LSU Fall Camp: Depth Chart Predictions 2.0

Week two of LSU’s fall camp is in the books and with it comes another week of working towards the season opening game against USC in Las Vegas in three weeks. The coaching continues to ramp up, while the players are locked in on competing for their spot on the depth chart.

It was another week where the media has access to most practices and were able to watch the team get to work. Here, we’re going through every position on the depth chart and discussing who I would project to be starting and why at this point.

LSU’s Offense

Quarterback

Starter: Garrett Nussmeier

Backup: Rickie Collins

Nussmeier continues to battle the ups and downs of being a QB1 throughout fall camp and getting adjusted to the new offense. He had a much better week the past five days and now looks to further improve as the season approaches. As for the QB2 race, it’s been another week where Collins and Swann have shared reps, and in my opinion Collins continues to look like the better passer. Again, Swann has the experience edge in games which is significant, but at some point he has to show some arm talent.

Running back

Starter: Josh Williams

Backup: Kaleb Jackson

We’ve seen Williams get first team reps sometimes, Jackson get them others. Ultimately it doesn’t matter who starts games, but these two will continue to be the bell cows in 2024. John Emery and Caden Durham round out the room nicely and provide depth, but with Williams’ experience and Jackson’s explosiveness, they make for a quality 1-2 punch out of the backfield.

Wide receiver

Starters: Kyren Lacy, CJ Daniels, Chris Hilton

Backups: Zavion Thomas, Aaron Anderson, Kyle Parker/Shelton Sampson

The starting trio is set. Lacy, Daniels, and Hilton have separated themselves from everyone else in this room and have all been excellent this camp. Thomas has been injured, battling a hamstring injury and in the meantime Aaron Anderson is having another excellent fall camp getting a ton of targets in 7-on-7s and 11-on-11s. Parker and Sampson are at the same spot in my mind, both players who still have plenty to prove and have had highs and lows this month, both are better than they were last year, but they haven’t taken that leap forward necessary.

Tight end

Starter: Mason Taylor

Backup: Ka’Morreun Pimpton

Taylor has made some nice catches this past week in various drills, so we feel good about him going into the year. The  real intrigue comes with Pimpton and Trey’Dez Green. Pimpton has cemented himself as a contributor this year, especially after the departure of Mac Markway. He’s improved as a blocker and obviously has receiving ability that’s exciting. Green is still raw, but the talent is obvious, so we’ll see how much he gets on the field.

Offensive line

Starters: (Left to right) Will Campbell, Garrett Dellinger, DJ Chester, Miles Frazier, Emery Jones

Backups: (Left to right) Tyree Adams, Paul Mubenga, Coen Echols, Bo Bordelon, Weston Davis

The starting five is locked in. Campbell has been the leader, while the rest have settled in as camp has gone on. Chester is getting most of the brunt of Brad Davis, while Jones continues to battle Saivion Jones and Paris Shand off the edge every day. The second unit is intriguing because the past week we’ve been able to see Adams, Mubenga, and Davis all have some really nice wins paired with some troubling losses. I feel better about this second unit offensive line than I did going in, even if it’s still not an outright strength.

LSU’s Defense

Defensive line

Starters: Saivion Jones (DE), Jacobian Guillory (DT), Gio Paez (DT), Bradyn Swinson (EDGE)

Backups: Paris Shand, Jay’Viar Suggs, Jalen Lee, Dashawn Womack

Swinson made his return to LSU’s practice on Saturday morning and joined the second unit. Dashawn Womack has been impressive in the week he had with Swinson absent and I think there’s an argument to have Womack predicted as the starter, but in the next three weeks, I expect Swinson to win the job back and have a great year. Still, Womack will get plenty of snaps and should also have a strong season.

At defensive tackle, I still have Guillory and Paez penciled in, but the backup DT spot is much more interesting with the return of Jalen Lee. I think Jay’Viar Suggs has been consistently a really strong pass rusher and could lock down a key spot in this rotation this fall. Lee came back and immediately stepped into a spot on the two-deep over Kimo Makane’ole and Shone Wasjington who have been inconsistent so far. Dominick McKinley continues to work and should be on the field this year, but it’s hard to project him in the two deep when he hasn’t gotten those snaps yet.

Linebackers

Starters: Harold Perkins, Greg Penn

Backups: West Weeks, Whit Weeks

Nothing new with this position group, but it’s clear Blake Baker loves his group. He said they essentially have four starters at his press conference and raved about Harold Perkins’ performance this month and his potential. If there’s anyone that can get this room performing like one of the best units in the SEC, it’s Baker, and he has the talent to do it.

Cornerbacks

Starters: Sage Ryan, Ashton Stamps

Backups: JK Johnson, PJ Woodland

Ryan and Stamps continue to hold down the starting spots, but it doesn’t feel locked in the way it may have last week. We still have barely seen Zy Alexander get reps and they’re easing him along. With JK Johnson and PJ Woodland getting the second team reps right now, I’m waiting to see if either one starts getting some play with the ones in camp or if it’s just Stamps-Ryan all the way.

Safety/STAR

Starters: Jardin Gilbert, Jordan Allen, Major Burns (STAR)

Backups: Dashawn McBryde, Kylin Jackson, Ju’Juan Johnson (STAR)

Three positions where LSU fans want to see the backups because they’re exciting underclassmen. Unfortunately for some, Gilbert and Burns are locked into starting spots as upperclassmen, but it’s going to be interesting to see if Allen continues to lock down that second safety spot. I haven’t seen anything indicating otherwise with his play, but there’s still so much young talent at safety that it’s going to be hard to keep them off the field if Allen doesn’t perform.

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