LSU started two freshmen at left and right tackle last season and could start another freshman at one of the tackle positions again this season. Five-star prospect Lance Heard took snaps with the first team at right tackle during last Saturday’s scrimmage. Coach Brian Kelly says Heard dominated at Neville High School last season, but now he’s getting tested every day at practice.
“Now he’s going up against (defensive end) Sai’vion Jones and he’s going up against some impressive football players, so that’s a whole new thing for him to deal with, so the rigorous of that each and every day, so he’s going through a lot of that,” said Kelly.
“But is he pushing for a starting position we got to find the best five guys then the next is the six and the seventh, so he’s in the mix,” said Kelly.
Last year Will Campbell as a freshman started at left tackle and rookie Emery Jones started at right tackle. If Heard gets in the starting line-up, Jones would line up at right guard.
Good news on the injury front, defensive back Sage Ryan, who left Saturday’s scrimmage after a hard tackle on tight end Mason Taylor is back at practice, according to Kelly.
Ryan is an important piece to that defensive secondary. He’s played nickel and safety, but during Saturday’s scrimmage he was with the first-team and lined up at cornerback opposite Southeastern Louisiana transfer Zy Alexander.
Kelly calls Ryan a steady tackler and he possesses great speed.
Freshman running back Kaleb Jackson showed off his speed in Saturday’s scrimmage by scoring two touchdowns, including a 73-yard touchdown catch on a screen play. Jackson made a couple of moves and then outran the defense.
But Kelly reminds the media he was going up against the second-team defense.
“We tend to overreact to these kinds of situations. Was that a product of bad tackling or was it great running, maybe it was a little bit of both,” said Kelly.
Hard to say how much playing time Jackson will see this season. More experienced running backs Logan Diggs, Josh Williams and Armoni Goodwin have returned to practice after missing Saturday’s scrimmage with unknown injuries.