Openers are always over analyzed. Especially when they’re deemed this important.
With a roster valued well north of $40 million, LSU is expected to compete at the top of the SEC, and for a College Football Playoff berth. Clemson has a greater sense of uncertainty, a program many see as falling behind the times with NIL and the transfer portal.
DJ PICKETT AND PJ WOODLAND VS. BRYANT WESCO JR. AND TJ MOORE
Head coach Dabo Swinney is reluctant to play the portal game and just hired an offensive coordinator whose greatest impact on college football came more than a decade ago.
The loser on Saturday night is already in some trouble. The winner can use it as a springboard.
More than 900 credentialed media and celebrities will be in attendance according to reports. Here’s what they’ll be looking at.
If only Wesco Jr. had gone by BJ, huh?
These Clemson wide outs are proven stars. They both burst onto the scene as freshmen in 2024 and had strong sophomore campaigns. With Antonio Williams gone as a third-round pick of the Washington Commanders, Wesco Jr. and Moore are the top dogs.
Moore, a 6-foot-3, 200-pound speedster, made 52 catches for a team-best 837 yards last year for a whopping 16.1 yards per catch. Two of those big plays came against SMU when quarterback Christopher Vizzina got his only start.
TJ Moore is LONG GONE pic.twitter.com/8YfD3EMtAb
— Brandon Walker College Football Show (@BFWshow) November 1, 2025
While that 16.1 yards per catch average is salty, it’s not as good as Wesco Jr.’s 17.3 or his six touchdowns. Both led the team last year in only seven games played. Wesco was a five-star recruit and a freshman All-American. He may have earned postseason honors last year were it not for an October injury.
This wide receiver duo was the only power conference freshman duo since 2000 to record 650 yards and four touchdowns each as rookies. They can really play.
So can Pickett and Woodland.
Those two move on in life after LSU first-round draft choice Mansoor Delane. They’re the duo now. The 6-5 Pickett is stronger than he was a year ago, and Woodland is still on the smaller side, but he doesn’t play like it.
According to Pro Football Focus, Pickett graded 76.2 in coverage as a freshman. Woodland was a 74.5 a year ago. While Woodland was flagged for interference five times, he only allowed a 48% completion percentage and didn’t allow a touchdown. He had five pass breakups and two interceptions.
Realistically, Clemson must secure this battle to win the game. These are their best two offensive players. If defensive backs coach Corey Raymond’s crew shuts them down, moving the ball is going to be a chore for the visiting Tigers. However, Wesco Jr. and Moore are threats to change the scoreboard from anywhere on the field, and Morris will likely dial up some shots for them.
JORDAN SEATON AND WESTON DAVIS VS. WILL HELDT
It would stand to reason that Swinney liked what he saw from Purdue transfer Will Heldt last year. In his first season at Clemson, the 6-foot-6 edge rusher made 15.5 tackles for loss and tallied 7.5 sacks.
Will Heldt is 6’7, 260lbs and one of the pass rushers I really like for the 2027 NFL Draft
— NFL Draft Files (@NFL_DF) August 26, 2026
Potential 1st round pick imo pic.twitter.com/wDNQLkca2o
The transfer worked but Clemson didn’t pursue additional high-end players which is a discussion for another day. On this day, it’s about Heldt’s impact in LSU’s backfield. Last season, defensive coordinator Tom Allen moved Heldt between the left and right sides of the offensive formation and appeared comfortable in both spots. Any snap Heldt plays on LSU’s offensive left side is a fireable offense, in my opinion.
At left tackle, Seaton is a likely first-round pick in the spring and has allowed four sacks in two years. He went 10 straight games as freshman without allowing one and only allowed his quarterback to be hit once last season.
At right tackle, Weston Davis’s PFF pass blocking grade last year was a 49.5, and he was graded under 40.0 in four different games. Davis allowed four sacks and 26 hurries from his right tackle spot.
Tight end Trey’Dez Green doesn’t figure to be much help in pass protection which could leave Davis and Heldt one-on-one with a running back there to protect Sam Leavitt. A drive-stalling sack, or a rush that produces a turnover, could be a game-changing play, and Heldt is the likely candidate for that. We’ll see how often he lines up across from Seaton.
TREY’DEZ GREEN VS. WHOEVER
Last season’s opener was Green’s coming out party. LSU scored two touchdowns. One was set up by a pass interference on a ball intended for Green at the goal line, and running back Caden Durham took it in from the 2-yard line. The other was a jump ball to Green in the end zone.
Undoubtedly, Allen has spent considerable time trying to figure out how to deal with the 6-foot-7 high jumper in the red zone. His answer better be creative, because no one on Clemson defense has the physical attributes to deal with Green.
Within the span of 3 plays Trey'Dez Green did this pic.twitter.com/JHCmWg4UH6
— Big Hank (@HankKnowsBall) April 5, 2026
Sammy Brown is one hell of a linebacker, but he’s 6-foot-2 and can’t leap. Ashton Hampton is a tall corner at 6-foot-2 but still giving up five inches and 35 pounds to Green.
It probably has to be multiple people once LSU crosses the 20 yard line. If so, Green still may be given a shot to make a play. That, or someone else has to beat one-on-one coverage.
