Garrett Nussmeier’s Road Back: From Frustration to Opportunity at the Senior Bowl
MOBILE, Ala. - Garrett Nussmeier didn’t shut things down when he got benched against Alabama last November. He didn’t pout, didn’t hit the transfer portal, didn’t declare for the draft early.
He stuck around because he believed things would get back to normal. But then came a routine throw - a simple frontside shallow route - and with it, a sharp pain that told him everything was anything but normal.
That throw, or rather his inability to make it without pain, became the turning point in a season that had already been derailed by a nagging abdominal injury. Nussmeier, LSU’s quarterback and once a top NFL prospect, realized in that moment that he couldn’t keep playing through it.
“If I can’t throw a frontside shallow, I’m not effective,” Nussmeier said this week in Mobile, speaking publicly about the injury for the first time. “I can’t help my team win.
From there, it wasn’t really a decision I was able to make to not play. It was forced upon me.”
Months later, the 23-year-old still isn’t back to full strength. Surgery was on the table at one point, but for now, he’s opted to rehab and retrain from the ground up. That’s meant breaking down his mechanics, rebuilding his base, and unlearning some of the bad habits he picked up while compensating for the injury throughout the season.
And that’s the backdrop as Nussmeier steps into the spotlight at the Senior Bowl - not as a surefire first-rounder, but as a quarterback trying to prove he still belongs in the conversation.
Last fall, Nussmeier entered the season with real buzz - the kind of buzz that puts your name in the mix for the No. 1 overall pick. Now, he's fighting just to hear his name called at all on draft weekend.
“Not the best,” he said when asked to evaluate his 2025 campaign. “There were things, obviously, that I take full ownership in and the areas that I needed to be better at.
… Unfortunately, some new things happened because of what I went through with the injury. (It was) frustrating, for sure.”
There’s no deflection in his voice when he talks about the missed expectations - both his own and those placed on him by fans and evaluators.
“I don’t blame anybody for the frustrations,” he said. “I wanted to be the best.
I wanted to lead us to a national championship. I wanted to win the Heisman.
And those were all the things I dreamed about doing. So not being able to do them, I understand why people were frustrated because I was frustrated myself.”
Despite how the season played out, Nussmeier doesn’t carry any regrets about returning to LSU instead of jumping to the NFL a year earlier, when his draft stock was stronger. He called the decision to come back an “easy choice,” and he wore LSU’s prestigious No. 18 jersey - a number given to players who exemplify leadership and selflessness - with pride.
Even with the injury limiting him, Nussmeier said he wouldn’t change a thing. He wanted to suit up every Saturday, and he gave everything he had to make that happen. Now, he’s banking on that adversity shaping him into a better player - and person - in the long run.
The injury itself remains something of a mystery. Nussmeier didn’t dive into the specifics, but said it was initially believed to be a core issue before being reclassified as an abdominal injury. He described it as “weird” and rare, but made it clear that LSU’s medical team wasn’t at fault and credited them for taking great care of him.
As part of his comeback, Nussmeier has focused on re-learning how to rotate through his throws - something that was a challenge last season when pain limited his range of motion. That rust was visible during Tuesday’s Senior Bowl practice, where he had a rough start. On his first dropback in team drills, Illinois defensive end Gabe Jacas got around the edge and knocked the ball loose from Nussmeier’s hand.
But Nussmeier isn’t letting one shaky practice rattle him. He’s approaching the week with perspective and humility.
His father, Doug Nussmeier - the New Orleans Saints’ offensive coordinator - has offered guidance on how to navigate the process. And Garrett’s not trying to force anything.
He’s not out to prove he’s the best quarterback in Mobile. He just wants to show he belongs.
“I just want to show that Garrett Nussmeier is enough,” he said. “A healthy, confident Garrett Nussmeier is a good player.”
That’s the message he’s sending to scouts, coaches, and anyone else watching this week. The road back hasn’t been easy, but Nussmeier’s still standing - and still slinging it.