LSU football will face Baylor on Tuesday in the Texas Bowl. The Tigers will look different than the team we last saw take the field vs. Oklahoma.
Both of LSU’s starting tackles, Will Campbell and Emery Jones, opted out to prepare for the NFL Draft, as did tight end Mason Taylor.
CJ Daniels won’t suit up at wide receiver as the senior wide receiver transferred to Miami.
On defense, most of the starting lineup is intact, but safety Sage Ryan is no longer with LSU after hitting the transfer portal. Backup defensive end Da’Shawn Womack is gone, too. Both transferred to Ole Miss.
LSU’s depth in the secondary took a hit, with a handful of backups entering the portal. LSU can’t afford injuries on defense in this game with the roster thinning out.
With players leaving, some fresh faces will get an opportunity, especially on the offensive line.
Here are five LSU football players who can seize on the opportunity in the Texas Bowl.
Wide receiver Chris Hilton
With CJ Daniels entering the transfer portal and Kyren Lacy potentially opting out, LSU needs Hilton to step up at wide receiver.
The former four-star recruit from 2021 entered 2024 with high hopes but was hampered by an injury and struggled upon returning.
In LSU’s regular-season finale vs. Oklahoma, Hilton got his feet under him. Nussmeier connected with Hilton on two long touchdowns, giving LSU the deep threat it needed all year.
Kelly talked about Hilton at length after the OU win.
“He was out for eight weeks, and it takes a while to get back into rhythm,” Kelly said. “We either missed him on overthrows, or the timing wasn’t quite where it needed to be. It normally takes about four weeks to get that.”
“The deep threat has been missing from our offense. Teams have sat down on us, teams have made it difficult for us because we haven’t had that vertical threat,” Kelly added.
Hilton will get a chance to keep it rolling vs. Oklahoma. Aaron Anderson attacking teams underneath, with Hilton providing a threat over the top, will make this offense hard to stop.
Guard Bo Bordelon
LSU’s offensive line thinned out with Campbell and Jones declaring for the NFL draft. Bordelon will be a beneficiary of that, likely making his first career start.
Bordelon is expected to slide in at right guard, with Miles Frazier bumping out to right tackle.
Bordelon signed with LSU in 2022 as a three-star, sitting No. 758 in On3’s Industry Rankings.
Bordelon played 15 snaps in 2022, 62 in 2023, and 46 this fall. He could match those totals in the bowl game alone. LSU made an effort to get him on the field in 2024, putting him in No. 89 and creating an extra blocker at tight end.
With a strong performance, Bordelon could stake his claim on a bigger role entering 2025.
Tackle Tyree Adams
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We’ll stick with the offensive line here.
With [autotag]Will Campbell[/autotag] opting out, [autotag]Tyree Adams[/autotag] slides out to guard. We saw Adams in limited action at guard this fall, but now he gets a chance to prove he’s the future at left tackle.
According to PFF, Adams played 78 offensive snaps and posted an offensive grade of 53.9 in 2024. He missed a chunk of time as he dealt with a midseason injury.
Adams didn’t allow a sack over 47 pass block snaps in 2024. It’s not fair to expect a perfect performance from a player making his first-start at tackle, but at 6’7′, Adams has the tools to play the position.
Linebacker Davhon Keys
LSU’s linebacking group remains stable, but Keys was carving out playing time as the regular season drew to a close. With senior [autotag]Greg Penn[/autotag] moving on after the bowl game, Keys may be the future at middle linebacker.
With a few more weeks of practice under his belt, Keys could be in line for more time against Baylor.
He made starts against Vanderbilt and Oklahoma, playing 46 and 59 snaps in those games, respectively. He recorded a sack vs. the Sooners and missed just one tackle over the two games.
Keys is looking to put an exclamation point on his strong true freshman campaign.
Safety Dashawn Spears
Like Keys, Spears is another true freshman that made an immediate impact on defense in 2024. Per the On3 Industry Rankings, Spears was a top 100 recruit and the No. 5 ranked safety in the class.
Spears played 178 snaps this fall. Only 8 freshman safeties in the Power Four have played more. There was some inconsistency as LSU’s entire safety room struggled, but Spears was targeted just four times in 94 coverage snaps, allowing one catch.
Spears was heavy in the rotation in September, but was phased out near the end of the regular season. With [autotag]Sage Ryan[/autotag] and [autotag]Jordan Allen[/autotag] in the transfer portal, Spears gets another chance vs. Baylor.
LSU is yet to sign a safety out of the transfer portal. A nice showing from Spears would keep LSU feeling good about the potential of its 2025 secondary.
