Tag: Harold Perkins Jr.

How can LSU fix its defense in 2024?

Harold Perkins is the key to a successful defense, but the defensive line has to step up as well.

[autotag]Matt House[/autotag] orchestrated one of the worst LSU defenses in 2023.

The Tigers had some good athletes on that side of the ball, but there were times when watching the defense was like agony. Don’t fret, because there is hope on the horizon. There is light at the end of the tunnel.

[autotag]Blake Baker[/autotag] is back on campus in Baton Rouge after being the defensive coordinator for Missouri the last two seasons.

[autotag]Harold Perkins[/autotag] is about to be one of the most dangerous men on the planet in Baker’s defense. [autotag]Whit Weeks[/autotag] is also in a great position to be successful.

On3’s Jesse Simonton recently discussed what LSU will need to do to fix the defense next fall.

“I think the key is are they going to unleash Harold Perkins and can they get better production out of these blue-chippers that they have on the defensive line?” Simonton said. “Because those guys just have not delivered the results.”

Perkins is the key to a successful defense, but the defensive line has to step up as well. With [autotag]Maason Smith[/autotag] declaring for the NFL draft, LSU now has two returning defensive linemen from last year’s team as well as the recruits in the 2024 recruiting class.

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Former Louisiana high school standout linebacker has entered the transfer portal

One of the top linebackers in the 2023 recruiting class has entered the transfer portal after spending one year at USC.

One of the top linebackers in the 2023 recruiting class has entered the transfer portal after spending one year at USC.

[autotag]Tackett Curtis[/autotag] was one of the hottest names in Louisiana recruiting last year and he was a guy that a lot of Tiger fans wanted. If Brian Kelly’s mantra is to “Recruit the Boot” Tackett was one of the best in the state. He was ranked as the No. 5 overall recruit in the state of Louisiana and the No. 12 overall linebacker in the country by On3.

Curtis chose the USC Trojans over the Ohio State Buckeyes when he committed in 2022 but there is a chance that Kelly could bring him home this time. Curtis played at Many High School in Many, Louisiana.

If the Tigers could get Curtis to join the team in Baton Rouge, he would join [autotag]Harold Perkins Jr.[/autotag] and [autotag]Whit Weeks[/autotag] as an incredible linebacking trio.

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Ranking the best true freshman from the 2022 season

Which true freshmen made their mark on the 2022 season and where is Harold Perkins Jr on the list?

In today’s college football, we are seeing more and more young players make immediate impacts on their teams.

From running backs to linebackers to tight ends, there is no shortage of young rising stars at the collegiate level. It was no different in Baton Rouge when [autotag]Harold Perkins Jr[/autotag] opted to sign with LSU over Florida and Texas A&M.

The SEC had plenty of talented freshmen taking the field for teams that were competing for the SEC title. After four months of college football action, I compiled a list of the 10 best true freshmen to take the field in 2022. Some names you may recognize with at least one that doesn’t get the headlines of the rest of the list.

We kick it off with a running back out of the state of Alabama.

Stock up, stock down: LSU gets 10 wins in Brian Kelly’s first season

Things are only trending up for the Tigers after the big win.

A lot of you have seen this list all season long. We go over the positives and negatives of each game.

I’ve got a different approach as the LSU Tigers came away with an emphatic win over the Purdue Boilermakers in the Cheez-It Citrus Bowl. On Monday, the stocks only went up.

There were only three negative things that happened in the game: One, Purdue converted a fake punt for a first down. Two, Nussmeier threw an interception. Three, Purdue scored in the fourth quarter. Other than that, this was about as flawless as the Tigers could’ve played.

Brian Kelly notched his first 10-win season as the coach of LSU, and the future looks bright on the Bayou.

LSU makes the top 12 for 5-star linebacker in 2024 class

Capers is a five-star recruit, and the Miami prospect is the No. 1 linebacker in 2024. He included LSU in a blue-blood-heavy top-12.

The No. 1 linebacker in the country for the class of 2024 in [autotag]TJ Capers[/autotag] has narrowed down his list of schools to 12, and the LSU Tigers have made the cut.

The Tigers join Penn State, Miami, Texas A&M, Georgia, Michigan, Louisville, USC, Alabama, Tennessee, Ohio State and Michigan State.

Capers plays for the Columbus Explorers in Miami, Florida. The Explorers are 13-1 this season and will play Apopka for the FHSAA 4 M state championship next Saturday. LSU landed one of the best linebackers in the country last season when they signed [autotag]Harold Perkins Jr.[/autotag]

That signing has paid dividends this season. Capers is that kind of guy.

Currently, he has no Crystal Ball projections, and there is no clear favorite to land him per on3. As the early signing period nears for the 2023 recruiting class, expect the class of 2024’s recruitment to heat up significantly.

LSU is preparing for their bowl game as they play Purdue in the Citrus Bowl on January 2nd.

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Instant Analysis: Texas A&M stuns LSU in finale, snuffs out Tigers’ CFP hopes

The Tigers’ hopes of being the first multi-loss team to make the final four were spoiled with an embarrassing loss on Saturday night.

You can never look past anyone in the SEC, even teams that ostensibly have nothing to play for.

No. 5 LSU learned that lesson the hard way on Saturday night as it closed out the regular season on a sour note, losing to a previously 4-7 Texas A&M team 38-23 in College Station. The Tigers finish the regular season 9-3 and will still represent the SEC West in the conference title game in Atlanta this weekend, but their hopes of making the College Football Playoff in Year 1 are all but over.

The Tigers never led in this game, and though the first half was a back-and-forth affair, Texas A&M managed to take a 17-10 lead into the locker room. LSU tied it early in the third quarter, but a strip-sack against [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag] was returned for an Aggies touchdown to retake the lead, and they rode that momentum to a 38-17 second-half lead as this one was never really in doubt down the stretch.

LSU struggled quite a bit defensively, especially against the run. Devon Achane had a great game for TAMU in his return, rushing for 215 yards and two touchdowns. Freshman quarterback Conner Weigman was efficient, completing 12 of 18 passes for 155 yards and two scores. He had a strong connection with receiver Moose Muhammad III, who led the way with five catches for 94 yards and a touchdown.

The Aggies managed to stifle talented linebacker [autotag]Harold Perkins Jr.[/autotag], holding him to a relatively quiet night in which he had just two tackles.

Daniels, meanwhile, had one of his least efficient games of the season. He went just 21 of 35 for 189 yards and didn’t find the end zone with his arm or legs, though he did add 84 yards rushing. With [autotag]Josh Williams[/autotag] out, [autotag]John Emery Jr.[/autotag] stepped up. He took nine carries for 55 yards and three scores, though it wasn’t enough.

Jimbo Fisher’s team still isn’t going bowling, but it ends the year with a momentum-building win after a season that has been notoriously absent of high moments. On the other hand, LSU will have to salvage some motivation as it looks to capture an SEC title and spoil the best team in the country’s season when it takes on Georgia on Saturday.

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Texas A&M coach Jimbo Fisher says former Aggies commit Harold Perkins is ‘very gifted’

Fisher had high praise for Perkins, a one-time Texas A&M commit.

When it comes to recruiting high school athletes, you never know what you are going to get when those kids step on campus. Every year there are five stars who end up being a bust and walk-ons that end up as the team MVP.

When it comes to the case of [autotag]Harold Perkins Jr.[/autotag], he lived up to the hype, and more. Perkins was a five-star recruit coming out of high school and was the crown jewel of Brian Kelly’s first recruiting class at LSU.

He was the kind of guy that was expected to show up and start on day one. Jimbo Fisher had nothing but great things to say about Perkins — who was committed to the Aggies before ultimately flipping to the Tigers — when he met with the media on Monday.

“Harold is very gifted,” Fisher said. “We knew that. As great as he’s played on defense, you watch him in high school and you could argue he’s as good of an offensive player as he was defensive player. I think he averaged 10 yards a carry?

“Was really athletic, ball skilled. Really good basketball player. You could just see a natural player. He’s great in space, rushing, playing, physical, and he’s a really intelligent young man.”

Fisher will get to see Perkins up close and personal on Saturday in the Aggies’ last game of the season.

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Instant Analysis: LSU rolls against UAB in Senior Night

The Tigers rolled to a 41-10 win in the final game of the year at Death Valley.

On a cold and rainy night in Baton Rouge, the Tigers avoided many of the same struggles that limited them in last week’s ugly win at Arkansas.

The Tigers delivered an explosive offensive performance in a 41-10 win over UAB on Senior Night, moving to 9-2 on the season entering next week’s regular-season finale against Texas A&M. After that, LSU will face Georgia in the SEC Championship with a playoff spot potentially on the line.

The Blazers made things interesting early, taking advantage of a fumble from running back [autotag]John Emery Jr.[/autotag] as this was a 14-10 game in the second quarter. Still, the Tigers ultimately pulled away against the Conference USA foe, easily covering the two-touchdown spread.

It was a nice bounce-back game for [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag], who completed 22 of 29 passes for 297 yards and a touchdown. Daniels reignited his connection with receiver [autotag]Malik Nabers[/autotag], who had seven catches for 129 yards. Daniels also led the team on the ground with 111 yards and a score on 12 carries.

With [autotag]Armoni Goodwin[/autotag] and [autotag]Josh Williams[/autotag] unavailable, Emery got the start at running back. He finished with 46 yards and a touchdown on nine carries, but he also fumbled twice. [autotag]Noah Cain[/autotag] proved to be more effective, totaling 76 yards and three touchdowns on a team-high 13 carries.

Defensively, LSU did a great job against the nation’s leading rusher in DeWayne McBride, who found the end zone but had just 34 yards. As a team, the Blazers managed just 48 yards on the ground. They also got spotty play, at best, from quarterbacks Dylan Hopkins and Jacob Zeno.

[autotag]Harold Perkins Jr.[/autotag] had a pair of tackles for loss in this game, while [autotag]Greg Penn III[/autotag] led the defense overall with eight tackles. LSU’s lone sack came from [autotag]Ali Gaye[/autotag], who was honored as part of the Senior Night festivities.

The Tigers performed as expected in this one and will look to keep their winning streak going against the Aggies — who have had a rough year but snapped a six-game losing streak against UMass on Saturday — in College Station next week.

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Instant Analysis: Comeback leads LSU past Auburn in road SEC win

The Tigers overcame a 17-0 deficit to move to 2-0 in SEC play.

LSU got punched in the mouth yet again on Saturday night. The Tigers looked totally out of sorts to start the game, falling behind 17-0 early in a game that looked like it could get ugly.

But once again, this team responded. The defense tightened up, shutting out Auburn in the second half and scoring a touchdown on a fumble return. The offense — while far from perfect — did just enough to bring the team back as LSU earned a 21-17 win.

It was truly pretty remarkable considering how the game began, including [autotag]Sevyn Banks[/autotag]’ scary injury situation on the opening kickoff.. The Tigers gave up two touchdown passes from Robby Ashford early, and facing a three-score deficit, it looked like things could get out of hand.

That’s when the defense came up with a huge play. A strip-sack from [autotag]BJ Ojulari[/autotag] was recovered by [autotag]Jay Ward[/autotag], who returned it for a touchdown. That play flipped the momentum in the game significantly, and a touchdown run from [autotag]Jayden Daniels[/autotag] right before half cut the deficit to three.

It wasn’t Daniels’ best game. He finished just 8 of 20 passing for 80 yards, though he did add 59 on the ground plus the score. Once again, Daniels didn’t complete this game. He was looked shaken up after an awkward slide, and though he tried to stay in, he was ultimately pulled.

[autotag]Garrett Nussmeier[/autotag] entered, though he wasn’t very successful and completed just two of six passes for five yards. [autotag]John Emery Jr.[/autotag] was the team’s best offensive weapon, taking eight carries for 42 yards and a touchdown in addition to a 39-yard reception, though he did have a fumble that could have been costly at the end.

The ground game, in general, was strong. It totaled 185 yards, led by [autotag]Josh Williams[/autotag] with 68 on 17 carries. But it was LSU’s defense that truly saved the day in the second half.

It forced two interceptions, one on a trick play which was thrown by former LSU receiver [autotag]Koy Moore[/autotag] to true freshman [autotag]Harold Perkins Jr.[/autotag], and another from Ashford when the ball was ripped out of Moore’s hands by [autotag]Greg Brooks Jr.[/autotag]

It was overall the best passing day of Ashford’s career. He completed just 19 of 38 passes but totaled 337 yards and two passing touchdowns. Still, his two turnovers held the team back despite AU outgaining LSU 438-270.

It wasn’t the prettiest game, but LSU is now 2-0 and has won four-straight games as it prepares to welcome the top-10 Tennessee Volunteers to town next weekend.

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