Tag: Laterrance Welch

Former LSU cornerback Laterrance Welch commits to Arizona State

Laterrance Welch is heading to the desert.

Former LSU receiver [autotag]Laterrance Welch[/autotag] has found a new home after entering the transfer portal.

Welch announced his commitment to Arizona State on Sunday. He’ll head to Tempe to join a Sun Devils roster looking to bounce back after a losing season in which the team self-imposed a postseason ban.

A former four-star prospect and top-150 player nationally from Acadiana High School in Lafayette, Welch appeared in all 13 games as a true freshman in 2022. He was expected to compete for a starting job in 2023, and while he did appear in nine games, it was only in a rotational capacity as he finished with nine total tackles.

Losing Welch hurts LSU’s depth in the secondary, but it will bring back some young contributors including true freshmen like [autotag]Javien Toviano[/autotag] and [autotag]Ashton Stamps[/autotag].

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LSU is yet to lose a big name to the transfer portal

LSU has held its core intact so far despite the transfer portal opening.

Upon the transfer portal opening on Monday, over 1,000 names flooded the market.

In the case of LSU, the Tigers have avoided bad news thus far and are yet to lose a significant contributor from the 2023 roster.

As of Friday morning, six Tigers entered the portal.

  • RB [autotag]Armoni Goodwin[/autotag]
  • TE [autotag]Jackson McGohan[/autotag]
  • DL [autotag]Bryce Langston[/autotag]
  • CB [autotag]Laterrance Welch[/autotag]
  • DE [autotag]Quency Wiggins[/autotag]
  • RB [autotag]Tre Bradford[/autotag]

The running back depth takes a hit with Goodwin and Bradford out, but Goodwin didn’t see the field in 2023 as he continued to deal with injuries. Bradford made a big play to start the year with a catch and run against Florida State, but after that, he fell on the RB depth chart.

LSU’s losing a combined 22 snaps between its three offensive transfers in the portal.

As for the defense, the losses are slightly more significant. Welch is a former four-star recruit who saw a good bit of time in LSU’s thinned-out secondary. However, LSU opted to play true freshmen in place of Welch down the stretch, so his portal entry comes as no surprise.

Up front, LSU loses Wiggins and Langston. The two combined for 19 snaps this year, but could have had a shot at more time next year.

But they fit the profile of names you’d expect to hit the portal in this era.

You never want to see roster attrition, but to this point, LSU’s core is holding strong. We’re seeing schools across the country lose significant contributors. If you can hold on to those guys, it’s a win. LSU’s doing something right in that regard.

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LSU defensive lineman enters the transfer portal

The Tigers lost another depth piece on defense Sunday night.

LSU hasn’t seen a ton of departures to the transfer portal so far, but it has lost a few depth pieces.

It suffered another loss on Sunday night as defensive lineman [autotag]Bryce Langston[/autotag] announced that he would be entering the portal, which officially opened at midnight on Monday.

A former four-star recruit and top 200 prospect in the 2021 class who signed under [autotag]Ed Orgeron[/autotag], Langston hasn’t seen a ton of action during his time in Baton Rouge. In three seasons, he’s appeared in just four games for the Tigers, totaling three tackles.

Two of those came in his lone appearance this fall in LSU’s 72-10 home opening win over Grambling.

Langston becomes the fourth scholarship player to enter the portal, joining running backs [autotag]Armoni Goodwin[/autotag] and [autotag]Tre Bradford[/autotag] as well as cornerback [autotag]Laterrance Welch[/autotag].

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NEW: Backup LSU cornerback enters the transfer portal

Laterrance Welch appeared in nine games with no starts in 2023.

After losing a couple of running backs to the transfer portal earlier this week, LSU saw its first defensive departure on Friday as sophomore cornerback [autotag]Laterrance Welch[/autotag] announced his intentions to leave the program.

The Lafayette native was a four-star recruit and top-150 prospect coming out of high school, but he hasn’t seen a lot of significant playing time in his two years in Baton Rouge.

He appeared in 13 games as a true freshman, most of it coming on special teams, recording four tackles. Entering 2023, he was expected to compete for a starting spot.

Welch ultimately appeared in nine games this fall, but he recorded no starts and totaled just nine tackles with a pass deflection. Down the stretch, true freshmen like [autotag]Ashton Stamps[/autotag] and [autotag]Javen Toviano[/autotag] saw starting reps over Welch.

Welch becomes just the second scholarship LSU player to announce their intentions to enter the transfer portal, joining running back Armoni Goodwin. The transfer portal officially opens for non-graduates on Monday.

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LSU Injury Report: Zy Alexander out vs. Alabama, could miss ‘significant period of time’

With Zy Alexander possibly set to miss significant time, LSU’s struggling secondary will be even further strained.

LSU’s secondary has had its fair share of struggles this season, and as it prepares for the most important game of the season on the road against Alabama, it’s decently shorthanded.

Zy Alexander, who suffered an injury against Army, is unavailable this weekend and possibly beyond as coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] said Monday he could be set to miss a “significant period of time.”

Alexander has been LSU’s best cornerback this year, and his absence will hurt a team that is also without transfer corners [autotag]Duce Chestnut[/autotag] and [autotag]Denver Harris[/autotag] for undisclosed reasons.

Add in an injury to defensive tackle [autotag]Mekhi Wingo[/autotag] that will likely cost him the remainder of the season, and LSU’s defense is not in an ideal spot coming into this game.

In the secondary, LSU will likely turn to [autotag]Laterrance Welch[/autotag] as well as true freshmen like [autotag]Ashton Stamps[/autotag], who Kelly said will return to practice Monday, as well as [autotag]Javien Toviano[/autotag], who hasn’t repped at corner in-game but has received praise from Kelly.

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Latest update on injury to LSU cornerback Zy Alexander

Zy Alexander exited the Army win with a lower leg injury, and his status moving forward is unclear.

LSU got the big 62-0 win over Army on Saturday night in Week 8, but the team didn’t emerge entirely unscathed despite not giving up a point.

Cornerback [autotag]Zy Alexander[/autotag], a transfer from Southeastern Louisiana who has started all eight games on the outside, left the game with a lower leg injury. He reportedly could not put weight on his ankle and was ruled out.

[autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] didn’t have much to update about Alexander immediately following the game. He said the team would have a clearer picture surrounding the extent of his injury in the coming days.

It’s unclear if Alexander will return for the Alabama game, and if he doesn’t, LSU’s depth will be strained. With [autotag]JK Johnson[/autotag] already out for a lengthy period of time, [autotag]Duce Chestnut[/autotag] away from the team and [autotag]Denver Harris[/autotag] inactive against Army, the Tigers had to rely on two true freshmen in [autotag]Jeremiah Hughes[/autotag] and [autotag]Javien Toviano[/autotag], as well as [autotag]Laterrance Welch[/autotag].

Safety/nickel [autotag]Sage Ryan[/autotag] can also play outside corner, and [autotag]Ashton Stamps[/autotag], who missed Saturday night’s game with an injury, is expected to return during the bye week.

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LSU cornerback JK Johnson to miss extended time with leg injury

The Ohio State transfer may be set to miss a decent chunk of time this fall.

LSU’s secondary has been missing one of its key pieces in fall camp as [autotag]JK Johnson[/autotag] has been held out with a leg injury.

He was spotted wearing a cast earlier in camp, and while the team worked at the Greater Baton Rouge Food Bank on Wednesday, coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] said that Johnson will miss an extended period of time with what he described as a “fracture,” according to LSU Country’s Zack Nagy.

“JK has a fracture,” Kelly said. “That’s got to get set. That looks to be a long-term situation that he’s going to be out.”

If Johnson is unavailable for a decent portion of the year, it would be quite a blow to the secondary. The Ohio State transfer was expected to compete for a starting spot on the outside, and with him out, the Tigers will turn to other transfers in [autotag]Zy Alexander[/autotag] and [autotag]Denver Harris[/autotag], as well as returning player [autotag]Laterrance Welch[/autotag] and true freshman [autotag]Javien Toviano[/autotag].

[lawrence-auto-related count=3 category=1389]

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2023 LSU Tigers Snapshot Profile: No. 27 Laterrance Welch

After appearing in 13 games last fall, mostly on special teams, Laterrance Welch could compete for a starting job at cornerback.

Going into the 2023 football season, LSU Wire will be looking at each player listed on the Tigers’ roster.

Over the preseason, each profile will cover where the player is from, how recruiting websites rated them coming out of high school, and what role they will play for Brian Kelly this season.

We’re looking at a second-year cornerback who didn’t see much action on defense last fall but could see his role expand tremendously in 2023. After appearing in 13 games last fall, mostly on special teams, [autotag]Laterrance Welch[/autotag] could compete for a starting job.

Laterrance Welch Preseason Player Profile

2023 LSU Tigers Snapshot Profile: No. 12 JK Johnson

JK Johnson started five of the 13 games he appeared in as a redshirt freshman for Ohio State last fall.

Going into the 2023 football season, LSU Wire will be looking at each player listed on the Tigers’ roster.

Over the preseason, each profile will cover where the player is from, how recruiting websites rated them coming out of high school, and what role they will play for Brian Kelly this season.

After losing a lot of production in the secondary from the 2022 team, the Tigers went heavy to the transfer portal to plug the holes. One of the top additions is cornerback [autotag]JK Johnson[/autotag], who was a rotational player with Ohio State as a redshirt freshman last fall but is expected to take a step forward this fall.

JK Johnson Preseason Player Profile

Hometown: St. Louis, Missouri

Ht: 6-1

Wt: 180

247Sports Composite Ranking

Four Stars | No. 1 in Missouri | No. 3 Cornerback

Class in 2022: Redshirt Freshman

Career Stats

Year G Total Solo TFL Sack FF PD INT
2021 (Ohio State) 2 2 2 0 0 0 0 0
2022 (Ohio State) 13 20 16 0 0 0 0 0


Depth Chart Overview

A former top-50 recruit coming out of high school and the top prospect in the state of Missouri, Johnson redshirted his first season at Ohio State after appearing in just two games.

He saw a much bigger role as a redshirt freshman last fall, appearing in 13 games and making five starts. He had minimal production, making 20 tackles while not breaking up or intercepting any passes.

He hit the transfer portal after the season, and he lands with an LSU team that has to replace [autotag]Mekhi Garner[/autotag], [autotag]Jarrick Bernard-Converse[/autotag], [autotag]Colby Richardson[/autotag] and [autotag]Jay Ward[/autotag]. Johnson will likely be in the mix to earn a starting spot on the outside this season alongside transfers [autotag]Duce Chestnut[/autotag] and [autotag]Denver Harris[/autotag], as well as returning contributor [autotag]Laterrance Welch[/autotag].

JK Johnson’s Photo Gallery

2023 LSU Tigers Snapshot Profile: No. 10 Denver Harris

Denver Harris was one of the top transfer portal options this offseason.

Going into the 2023 football season, LSU Wire will be looking at each player listed on the Tigers’ roster.

Over the preseason, each profile will cover where the player is from, how recruiting websites rated them coming out of high school, and what role they will play for Brian Kelly this season.

Once again, LSU hit the transfer portal hard to find replacement options in the transfer portal, and arguably the biggest addition in that group is [autotag]Denver Harris[/autotag], a former five-star recruit who saw limited action in his one season at Texas A&M but has a lot of potential to develop on this LSU defense.

Denver Harris Preseason Player Profile

Hometown: Houston, Texas

Ht: 6-0

Wt: 183

247Sports Composite Ranking

Five Stars | No. 6 in Texas | No. 4 Cornerback

Class in 2022: Freshman

Career Stats

Year G Total Solo TFL Sack FF PD INT
2022 (Texas A&M) 5 14 10 0 0 0 3 0


Depth Chart Overview

The former five-star from Houston was a major piece of one of the best signing classes in history for the Aggies, but after a true freshman season in which he only saw the field in a limited role and played in just five games, he’s looking for a new beginning.

LSU has a lot of talent in the secondary, and he may be looking at another season in a more rotational role. However, he will compete with transfers [autotag]Zy Alexander[/autotag] and [autotag]JK Johnson[/autotag], as well as returning cornerback [autotag]Laterrance Welch[/autotag], for a starting spot this fall.

Denver Harris’ Photo Gallery