(Photo courtesy of @Sheadixon on X)
By Hunt Palmer
Keylan Moses had his senior season cut short.
Twice.
The four-star linebacker prospect from University Lab School in Baton Rouge suffered a knee injury in Week five that cost him the second half of the season. Then the LHSAA ruled the Cubs ineligible for the postseason due to improper paperwork involving transfer students.
“My senior season ended pretty terribly,” Moses told Matt Moscona on After Further Review. “I’m sure people around (Baton Rouge) already know. We got disqualified from the playoffs… All throughout my injury I had a smile on my face, and I was really just getting ready to come back and play, but obviously things went south, and we didn’t get a chance to play.”
Moses did take the opportunity to grow and learn from the injury. Though he desperately wanted to get back to the field with his teammates, he used the time away to educate himself on aspects of the game he’d never given much thought.
“My injury allowed me to really prioritize my recovery,” Moses said. “And that’s one thing I really, really needed to prioritize, because getting ready for college you need to have the right body type and make sure your body is right in general. That’s one thing I didn’t prioritize. Recovery, stretching, none of that. I would just go out and play because it’s the game I love, the game I have fun with.”
As Moses nursed his knee back to health, he picked the brains of doctors and physical therapists. Gameplans and film study were of no use, but Moses had eyes on the next step in his football career.
That will come at LSU where he committed as a prep junior and signed in December. After a season on the sidelines, Moses has a clearly stated goal for the fall to come—to play as a freshman.
To do that as a linebacker, he’ll have to add weight. He’s looking forward to that.
“I’m 6’3”, 205,” Moses said. “Honestly, I know ultimately, I’ll be able to put on a lot of weight. I just left there, and the food they got there is crazy. I was leaving with a lot of plates. I’ll tell you that. The weight has never been a problem.”
That frame allows Moses versatility in any defense.
Often elite high school players are moved all over the field and play both sides of the ball. Moses certainly did.
“In high school I played defensive end, inside, outside,” Moses said. “I played nickel, slot. I played running back. I played quarterback. Whatever the coach needed me to play, I did it. On the defensive side, I can play anything. That’s what good about me is my versatility.”
That responsibility list will be pared down once he arrives at LSU in the spring.
He’s never too far away because his high school literally sits on LSU’s campus. But he will finish out his senior year in the spring and enroll at LSU in May.
At that point he’ll begin to focus on the role he’ll play in the Tiger defense. While ultimately Blake Baker and the LSU staff will determine his position, Moses shed light on where he feels the most comfortable.
“I feel like I play better out in space,” Moses said. “I don’t want to overthink when I’m playing. I want to see ball and go get it. I do prefer playing the Will linebacker. Mike linebacker is more of the leader, the soul of the defense. Wants to communicate the calls to the defense. I did that in my high school career, my senior year. It was nice. I didn’t have any problem doing it. But, freshman to junior year I was just out there playing. If you want to get the best out of me, put me in space, and I’ll wreak havoc.”
All of that sounds familiar.
LSU’s current roster features a versatile former high school star who shined as a freshman playing outside linebacker and creating all sorts of havoc.
While Moses plans to add weight, he and the LSU staff have an ideal mold for his future.
“It’s just more of maintaining my speed and basically just being another Harold Perkins,” Moses said. “I’m just being honest. They want me to be another version of him.”
