BATON ROUGE — When LSU football’s offense needed to make something happen against UCLA, Mason Taylor locked in.
The junior tight end was never 100% sure if the junior quarterback Garrett Nussmeier was going to look his way, but Taylor wanted to make sure he was doing all he could to be the Tigers‘ best option when they were up against the wall.
“When we need a play or two, I’m coming in for that role for sure,” Taylor said following No. 16 LSU’s 34-17 victory over the Bruins inside Tiger Stadium on Saturday night.
Taylor caught a team-best eight passes for 77 yards. Four of his catches came on third down and five of his receptions resulted in first downs.
It was evident when Nussmeier felt comfortable delivering the ball to keep the offense on the field. And what LSU’s star quarterback has appreciated most about Taylor is how he answers the bell each time.
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“He’s not just a normal tight end, he’s a ball player,” Nussmeier said. “I think it’s very hard to say that Mason is underrated right now. If you put on the tape and watch what he’s been able to do, it’s pretty obvious how special he is. I think he does it week-in and week-out and that’s the part that sticks out to me.
“He constantly delivers and constantly gives second effort and tries to do things right. When he messes up, he’s pissed off because he feels like he lets people down. He has a passion for this team and has a passion for his work.”
Consistency was something Taylor worked on in the offseason. Last season, with Jayden Daniels at quarterback and two first-round NFL draft picks at receiver in Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas Jr., Taylor wasn’t as involved in the offense as he had hoped but knew his role wasn’t a focal point.
Now that Nussmeier has the reins, it’s a style of play that Taylor believed coming into 2024, he could carve out a primary role. Through four games, Taylor has, leading all LSU pass catchers with 25 receptions. The tight end is third in yards receiving with 237 and has one touchdown so far.
“I think it’s trust throughout the week in practice. Just having that trust in (offensive coordinator Joe) Sloan and Nuss that I can make that play. So when we need that play or it’s third down or something big, I can pop out and make a play,” Taylor said. “Having that trust with the quarterback and offensive coordinator that they can call that play and make that throw. I try to be as consistent as possible on my routes. I hope he knows I’m consistent in it,.
“Being able to be that reliable target and be there when my time is called.”
LSU coach Brian Kelly brought Taylor with him to the SEC Media Kickoff back in July, a parading of him of sorts. Turns out, it forecasted what Taylor was going to ultimately mean for the Tigers’ offense.
“Nobody talked about him coming into the season. I thought he was unheralded,” Kelly said. “You guys didn’t talk about him. The national media didn’t talk about him. Now you wanna talk about him because he’s the leading receiver (at tight end) in LSU history.
“Where were you guys talking about him earlier in the season? You were talking about everybody else but Mason Taylor.”
During the UCLA game, Taylor passed Richard Dickson for the program’s all-time career yardage for a tight end, now with 1,236 yards. He broke Dickson’s all-time career receptions mark last weekend at South Carolina.
He always strived to make an impact on LSU football, a program with history and tradition. But there’s more Taylor wants before his time in Baton Rouge is done.
“It was always a goal to make an impact on this program and I did. I got to keep working and keep pushing to the ultimate goal in winning the national championship,” Taylor said.
“I feel like (being the offense’s safety valve is) true in some ways. I think on some third downs and we need something, I’m the type of guy that gets hidden then pops out somewhere. I think that’s one of my roles but I feel like I can do a lot for this offense. I’m ready for anything they give me.”
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Cory Diaz covers the LSU Tigers for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his Tigers coverage on Twitter: @ByCoryDiaz. Got questions regarding LSU athletics? Send them to Cory Diaz at bdiaz@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: How Mason Taylor has become LSU football’s ‘safety valve’
