Linebacker Davhon Keys understands the assignment. He’s done it before — stepping in to fill the shoes of the emotional leader of the LSU defense.
Keys had to do it last year when Whit Weeks broke his ankle. Keys stepped into the starting lineup and finished the season with a team-high 92 tackles.
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Keys has a nose for the football, good instincts and the ability to cover in space. But he knows replacing Weeks isn’t just about making plays. He also has to bring the same energy and emotion Weeks brought to the field.
“The juice has to come from the linebackers and stepping up for Whit, I have to start bringing the juice, I have to start getting guys going, if we are slacking a little bit, I have to be the one to make the corrections and speak up,” Keys said.
Keys also has better personnel around him this season. He’ll play alongside T-J Dottery, who has more than 30 career starts and led the SEC in tackles last season with 98. Keys was second with 92.
The Tigers are also getting more production from their pass rush. Princewill Umanmielen is second nationally with seven sacks, while freshman defensive lineman Deuce Geralds is emerging as a future star with four sacks, second on the team.
“He’s been an absolute animal,” Keys said of Geralds. “You’ve seen that since day one. In the offseason, every day he’s coming in to work hard, he’s showing up early, he’s doing the extra, so it’s come no surprise to me that he’s doing what he’s doing, he showed it since day one and he’s now finally got to put it on the big screen.”
The Tigers return to action Saturday against F-C-S opponent McNeese before jumping back into SEC play.
LSU is heavily favored against the Cowboys, but Keys says the Tigers are approaching the game with the same mindset they had last week against Texas A-and-M.
“Every week it’s a nameless, faceless opponent no matter who it is, what conference, what team they are, we always go into it, we treat game like it’s the same, it doesn’t really make a difference,” Keys said.
Keys now has the opportunity to prove the Tigers can maintain their defensive intensity without Weeks.
For LSU, replacing its emotional leader will require more than one player making tackles. Keys knows he has to help make sure the entire defense keeps its edge.
