Joseph Barksdale didn’t remain a defensive lineman very long at LSU.The sophomore heir apparent at right offensive tackle came to Baton Rouge as a blue-chip lineman but on the other side of the ball.Offensive line coach Greg Studrawa approached him about a change within the first month he arrived on campus, Barksdale said.”When I first met Coach Stud … after he got my name, he asked me what position I played,” Barksdale said. “When I told him I played defensive line, he said, ‘Why?'”Barksdale said he resisted the change a little bit at first but accepted the idea after talking to the coaching staff.”They didn’t force me into anything,” Barksdale said. “They told me what they felt the best move would be, so I took it.”Barksdale isn’t the first Tiger to make the switch from offensive line to defensive line.Both starters on the right side of the line in 2007, then-senior Carnell Stewart and returning junior Lyle Hitt, came to LSU as defensive linemen. Even junior tight end Richard Dickson started out as a defensive lineman.Hitt said he told Barksdale early in his transition period to keep working and training, even through the frustration of learning a new position.”The encouragement has kind of died off because he’s more self-motivated and then knows what he has to do,” Hitt said.Barksdale said the biggest difference between playing defense and offense is the importance of playing at a consistent level.”If you’re a defensive lineman, you can get blocked the whole game,” Barksdale said, “But those five plays you don’t get blocked — one of those can be a game changing performance. Offensive lineman, you pretty much have to be perfect, because if you miss a block, that could be it.”Barksdale said becoming a starter made him put in more work focusing on details.”Throughout the summer, I probably spent about an hour each day going over film,” Barksdale said.Barksdale’s position as the starter at right tackle was solidified when sophomore tackle Jarvis Jones was kicked off the team July 17 for an unspecified violation of team rules.Barksdale called Jones’ departure a “definite loss” and said he and Jones competed with each other in practice.”We used to always come back from practice every day bruised and banged up,” Barksdale said. “We’d ask each other how we did.”Barksdale said he and the rest of the offensive line hang out regularly, going to different restaurants and seeing movies together.”I see these guys more than I see — well of course my family — more than I see anybody else,” the Detroit native said.Senior center Brett Helms said Barksdale started hanging out with the other offensive linemen during spring practice.”We’re nice to him,” Helms said. “We don’t put any pressure on him … We try and get him comfortable with us.”Helms, somewhat similar to Barksdale, changed positions during spring practice in 2006. Unlike Barksdale, Helms only moved on the offensive line, switching from guard to center.Helms said Barksdale’s ability to keep an open mind in switching positions increases his value to the team.”I was against it to start with,” Helms said of his own position switch. “I shouldn’t have been. I was stubborn. But now that’s the best thing I’ve ever done … The more you can play, the better.”Both Hitt and Dickson said Barksdale’s biggest assets to the team are his strength and his football intelligence.”He’s a really strong player and has pretty good feet,” Hitt said. “He’s a really athletic player, especially coming from the defensive side of the ball.”Dickson said Barksdale is “slowly coming along,” and he is going to be a “great offensive lineman” for LSU.”He’s just got a few more things to learn,” Dickson said. “Everybody’s going to have that problem.  It’s a little bit of a difference, but it’s just like anything. Everything changes when you get to college anyway.”—-Contact Robert Stewart at [email protected]