With Saturday’s scrimmage marking the end of spring camp, there are still plenty of questions surrounding LSU football heading into the summer.
Based on its success from last season and how much of that roster has returned, there’s been plenty of hype surrounding this team and its potential to make and win the College Football Playoff. After all, if LSU got as close as it did last year with its entire offense and key defenders returning, what’s stopping it from taking a step up?
Well, there are a few concerns, some minor and some that could be jeopardizing. Some concerns could be alleviated throughout the fall and some there won’t be an answer for until September.
Overall Depth
When head coach Brian Kelly was asked about the prospect of competing for a national championship, he said the team was getting closer to having what they needed, directly implying there’s still work to be done.
While that’s expected with opening day still more than four months away, he stated that its overall depth wasn’t where it needs to be at the moment. With LSU having less than 85 scholarship players on its roster, Kelly considered its depth to be its Achilles’ heel.
“Two or three key injuries puts us in a very difficult position,” Kelly said on the current roster. “If we, knock on wood, stay injury-free and continue to develop, we’re going to be fine. But that’s not where you want to be in this league.”
Due to injuries on the offensive line, it needed multiple defensive linemen to switch positions for the Spring Game to happen. Starting center Charles Turner will return in the fall, but more injuries on the line could be detrimental.
Other positions fitting the same criteria include linebacker, safety and cornerback.
LSU’s linebacker core has tremendous potential but lacks depth outside of the Weeks brothers. Without Major Burns, the safeties missed key tackles in the scrimmage, most notably on two 70-yard touchdowns from receivers Kyren Lacy and Landon Ibieta. While the cornerback room garnered depth through the transfer portal, a lot of those players need to develop, according to Kelly.
“JK [Johnson], Denver [Harris] and [Zy] Alexander, all three of them are still in that process for us in terms of weight room and defense itself,” Kelly said. “And just the consistency of doing it at a high level, they’re not there yet.”
While injuries can be avoidable, they happen regularly in college football. If the Tigers don’t have the depth to maintain proficiency in the case where they do occur, it could result in losses that take them out of playoff contention, especially when facing teams in the SEC.
Kicking
On Saturday, Kelly reiterated what special teams, coordinator John Jancek told media on Tuesday regarding a position battle at kicker. Throughout the remaining offseason, LSU’s coaching staff will look to finalize its choice between previous starter Damian Ramos and sophomore Nathan Dibert.
“It’s clearly not a position where we’ve decided on who the starting kicker is,” Kelly said. “We have to keep an open mind on it, and we still have to keep them competing.”
So far, the competition has gotten off to a rocky start.
Had it not been for a game-tying field goal to conclude the Spring Game, LSU would’ve ended it without a made attempt. Ramos managed to knock the 34-yard field goal through to give LSU a semblance of success, but it’s worth noting that their lone make came on the shortest kick of the afternoon.
Prior to the make, each kicker missed from over 40 yards away. While Ramos improved throughout last season and the sample size from the spring game is miniscule, the misses still spell concern.
One missed kick could be the difference between a win and a loss, with game-tying and game-winning kicks typically coming into play in the most vital of situations.
What’s good?
In terms of its starting lineup, especially on offense, and its depth at certain positions, the Tigers have considerable pieces that can navigate them to a playoff spot.
At quarterback, Jayden Daniels and Garrett Nussmeier each performed admirably, combining for 307 yards on 19 pass attempts. Daniels had just one incompletion in 11 attempts and that came on an ambitious end-zone pass placed just out of reach of Lacy after seven straight completions to start.
“We think he is committed to being the best quarterback in the country,” Kelly said on Daniels. “We’ve seen that in his work ethic. I think he’s on the verge of moving in that direction.”
The receiving core played a vital role in that production as well. Lacy led the way with four receptions for 92 yards and a touchdown, a play in which he made an incredible one-handed catch and broke multiple tackles before carrying Harold Perkins into the endzone. Brian Thomas Jr. and Malik Nabers made great plays as well, combining for 101 yards and catching all six passes that went their way.
Offensively, LSU looks like a championship-caliber squad and it sports promise on the defensive end as well.
In terms of pleasant surprises, Laterrance Welch had a promising performance, breaking up two passes and locking up receivers throughout the scrimmage’s entirety. Omar Speights and Ovie Oghoufo, who have both garnered preseason hype, each met expectations and should be vital pieces of the defense come fall.
Other positives included defensive-line depth, which was impactful despite Maason Smith and Mekhi Wingo both nursing injuries, and improvements from Harold Perkins.
“Perkins was really good. We ran a counter, and he was able to slip the second puller to make a [tackle-for-loss] play,” Kelly said. “That requires training, and he’s been really good at picking those things up.”
There’s reason for excitement when it comes to this current roster. While there are plenty of questions surrounding this team as the 2023-24 season approaches, the potential is high if it manages to minimize its concerns.
