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LSU State of the Program: Offensive line could make the jump from good to elite

will rosenblatt
·4 min read
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LSU’s offensive line took a leap forward in 2022. It was young, but the promise shown was one of the most exciting elements of Brian Kelly’s first year in Baton Rouge.

With spring practice approaching, those young guns up front are set to return with more experience. As the ramp-up to 2023 continues, we’re taking a look at the state of LSU football, position by position.

Already done are the skill guys: quarterbacks, running backs, wide receivers and tight ends.

Now, we’re moving on to the offensive line. Let’s jump right in and examine what could be one of LSU’s best groups this fall.

The immediate future

Photo by Brandon Sumrall/Getty Images

Expectations are high for this group, the highest they’ve been in years.

LSU’s been marred by inconsistent OL play in the last decade. The 2019 season, in which the Tigers took home to Joe Moore award, was an anomaly. The backend of Les Miles’ tenure was decent upfront, but even those units struggled against elite competition like Alabama.

Times have changed and since the arrival of [autotag]Brad Davis[/autotag] in the summer of 2021, we’ve witnessed an upward trend. In 2020, PFF ranked LSU 54th in pass blocking grade. In 2021, they jumped to 16th in the nation.

The 2022 unit was young and dealt with injuries, but [autotag]Will Campbell[/autotag] is a budding star at left tackle and [autotag]Emery Jones[/autotag], his freshman counterpart on the right side, held his own too.

Along with Campbell and Jones, LSU expects a lot from [autotag]Garrett Dellinger[/autotag] and [autotag]Miles Frazier[/autotag], two third-year players with NFL potential.

LSU’s in a good spot at center with [autotag]Charles Turner[/autotag] and [autotag]Marlon Martinez[/autotag], but the staff has explored adding another center in the portal.

This unit grew a lot last fall and should be even better in 2023.

The newcomers

The immediate future isn’t so different from the future in this case. Campbell and Jones are still young and other key contributors have several years of eligibility left too.

But LSU did add a strong group of OL in its 2023 recruiting class. [autotag]Zalance Heard[/autotag], [autotag]DJ Chester[/autotag], [autotag]Tyree Adams[/autotag] and [autotag]Paul Mubenga[/autotag] bring an influx of talent. According to 247Sports, none are currently enrolled, so that could hurt their chances to play right away, but this is a rock-solid class.

LSU has killed it recruiting OL in back-to-back years now, setting this room up to find consistent success.

Recruiting

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What Davis has done on the recruiting trail along with Kelly’s track record of sending offensive linemen to the NFL, talent acquisition and development are in good hands.

[autotag]Khayree Lee[/autotag] is LSU’s lone OL commit in the 2024 class. He’s a three-star guard from John Ehret in Marrero, Louisiana.

A name to watch right now is Weston Davis. The 2024 four-star from Texas has visited LSU and the Tigers should remain involved there. Blue-chip OTs Andrew Sprague and Ethan Calloway have both visited LSU.

Keep an eye on Texas OT Bennett Warren too, who recently spoke about LSU with On3.

The bottom line

(AP Photo/Gerald Herbert)

There’s a difference between good and elite in this sport, especially on the offensive line.

You have five guys out there at once and one liability can sink the whole ship. That’s why there’s so much variability to how OL’s play year to year, making their play difficult to predict.

With LSU’s group, I get the sense there’s a high floor. It was decent last year, especially down the stretch, and the core elements of that group are back. Given Davis’ history and Kelly’s track record of sending OL to the league, there’s no reason to think this group takes a step back.

But that doesn’t mean we know how good they will be. Whether Campbell and Jones go from solid freshmen to great SEC tackles remains a question. LSU needs to find a consistent lineup on the interior too.

There are sure to be injuries, there always are on the offensive line. How LSU’s young freshmen are able to provide depth will be critical. But right now, LSU fans should feel good about this group.

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Story originally appeared on LSU Tigers Wire