The 2024 LSU Tigers have been a sporadic team so far. The emergence of quarterback Garrett Nussmeier and wide receiver Kyren Lacy has been excellent for the Tigers and necessary for their drive to the College Football Playoff.

Despite a high-profile win over Ole Miss, the Tigers are a relatively disappointing 6-2 and on the verge of missing the first 12-team College Football Playoff. Their Week 11 game against the Alabama Crimson Tide on Saturday night could end their chances of making it. If they answer these questions, they can propel themselves to a shot at a National Championship.

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Garrett Nussmeier needs to be consistent

The best part about the Tigers is their passing offense. They are 13th in success rate and 17th in EPA/dropback. Nussmeier has been explosive in the passing game, but the one thing he hasn't been is consistent.

Against Ole Miss, Nussmeier completed just 43.1% of his passes but came up huge in the clutch with a fourth-down touchdown pass to tie the game and then found Kyren Lacy for the walk-off touchdown on their first play of overtime on offense. Consistency with the passing game is going to be crucial.

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Establish the run

The run game for the Tigers has left a lot to be desired. In past years, especially when they had Jayden Daniels at quarterback, the run game has been really good. This season, they haven't been able to establish it with any form of consistently.

The advanced metrics are atrocious, sitting at 110th in success rate and 112th in EPA/play. Those are especially rough when you consider they will likely have two offensive linemen go in the first round of the NFL Draft come April in Will Campbell and Emery Jones Jr.

It's been tough for their running back room, especially with John Emery Jr. suffering a season-ending injury in the first week of the season against USC. The emergence of Caden Durham has been a positive for the Tigers with a 5.58 YPC and 0.09 EPA/rush. Getting a running game to balance out the offense is going to be huge in making the playoff.

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Create havoc on defense

Many have maligned the defense of the Tigers this season. New defensive coordinator Blake Baker has made some impact on the unit but they haven't quite taken the step forward that they were expecting.

The one thing they have done a decent job of is creating havoc. They have a 76th percentile havoc rate with 28 sacks, eight fumble recoveries and four interceptions. Continuing to do that will be key for the Tigers, especially since they have an average defense that has struggles to get stops.