 7-3 game. When the Tigers got the ball back, Leavitt found Jackson Harris for a big gain of 26 to start the drive. Although that would be their only first down, something else of significance happened. On a 3rd and 12, Leavitt scrambled, but came up gimpy as he ran out of bounds. Grant Chadwick punted the ball away for the fourth time, but it appeared as if Kiffin’s quarterback was hampered. The defense forced another 3-and-out and LSU took over at their own 17 yard line with just over 4 minutes in the half. It became the Leavitt to Winnie Watkins drive, as the two connected on passes of 35 and 36 yards. On just the seventh play of the drive, Harris came down with an acrobatic touchdown catch to cap off the 83 yard drive that took just 2:21 off of the clock. Although Reed was able to find Isaiah Horton for a big gain of 27 to get across midfield, a holding penalty brought them back and Mike Elko chose to head to halftime down 14-3. 2nd quarter summary Both offenses were able to get a little more going in the 2nd quarter, but only LSU was able to find the endzone. Texas A&M dominated time of possession with 10:09, but only came away with 3 points to show for it. Leavitt was starting to get warmed up and in rhythm with both Harris and Watkins, but the concern was his injury. Although he stayed in the game, going to sit for 15-20 minutes at halftime is always something to watch. 3rd quarter flow The Aggies received the opening kickoff of the second half, but on a short 3rd and 3 to start the drive, Tamarcus Cooley blitzed Reed for a sack to force another 3 and out. Tyler White continued his stellar night of punting, booting a 58 yard punt that flipped the field from their own 21 to the LSU 21 yard line. After a first down, the Tigers faced a 3rd and 1 near midfield. Jones got stuffed for a no gain, bringing up a 4th and 1 from in their own territory. Kiffin later said that he was strongly considering a punt with how well the defense was playing, but at the last second, he remembered who he is and why he was brought to LSU. To make things happen. LSU lined up in their tight, direct snap package that they’ve shown through three and a half games, but just before the snap, Jones and Leavitt casually shifted over. The quarterback took the snap and Harris snuck through the entire Texas A&M defense that had crashed for the run. Leavitt hit him in stride with no one within 20 yards and the Tigers were in full control at 21-3. Facing an immediate 3-and-out, Elko decided to go for it on 4th and 1 from their own 34 yard line. Davhon Keys, in for an injured Whit Weeks, burst through the hole and stuffed Carsyn Baker to force a turnover on downs. With their best starting field position of the night, Leavitt and the offense were looking for the knockout blow. They never faced a 3rd down, getting down to the 8 yard line with a 1st and goal. Following an incomplete pass, Landen Clark came on to the field for 2nd down. It had become clear that while Leavitt could throw, he wasn’t going to be able to run. No problem, because Clark juked a Texas A&M defender out of his cleats at the line of scrimmage and jetted around the left side to make the Aggies pay for their desperation decision. It was 28-3 and the Tigers were rolling. Badly needing something to go his way, Reed was sacked on the very first play of their drive by Princewill Umanmielen for a loss of 17, which effectively ended that drive. Fortunately for them, Leavitt was intercepted on the very next play after Sam M’Pemba got a piece of his arm on his throw, causing the ball to flutter right in to the waiting hands of Marcus Ratcliffe. With the ball in LSU territory for the first time in the second half, the Aggies picked up a few yards on a run, but followed with back-to-back incompletions. Looking for anything to go their way, Texas A&M opted for a 53 yard field goal by Olano, which he nailed to make it 28-6. Charlie Weis Jr’s offense came right back out in turbo mode, once again not facing a 3rd down all drive. Completions of 15 yards to Watkins and 36 yards to Harris quickly got the Tigers in to the redzone where they cashed in, yet again. It was Clark for the second time, coming in to the game on the goal line to run a QB keeper to extend the lead to 35-6. The night full of miscues continued for Texas A&M when Rueben Owens II called for a fair catch on the kickoff, but muffed it, downing the ball at their own 1 yard line. Carsyn Baker broke for a 10 yard run to give them some breathing room as time expired in the 3rd quarter. 3rd quarter summary Straight up domination is the only way to describe the start to the second half for LSU. They outscored Texas A&M 21-3 and outgained them 181 yards to just 17. Baker’s defense really ramped up the pressure on Reed, sacking him 3 times. Leavitt was clearly hobbled and basically throwing off of one leg, but somehow looked as good as he ever has while passing the ball. The sequence of the 4th and short Harris touchdown reception and the Aggies turning the ball over on downs in their own territory was essentially the end of the game. 4th quarter flow After the nice run to end the 3rd quarter, Texas A&M quickly found themselves with a 3rd and 15 from their own 6 yard line when Rees scrambled to his right and tried to force a ball in to coverage. Cooley made a nice catch on the sideline and kept his feet inbounds at the Aggie 19 yard line, then the secondary celebrated with the infamous Yell Leader dance right in front of the Yell Leaders. After getting down to the 8 yard line, LSU had to settle for a Scott Starzyk field goal attempt after Zach Grace dropped a sure touchdown. Shockingly, he missed the 24 yard chip shot. Reed’s struggles continued with more incompletions and more pressure. They waived the white flag when they punted on a 4th and 2. Landen Clark was back out for his second full drive after taking over following the Cooley interception, this time joined by Harlem Berry who was finally getting some opportunities. He looked good, notching runs of 18, 14, and 17 yards on the final few drives. Backup Aggie quarterback Brady Hart entered the game and was picked off on his first attempt by Michael Turner Jr. Clark, again, got the Tigers down inside of the 10 yard line, but once again was let down by his receiver. As time was running down, Kiffin let the offense throw the ball on 4th and goal, but Brown dropped an easy ball that hit him right in the numbers. Texas A&M took over and ran the ball once to let the time expire as LSU won 35-6. 4th quarter summary With this game being over in the 3rd quarter, this was mostly an opportunity for some of the 2’s, which rarely happens in an SEC game. Clark got to run the full offense for a few drives and Berry got some much needed carries. After not seeing any offensive snaps until the 4th quarter in any game so far in 2026, he moved up to RB2 and was also in the game earlier. With Stacy Gage unable to do much in that spot, Berry may have the chance to take hold of the backup job directly behind Dilin Jones. Although there was no scoring in the 4th quarter, the Tigers still managed to gain 99 yards of offense and 5 1st downs. Their 10:16 time of possession to close the game finally put the Aggies out of their misery. Final summary Lane Kiffin and his staff could not have asked for a better bounce back performance from his team. He mentioned in his post game interview that while last week may have been Ole Miss’s super bowl, it wasn’t theirs. They felt as if they blew a chance to complete a nice comeback and quickly turned their attention to Texas A&M. Aside from some first half miscues, the offense played very well, especially behind the arm of Sam Leavitt. That’s the first time this season that we’ve been able to credit his throwing more than his running. The injury turned out to be a slight hamstring pull, which he and Kiffin both revealed in post game pressers. He stated that he will be perfectly fine, but with a giant mismatch against McNeese coming this weekend, there’s a good chance that Leavitt and others get the week off to rest. With some of the other major injuries that LSU has already sustained, they have to play it safe. As for the defense, Blake Baker shut up every single doubter. The narrative that he can’t stop a mobile quarterback came to a screeching halt with his unit holding Marcel Reed to -13 yards rushing. Following the confusing soft coverage against the Rebels in Oxford, LSU got back to their agressive, physical man coverage. They looked like the defense that we expect and, quite frankly, had Reed in hell the entire night. Despite a massive SEC blowout win, the biggest story of the night was, unfortunately, bad news. The aforementioned Whit Weeks sustained a broken fibula in the 3rd quarter and had to leave the sideline in a boot and on crutches. He was seen being taken to the Football Ops building on a golf cart before the game ended. On Sunday, Lonn Phillips Sullivan of LSU Odyssey was the first to report the injury and that he was set to have surgery on Monday. We’ve since learned that his surgery went well and there is optimism of a potential return around the Alabama or Texas game in November. For now, LSU will turn their attention to their final non-conference opponent of the 2026 season, the McNeese Cowboys. The two will kick off on Saturday night in Death Valley for 6:45 pm. Stay tuned for a full game preview coming soon on The Kneaux. For more, follow me on X @DCBilliotJr
Coming into the 2026 season, the outlook for the Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns was pretty wide and filled with uncertainty. We knew Louisiana had a schedule favorable enough for a 9-10 win season, but youth, depth concerns and the reminder of how injury-heavy last season was left plenty of unknowns. Well, the Cajuns are four games in now, and a lot of those questions have started to be answered. Some of those answers may not be what we expected, but one thing is for sure: this Cajuns team has the potential to make some noise this season. UL is 3-1 heading into Sun Belt play after wins over a really good (and ranked) FCS team in Lamar, a middle-of-the-pack UAB team, and a struggling Charlotte team, with its lone loss coming on the road against the 14th best team in the country, the Big Ten’s USC Trojans. Were those results expected in the preseason? Pretty much. But how Louisiana has gotten to 3-1 has told us a lot more about this team than the record itself. Here’s what we know through four games. The Defense is Playing Lights Out At this point, it’s pretty clear what the strength of this football team is. Through four games, Louisiana’s defense is allowing about 261 yards per game. Take away the USC game, where the Trojans finished with 483 yards, and that number drops below 190. Even more impressive, Louisiana’s defense has allowed just one offensive touchdown in its three wins. The best performance came this past weekend against Charlotte. Louisiana held the 49ers to just 137 total yards, the fewest allowed by a Cajuns defense since giving up only 57 against Nicholls in 2001. UL also forced four turnovers, held Charlotte to fewer than 30 rushing yards and allowed just one conversion on third or fourth down all game. Defensive back Brent Gordon Jr. was all over the field in Charlotte, finishing with seven tackles, two pass breakups, an interception, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery. That earned him Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week honors, just one week after Collin Jacob earned the same award following the win over UAB, when Louisiana held the Blazers to 218 total yards. This defense has shown a lot of talent and appears to be one of the best units not only in the Sun Belt, but among the Group of 6. Head coach Michael Desormeaux said Tuesday that he still doesn’t think this defense is anywhere close to reaching its full potential. But considering how well it has already played, that’s a pretty encouraging thought heading into conference play. The Offense Revolves Around Lunch Winfield’s Legs The offensive side has proven to be a little more complicated. Coming into the season, we knew Louisiana was going to need some guys to step up at wide receiver. The Cajuns lost several proven playmakers, while Shelton Sampson Jr. was expected to lead the group after finishing with 537 receiving yards last season despite missing time with injury. But so far through four games, Sampson has yet to have a reception following a week one injury to his ankle in the first quarter. Landon Strother was also working his way back from a collarbone injury suffered during fall camp, so suddenly to start the season, Louisiana was without their two starting outside receivers. Because of that, a lot of the offense has fallen on quarterback Lunch Winfield, especially with his legs. Through four games, Winfield has rushed for 295 yards and six touchdowns, averaging nearly 74 yards per game. Six of Louisiana’s 16 offensive touchdowns have come from him on the ground. The passing game hasn’t been nonexistent, but it hasn’t exactly been explosive either. Winfield has thrown for 660 yards and two touchdowns. Redshirt freshman Russell Babineaux has stepped up with 116 receiving yards, while KeDarius Wade and tight ends Caden Jensen and Brock Chappell have also made plays when needed. Not eye-popping numbers to say the least, and the deep passing threat has been pretty limited. That’s not exactly shocking with such a young receiving room, but it is something Louisiana will eventually need more of as the competition gets tougher. The good news is the Cajuns are finally getting healthier. Strother came back against UAB in week three, where he played a big role in the narrow victory. Sampson returned against Charlotte last weekend in a limited role. Trenton Chaney, who also injured his ankle week one, is back in the lineup as well. Maybe that changes what this offense looks like over the next few weeks. It needs to, because Louisiana’s offensive production has gone in the wrong direction since the opener. The Cajuns had nearly 475 yards of offense against Lamar. Against Charlotte, they finished with fewer than 300. They still won 34-7, but the defense and turnovers played a big role in creating that margin. That’s probably my biggest concern heading into conference play. What happens when Louisiana plays a team where the defense isn’t completely controlling the game? Against Charlotte, Winfield was held in check both through the air and on the ground. Luckily, Charlotte’s offense was nowhere good enough to create any spark. For now, every team preparing for Louisiana is going to start with the same thing: figuring out how to contain Lunch Winfield. Updated Record Prediction Before the season, I really didn’t know what to expect from this team. The schedule looked favorable, but this was also a young group coming off a season where injuries caused problems seemingly every week. That’s why I had Louisiana’s floor at 4-8, its ceiling at 11-1 and ultimately predicted an 8-4 finish. Four games later, I certainly feel better about this team than I did before the season. The Cajuns have won the games they were expected to win and lost the one they were expected to lose (and played better in that game than many expected). But the biggest thing that has changed my outlook is how good this defense looks. Here’s where I stand now: Absolute floor: 7-5 Projected record: 9-3 Absolute ceiling: 11-1 If Louisiana can stay relatively healthy, I really don’t see a reason why this team can’t win at least half of its eight conference games and finish no worse than 7-5. Defensively, I think this is one of the better units in the Group of 6 right now, and that alone should give the Cajuns a chance in just about every game left on the schedule. On the other end, I also think this team has the potential to win out and play in the Sun Belt Championship Game. We know the defense is capable of getting them there. The question is whether this offense can improve enough to consistently play four full quarters. Maybe getting Sampson, Strother and Chaney back helps make that happen, but we need to see it first. For now, I’m predicting Louisiana finishes 9-3, with losses to Louisiana Tech and Georgia State. Louisiana Tech may only be 1-2, but its two losses came against LSU and Baylor, and the Bulldogs played well at times in both games, especially defensively. Add in the renewal of the rivalry and a road trip to Ruston, and I think that will be one of the toughest games left on the schedule. Georgia State is another one. The Panthers are 3-1 and have shown plenty of ability to move the ball offensively, and Louisiana has to travel to Atlanta for that matchup in the final week of the regular season. Originally, I thought Louisiana’s toughest stretch would come in mid-October against Louisiana Tech, Troy and Southern Miss. Four games into the season, that doesn’t look quite the same. Southern Miss has been disappointing so far, and Troy hasn’t really lived up to preseason expectations either. But that’s how college football goes. A lot can change in four weeks, and plenty more will change over the next two months. But right now, I think we have a much better idea of what this Louisiana team is than we did before the season, and it’s trending in the right direction. The defense looks legitimate, Lunch has become the centerpiece of the offense, and the receiving corps is finally getting healthier. Now we get to see how all of that carries over into Sun Belt play. So, my prediction heading into conference play: 9-3 overall, 7-1 in conference play and a trip to Harrisonburg, Virginia to play former UL head coach Billy Napier and the James Madison Dukes in the Sun Belt Championship Game.