You could feel the anticipation in the air as members of the local media took to an empty Tiger Stadium to watch LSU football practice on Saturday morning.
“There’s just an energy that you get when you come into your stadium and you know and we wanted to remind them of it,” Brian Kelly said.
The practices have also started to provide answers to some lingering questions as play starts to ramp up. This past Saturday marked he first full viewing of a two-hour practice.
While the quarterback competition is yet to have a “winner” there is one name that is starting to show some promise: Jayden Daniels.
As Daniels continues to settle into Baton Rouge, he begins to show major signs of improvement. He spent less time looking to the sidelines trying to figure out the play calls. Coaches yelled at him about this last week, but those complaints weren’t heard during these scrimmages. Overall, it seems a lot of his improvements stemmed from knowledge and confidence.
He was smoother in his footwork, throws and communication with his teammates.
On the opposite hand Myles Brennan has just become what he is. We haven’t seen much difference from the first snap he took this spring to the last one he took on Saturday. That’s not necessarily a bad thing, as you want consistency from the quarterback position. It just stands to reason that Daniels could realistically pass him up should he continue to grow his game.
Everyone has shown flashes of potential this spring. Brennan, Daniels and freshman Walker Howard all had long touchdown passes on Saturday.
Garrett Nussmeier did get some reps with the first team Sunday, but has been the most volatile of any player at the position.
There’s a sense that he’s trying to run too often and not making decisions quick enough. He has the raw physical talents but has yet to wield them properly.
“He’s a young man that’s got an incredible amount of confidence,” Kelly said. “He’s going to fit in phone booth throws as well as anybody that I’ve been around, he’s got the makeup of a great quarterback. But there’s been this development technically that has been, from my perspective, great to see as we’ve gone through the spring.”
A recurring issue for the team, however, was consistently poor tackling. Kelly did give somewhat of an excuse, putting in on the “brotherhood” he has created in the locker room. He did admit, though, that the players do need to tackle—just need to do it in a way that doesn’t hurt their teammates.
“Our guys are caught a little in between the brotherhood and tackling,” Kelly said. “I preach brotherhood, that is that you’ve got to be careful with our guys. Don’t put them in compromising situations and it’s new for them.”
The best position group on the team seems to be the wide receivers. Kyren Lacy, Malik Nabers and Jaray Jenkins are all taking the tops off of the defense and grabbing everything thrown their way. Nabers was the big winner in this practice, as he did it all. He had two great sideline catches.
Cornerback depth is very concerning at this point. Mekhi Garner is a legitimate cornerback, that’s unquestionable at this point, but the buck stops there. Jarrick Bernard-Converse was supposed to be present, but an injury earlier this spring has him sidelined until the fall.
There are rumors that another corner is supposed to be coming in from the transfer portal, which will be needed.
The staff moved Jordan Toles to corner from safety in the last practice, and it does not seem that the move will be sustainable. LSU does have Greg Brooks Jr. on the inside, who will probably have that spot on lock.
It is also important to note that these spring practices are not the full team, as there will be players joining in the fall, freshmen and more transfers at positions of need.
Once spring practice finishes up, coaches around the country will pick back up on the transfer portal. LSU will likely lose some players, but will gain others.
“We’ve got a couple of openings that there will be some auditions for and you can be assured that they’ll be filled,” Kelly said.
Because LSU doesn’t have its full roster available to them now, with the lack of depth at positions, it looks like the spring game will have to be played as an offense vs defense game. This means that it will not be split into two teams that play against each other, as we may be accustomed to.
They will just pit the offense against the defense and switch out between starters and then guys lower down the depth chart. It is not what Kelly wanted to do, but it is where LSU finds themselves without putting the team in an uncomfortable situation.
“It will be offense versus defense, and as much as I do not like that version of it for many reasons, it’s the best way to create a competitive situation for our team,” Kelly said.
The spring game will be Saturday, April 23 in Tiger Stadium, and will be free for fans to attend.
