Tackle was a problem for LSU in 2026.
Tyree Adams got hurt. Then Weston Davis got hurt. Then Carius Curne got hurt. DJ Chester was asked to play completely out of position out wide at times. It was a mess from that perspective, and the level of play wasn’t great, either. The sack numbers don’t necessarily tell the story, but the lack of a stable presence on the edges absolutely impacted play calling.
LSU attempted just 30 passes of 20-plus yards while Garrett Nussmeier was behind center. Michael Van Buren only added 15 in 152 pass attempts. That’s a total of 45. The Tiger quarterbacks threw 109 passes behind the line of scrimmage.
Some of that was due to lack of protection. It has to get a lot better in 2026. One key piece will almost certainly help. some progression and development needs to, as well.
WHO’S BACK: Weston Davis (Soph)
WHO’S NEW: Jordan Seaton (Transfer- Colorado), Sean Thompkins (Transfer- Baylor), Derrin Strey (Transfer- Kentucky), JaKolby Jones (Transfer -Copiah Lincoln CC), Brysten Martinez (Freshman)
WHAT WE KNOW
Jordan Seaton was a huge get for Lane Kiffin and LSU. The projected first round pick was courted by others but settled on LSU for his third year of college football. Prior to Seaton commitment, left tackle felt like a question mark.
Seaton is 6-foot-5 and 307 pounds. That’s 25 less than he was listed at when playing for Colorado. He signed there as a consensus five-star recruit and immediately became the left tackle. He started 22 games there over two years and was named a Freshman All-American in 2024. He missed the last three games of 2025 but only allowed one sack and five pressures in 328 passing snaps. That earned him a PFF grade of 84.1 in pass protection. Will Campbell’s was 80.6 as a junior. That’s elite territory.
Seaton’s grades in the running game were not as good. He posted a season best 63.0 in the run game versus Iowa Stat and was graded a 52.0 for the season. There is room for improvement, but Seaton’s talent is obvious.
So were Davis’s struggles last season. He started 12 games at right tackle and was graded a 47.1 for the season. Davis has all the measurables. He’s 6-foot-7 and 315 pounds. He was a high school basketball player and five-star recruit. To his credit, he held off all comers in spring. Perhaps he rode some late season momentum when he posted his three highest PFF Grades against Western Kentucky (63.4), Oklahoma (65.6) and Houston (71.9).
Thompkins brings the most experience of the projected reserves. He’s 6-foot-5 and 308 pounds. At Baylor, he started the last five games of the year at left tackle. He also played 14 snaps at right tackle. This will be his fourth season in college football.
Strey comes with offensive line coach Eric Wolford from Kentucky. He’s got prototypical size at 6-foot-7 and 214 pounds with long, long arms. his father was his high school coach in Michigan, and he signed with the Wildcats as a four-star. According to 247Sports, he was the No. 32 offensive tackle in his class. As a true freshman, he logged 18 offensive snaps. Strey also worked with the guards in the spring.
JaKolby Jones comes from the JUCO route which is rare these days. He’s from Many, LA., but went to Copiah-Lincoln in Mississippi for two years where he was a starter from the beginning. he was committed to Georgia Tech in the spring of 2025 but elected for another year of junior college.
Martinez is the young pup of the bunch. He’s a true freshman from East Ascension. On3 and 247sportsranked him as a four star. He was a top 10 tackle according to On3. At EA, he was used in a ton of different ways., They snapped the ball to him in short yardage, threw it to him as a tight end and let him play defense. He’s a sensational athlete at that size.
HUNT’S TAKE
Seaton is a gamechanger. He may not be the most physical run blocker in the country, but he’s got phenomenal feet and pas protecting ability. I also think the way he handled his portal recruitment and his significant weight loss has been impressive. LSU is getting a player who is doing everything he can to improve for the next level, and someone is going to take him in the first 15 pick in the spring because of it. It was obvious what LSU was missing in Campbell last fall. Now they have that back.
Davis is still a question mark for me. It was a bad first year on the job. The scheme didn’t help, but he struggled in every aspect of the game including penalties. He was whistled 11 times. Development is always possible, and the staff saw enough in him to keep him around. If he plays to his frame and athleticism, LSU has two NFL prototype tackles. I think it’s as likely that Thompkins gets a call at some point.
I’d suggest Strey is a year away. The staff really, really likes Jones as a multi-year project, and Martinez very well may be the left tackle of the future. Devin Harper, who I wrote about with the guards is also a legitimate option this season and beyond.
With Seaton, the most important offensive line spot is solidified with a star. Questions will swirl around right tackle until Davis or someone else puts them to bed.
