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Every year, LSU pieces together highly-ranked recruiting classes, sometimes based on elite headlining talent (like Leonard Fournette), but always based on depth of quality prospects.
That doesn’t necessarily translate to the Tigers having depth at every position.
Sometimes the talent most available to the Tigers is a little uneven. Sometimes players bust while others surprise. As a result, you have some positions where the Tigers are deep, some where they must cross their fingers to avoid crisis. Here are the positions, deepest to thinnest.
Running backs
Sure, Leonard Fournette could be seen as a one-man offense for the Tigers, and he may well make a Heisman Trophy run after rumbling for 1,953 yards as a sophomore.
But LSU’s quality at the position hardly ends there. Derrius Guice was one of the more impressive freshman backs in the SEC last year, rushing for 436 yards and a full two yards per carry more (8.6 vs. 6.5) than Fournette, granted with significantly fewer carries.
LSU also has junior Darrel Williams, a power back who rushed for 296 yards last year and waiting in the wings is highly regarded sophomore Nick Brossette, who got only 12 carries as a freshman and will have a steep uphill climb to be able to get more this year.
Even if the Tigers lose Fournette, they’ll still have a solid stable of backs.
Cornerbacks
LSU’s “DBU” reputation starts at cornerback, where the Tigers have regularly been able to land top talent ever since the days of Patrick Peterson, Tyrann Mathieu and Morris Claiborne forming one of the better threesome of cornerbacks ever to play on the same college team.
This year, LSU is again stacked with high-end talent with senior Tre’Davious White and sophomore Kevin Toliver II both looking like future early-round draft picks. Junior Ed Paris and senior Dwayne Thomas give solid depth, and Thomas will likely see time as the sixth defensive back with Donte Jackson likely to play the nickel.
If the Tigers are able to get opponents into downs where they are using more than the base four defensive backs, it’s a win for LSU because it allows the Tigers to put more of one of their deepest positions on the field.
Defensive line
This could have been a tough rebuilding job, but with seniors Christian LaCouture and Lewis Neal opting to return to school for their senior seasons, the Tigers will have experience and depth.
Whether it’s a front three with junior Davon Godchaux at nose tackle surrounded by LaCouture and Neal at the ends, or a four-man front with Godchaux and LaCouture at tackle and Neal and Arden Key at end (Key’s position is a hybrid end-outside linebacker position), the Tigers appear to have solid backups everywhere.
Greg Gilmore and Frank Herron are battle-tested juniors behind Godchaux and LaCouture, and Tashawn Bower has seen starting time in the past at defensive end.
Safeties
In Jamal Adams, the Tigers appear to have a top-flight anchor to their safety group. Beyond that, they seem to have just enough.
Starting free safety Rickey Jefferson is back next to Adams, but behind them, the only safety who will likely see significant action is John Battle. The nickel and dime spots will be manned by corners Jackson and Dwayne Thomas.
Fullback/Tight end
Neither position is always on the field, so given their limited roles, the Tigers should have more than what they need at the positions.
At fullback, both John David Moore and Bry’Kiethon Mouton started last year as Moore began the year as a starter before suffering a season-ending knee injury. Assuming Moore stays healthy, the Tigers should be fine there.
At tight end, Colin Jeter is unique in that he is the one player at the position who offers the versatility to be effective as a receiver and a blocker. Backup Foster Moreau was a blocking specialist last year while DeSean Smith and Jacory Washington are noted pass receivers who have struggled to get on the field in LSU’s run-first offense.
Losing Jeter would be problematic as he’s the only one who offers versatility.
Quarterback
LSU did a lot to change the depth outlook here in one season.
A year ago, LSU was breaking in a new starter in Brandon Harris and the backup, Anthony Jennings, seemed to have fallen completely out of favor.
This year, the Tigers return Harris, but they also now have a former collegiate starter in Purdue transfer Danny Etling, who has a year on campus under his belt after sitting out last season. Like Etling, redshirt freshman Justin McMillan is also in his second year in the program.
Round out the group with true freshman Lindsey Scott and the Tigers have gone from paper thin at the position last year to having solid depth. The group still needs to prove itself, but the number of bodies with experience in the program should lead to better performance.
Offensive line
The loss of both starting tackles leaves major questions. It’s not just a matter of whether LSU has quality backups. It’s a matter of will the new starters be adequate?
Left tackle Maea Teuhema is a converted guard who was projected to play inside coming out of high school, so it will be interesting to see if he is able to make a smooth transition outside. The Tigers are also looking at a new right tackle in sophomore Toby Weathersby.
There are plenty of candidates to compete for those positions — K.J. Malone, in particular, looked ready to push for a starting role in the spring — but until the Tigers prove they have solid starters, you can’t consider the position deep.
That shouldn’t be an issue inside, where starting center Ethan Pocic and guard Will Clapp are returning starters and Josh Boutte, who takes over Teuhema’s former spot, is a senior.
Wide receiver
The top two receivers — Malachi Dupre and Travin Dural — look solid, but beyond them, LSU has nothing but nice high shool résumés who must prove it at the college level.
On top of that list is Tyron Johnson, a highly-regarded 2015 recruit who had a middling impact as a freshman and seemed to slip down the depth chart during the spring. There are plenty of other candidates with impressive pre-LSU credentials — from speedster D.J. Chark, to the fantastically named Jazz Ferguson — but none have proven it in a game.
One of LSU’s passing issues last year was a lack of a third receiving option. With the two players who played that role — John Diarse and Trey Quinn — both opting to transfer during the offseason, the Tigers have their work cut out for them to find depth.
Linebacker
The thinnest group on the team returns one starter in middle linebacker Kendell Beckwith and otherwise has a lot of question marks.
Key is a returning starter at defensive end who will likely start at the new hybrid end/linebacker position, so the Tigers are fine there. But the other two positions lack proven players. Duke Riley and Donnie Alexander are veterans competing to start for the first time. Corey Thompson and Devin Voorhies are one-time safeties who are trying to make an impact at a new position.
Behind Beckwith, true freshman Devin White appears to be LSU’s middle linebacker of the future.
LSU enters the year one Beckwith injury away from two new starters surrounding a true freshman middle linebacker. That’s a scary prospect if you are a Tigers fan.
