By Hunt Palmer
The bright lights of Las Vegas and the eyes of the country were focused on LSU Sunday night.
This coming weekend LSU steps away from the spotlight, welcoming Nicholls State for the home opener. The FBS feasted on FCS competition over the weekend, winning 60 of the 61 matchups by an average margin of 32 points.
The SEC did its part.
Tennessee, Arkansas, Auburn, Ole Miss and Missouri beat their FCS opponent by a combined total of 339 to 6. The result of the game is merely a formality, yet coaches and players still see an opportunity to use the game to test different players and schemes.
In his press conference Tuesday, Brian Kelly pointed to one player specifically who he intends to play.
“The guy that we have to get ready is (redshirt freshman wide receiver) Shelton Sampson,” Kelly said. “He’s got to be able to play for us, and we’ve got to get him on the field, so this is a big week for him.”
Sampson was heralded as a prep player for Catholic High School in Baton Rouge. He was a consensus four-star prospect and Top 150 player nationally. As a true freshman playing time was sparce, but he did play in the Week 2 blowout of Grambling, another FCS opponent.
In that game, he dropped a pair of passes that could have resulted in touchdowns. This time around Sampson will try to seize the opportunity.
Veteran wide out Chris Hilton is still nursing a bone bruise that held him out of the season opener. Kyle Parker, a member of the same signing class as Sampson, replaced Hilton in the lineup but left the game in the first quarter with a UCL injury.
Reps are available at the position.
“(Sampson)’s got to get in our rotation,” Kelly said. “If we get him in our rotation, it allows us to slide some people around. So, he becomes kind of a focal point for us moving forward.”
On the other side of the ball, changes may be coming in the secondary.
“We’ve got to get more production at the safety position,” Kelly said. “It’s got to be better for us.”
Veteran Jardin Gilbert started the game at safety alongside redshirt freshman Jordan Allen. Gilbert was disqualified from the game for a targeting foul. He will be forced to miss the first half of Saturday’s contest as well.
A pair of freshmen may be waiting in the wings looking for an opportunity.
Kelly said last week that Dashawn Spears, the Denham Springs product, would play meaningful snaps this season. They could come as early as this weekend.
Kylin Jackson’s number may also be called. He only played in five games last year, two on defense, where he logged 14 snaps.
Both Spears and Jackson stand 6-foot-3 and weigh more than 200 lbs. They could provide an element of physicality Kelly feels the team may be missing.
