While the LSU football program sported much more mystery heading into last season, there are still a few position groups that hold varying degrees of mystery and expectations at the start of Spring Camp.
Many of last season’s players, particularly on defense, either graduated or opted to enter the 2023 NFL Draft, leaving vacancies that needed to be filled over the offseason.
As LSU approaches fall camp in August, there will be a better idea of which players could headline each respective position.
Cornerbacks
When it came to the secondary last season, LSU had immaculate success operating within the transfer portal. Over the offseason, it landed five cornerbacks in Jarrick Bernard–Converse, Mekhi Garner, Sevyn Banks, Greg Brooks Jr. and Colby Richardson.
Apart from Banks, each player started a minimum of five games and was largely impactful, as its pass defense ultimately finished the season as the 32nd best pass defense in the country, surrendering just over 200 passing yards per game.
Unfortunately, that group would only have one year on the field together, with each player graduating or forgoing their eligibility to enter the NFL Draft. But fortunately, the offseason also produced the same recruiting success.
Kelly and his coaching staff landed four talented cornerbacks through the transfer portal alone. Denver Harris, Zy Alexander, JK Johnson and Duce Chestnut were all slated as four-star transfer prospects according to 247sports, with Harris arguably sporting the most promise having been a five-star recruit in the Class of 2022.
Though the sophomore had his fair share of disciplinary problems as a freshman with Texas A&M, Kelly claims his coaching staff did their due-diligence and believes that the culture at LSU will help Harris mature.
“He had a lot of people speak on his behalf [and had] a number of interviews with Coach House and myself,” Kelly said on Tuesday. “We felt with the culture in which we have put together here that he would make it here because the culture is really strong.”
Still, it’s too early to gauge which player has an on edge regarding the starting lineup, but it should be expected that those four transfers will see the field a lot this season. Welch, who was a four-star recruit in the 2022 class, and freshman Javien Toviano, one of the best defensive backs in the 2023 class, make an impact as well.
EDGE
With longtime starting edge-rushers BJ Ojulari and Ali Gaye exiting the program after last season, Kelly would have his hands full when it came to replacing them. Through three seasons together, they combined for 215 total tackles and 23.5 sacks.
When it came down to filling their spots, LSU at least had returnees it could turn to in Sai’vion Jones and former four-star prospect Quency Wiggins. But the LSU coaching staff still felt the need to take jabs at both the 2023 prospect pool and the transfer portal to increase depth and competition, landing respectable players in each.
It signed the sixth best edge-rusher in the 2023 class in five-star Dashawn Womack, along with the 19th best in four-star Jaxon Howard. Then over the offseason, it added an experienced starter in Texas transfer Ovie Oghoufo and Oregon transfer Bradyn Swinson, who played in 30 games with the Ducks as a rotational player.
Though Womack was expected to play the JACK linebacker position heading into camp, some speculated that because he put on size, he would shift over to defensive end. And while Kelly partially agreed with that, he also stated he would likely be used as a hybrid of the two positions.
“I think he’s got the flexibility as a guy that could play the big end position, but we haven’t ruled out how we play him,” Kelly said. “But we think that his athletic ability still lends itself some of the traits necessary to put him in a hybrid position.”
LSU isn’t a stranger to having freshmen be impactful at the position and while Kelly cited the two transfers as the mix they were expecting to battle for a starting role, he also hinted at the freshmen serving an impact. He added that Oghoufo has already been a mentor to the younger players.
“Ovie [Oghoufo] has been really good as a leader and as a mentor right away to some of the younger players and I think some of the young kids have shown themselves to be a little bit further along than we thought,” Kelly said. “That will be a position that continues to evolve.”
There are a lot of different combinations that could ultimately serve as LSU’s starting edge rushers and there likely won’t be a concrete answer until fall camp.
Linebacker
The fact that this is the third biggest question mark regarding position groups on the roster serves as a testament to how well LSU’s coaching staff has maintained its roster from last season. Harold Perkins, Greg Penn and Oregon State transfer Omar Speights already look like clear candidates to man the three starting linebacker positions, but there are a few reasons this position group sports mystery.
For one, the group hasn’t yet been in action together. Perkins did start in eight games last season but served more as an edge rusher/outside linebacker than an inside linebacker. And though Omar Speights was one of the best defensive players in the PAC-12 last season, it will take some adjusting to effectively operate in the SEC.
With Micah Baskerville, Mike Jones Jr and Demario Tolan all exiting the program, this group lacks proven depth. Other than West Weeks, who was a considerable rotational player last season, there aren’t many clear rotational players on the roster. West’s brother Whit Weeks could also serve as a backup, but there isn’t much depth other than that.
With that in mind, this should still be one of the best linebacker groups in college football next season. Penn is already an established starter with the program and Perkins and Speights are proven talents that should quickly adjust.
