We’ve seen LSU practice twice.
I’ve dropped this disclaimer a couple of times on radio and will continue to do so in print. Everyone is aware that gameday is four weeks away and they haven’t even put pads on yet. None of this is etched in stone. They’re just observations early on.
That said, LSU has to be ready to go in Week 1. There’s no easing into the Kiffin era because Clemson is a capable team.
Here are a few things that have stuck with me as I’ve walked out of the practice facility this week.
GOOD WEEKS
Whit Weeks is healthy. He’s the first man through every linebacker drill and is fired up to be doing it. Last year he was hurt in September and never recovered. He detailed that for us in Tampa last month. Now he’s 10 months removed from that injury and has had time to let the surgery heal.
Weeks is an elite player. He’s shown that when healthy. Now he is again. That’s obvious at practice.
UNIFORM TEST
They haven’t put the pads on yet, but a few guys out there very obviously pass the eye test.
Richard Anderson is absolutely massive. He’s clearly the biggest of the defensive tackles. That doesn’t mean best or first. It does mean biggest. On Thursday, Anderson was running with the first unit. He’s primed to play early in his LSU career, and he won’t look out of place.
Malik Elzy is the most physical wide receiver in the group. He didn’t have much of an impact at Illinois, but he’s working with Sam Leavitt early in drills.
Ty Benefield and Dashawn Spears really make for an imposing duo at safety and STAR. They’re both long and filled out. LSU is going to rely on both to make a ton of tackles this year. They’re primed to do so. I have some questions about LSU at multiple spots, but those two are spoken for. Blake Baker is working with the STAR’s with Chris Kiffin handling the linebackers. He’ll see to it that Spears is ready.
THE WRIGHT STUFF
I don’t know if Phillip Wright is going to make 52 catches this year or five. Neither would stun me. What I know is that his physical attributes pop. Wright can absolutely turn on the jets, and on Thursday he soared for a nice catch along the sidelines.
Based on spring, I wouldn’t put Wright in the top four receivers, but I’m keeping an eye out. He’s the lone holdover at the position which suggests he wants to play for LSU. I think he’s in a group with Malik Elzy and Roman Mothershed vying for time behind Jayce Brown, Jackson Harris and Winnie Watkins. That time is available.
If you made me bet, I would project Wright’s bigger impact in 2027, but don’t rule it out this fall.
