There were instances in which different team representatives answered similar questions regarding replacing offensive talent and defensive expectations. Fortunately, media days also provided questions specific to each LSU representative in terms of his responsibilities as a player or coach. It\u2019s time to get into some of the more meaningful answers and what they mean in terms of the Tigers’ potential for the 2024 season.<\/p>\n
Head Coach Brian Kelly<\/strong><\/h3>\nOn replacing the production of two first-round picks at receiver:<\/p>\n
\n- \u201cI don\u2019t think you look towards one player. I think when we look at our football team in its totality, there will be a number of players that we\u2019ll count on. I think that\u2019s what I like about our receiving corps more than anything else, is the depth.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Although there aren\u2019t many high-profile names at the moment, Kelly believes that LSU has enough quality depth to match the production of Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas by using more players. Kyren Lacy<\/a> is the projected go-to guy, but Chris Hilton<\/a> along with transfers CJ Daniels<\/a> and Zavion Thomas<\/a> have an opportunity to step to the forefront of the offense. Smaller, shiftier wideouts like Aaron Anderson and Kyle Parker could also play a role in allowing the offense to be more creative.<\/p>\nOn defensive line coach Bo Davis:<\/p>\n
\n- \u201cThe sales pitch was certainly his opportunity to rebuild the pride and tradition of LSU\u2019s defensive line. He wanted to be the architect of bringing that back. He\u2019s won national championships within the SEC, so players immediately with his success because it\u2019s real. That carries on to the recruiting trail.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Kelly realizes it was no small feat to lure Davis away from new conference rival Texas. Davis is a proven coach and recruiter, and the results have been immediate<\/a> on one side of that equation. Brian Kelly was not the last participant from LSU to praise Davis at Media Days, as Perkins also spoke highly of him.<\/p>\nGarrett Nussmeier<\/strong><\/h3>\nOn waiting his turn in the age of the transfer portal:<\/p>\n
\n- \u201cWhat kept me to stay was I felt like when I was making my decision out of high school where to go to school, I felt like there was a lot of prayer involved. And God brought me to LSU for a reason. Sometimes we want things right away, and that\u2019s not how it\u2019s supposed to be.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Nussmeier\u2019s answer shows remarkable maturity and a refreshingly different perspective in today\u2019s college football climate. He felt he would be rewarded for being patient. Fortunately, things played out in a way that allowed him to get his chance to lead this team. The new starter at quarterback for LSU was polished in his first appearance at Media Days.<\/p>\n
On working to get better this summer:<\/p>\n
\n- \u201cI think the main thing for me this offseason is building relationships with my teammates. Not just in the building but outside the building because I think that\u2019s where it starts on the field.\u201d<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Again, the wisdom is evident with the new starting quarterback. Nussmeier understands the importance of knowing his teammates on a personal level before expecting them to be receptive to his leadership on the field.<\/p>\n
Harold Perkins<\/strong><\/h3>\nOn new defensive coordinator Blake Baker:<\/p>\n
\n- Coach Baker is a joy to have around the building. He\u2019s (also) my position coach. My first time meeting him he came out to practice with some cleats on. And he made me laugh a little bit because that speaks to the testament of who he is. He wants you to work, but he\u2019s putting in the work, too. He\u2019s not just out here telling us what to do, he\u2019s showing us how to do it.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Perkins\u2019s answer suggests a closer relationship with Baker than his last defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. In a sense, it seems that Baker not only \u201ctalks the talk\u201d but also \u201cwalks the walk\u201d. Communication was not a strong suit of LSU’s defense in 2023, resulting in the arrival of a new defensive staff<\/a>. Football knowledge in a coach is important, but teaching ability is vital.<\/p>\nMason Taylor<\/strong><\/h3>\nOn his role in the offense:<\/p>\n
\n- \u201cI think we lost some production this year with BT and Malik leaving, and I think there\u2019s definitely room for opportunity. As a tight end group and tight end unit, I think it\u2019s really important for us to step in and show the coaches what we can do and it starts within practice.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n
Kelly mentioned the receivers, but the offensive talent that left for the NFL also provides an opportunity for the tight ends in the Tiger passing attack. Taylor established himself as a weapon as a freshman but was slowed by injuries in 2023. Now he\u2019s healthy along with matchup (and auto-correct) nightmares in 6\u2019-6\u201d Ka\u2019Morreun Pimpton<\/a> and 6\u2019-7\u201d Trey\u2019Dez Green. Considering the players that could have made the trip to Dallas, Taylor’s presence for LSU at SEC Media Days is a statement in itself as far as the LSU staff’s expectations for his impact this year.<\/p>\n![\"LSU](\"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-content\/uploads\/sites\/3\/2024\/07\/USATSI_23748226_168400536_lowres-300x200.jpg\")
Photo courtesy: Brett Patzke-USA TODAY Sports<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
LSU Kicks off Talking Season At a certain point in the offseason, time seemingly stops as tormented college football fans gasp for air, craving sustenance. Mercifully, SEC Media Days are here to serve as the next milestone for surviving until Week Zero. Coaches and players invaded Dallas, TX on Monday to talk ball. Brian Kelly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4690,"featured_media":61295,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,10906,2056],"tags":[4504,729,86,3303,33806,33807],"class_list":["post-61276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sec","category-cfb","category-top-25","tag-blake-baker","tag-brian-kelly","tag-lsu-tigers","tag-sec-media-days","tag-trey","tag-treydez-green"],"modified_by":"Tony Siracusa, CFB Managing Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61276","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4690"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61276"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61276\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61295"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}
Although there aren\u2019t many high-profile names at the moment, Kelly believes that LSU has enough quality depth to match the production of Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas by using more players. Kyren Lacy<\/a> is the projected go-to guy, but Chris Hilton<\/a> along with transfers CJ Daniels<\/a> and Zavion Thomas<\/a> have an opportunity to step to the forefront of the offense. Smaller, shiftier wideouts like Aaron Anderson and Kyle Parker could also play a role in allowing the offense to be more creative.<\/p>\n On defensive line coach Bo Davis:<\/p>\n Kelly realizes it was no small feat to lure Davis away from new conference rival Texas. Davis is a proven coach and recruiter, and the results have been immediate<\/a> on one side of that equation. Brian Kelly was not the last participant from LSU to praise Davis at Media Days, as Perkins also spoke highly of him.<\/p>\n On waiting his turn in the age of the transfer portal:<\/p>\n Nussmeier\u2019s answer shows remarkable maturity and a refreshingly different perspective in today\u2019s college football climate. He felt he would be rewarded for being patient. Fortunately, things played out in a way that allowed him to get his chance to lead this team. The new starter at quarterback for LSU was polished in his first appearance at Media Days.<\/p>\n On working to get better this summer:<\/p>\n Again, the wisdom is evident with the new starting quarterback. Nussmeier understands the importance of knowing his teammates on a personal level before expecting them to be receptive to his leadership on the field.<\/p>\n On new defensive coordinator Blake Baker:<\/p>\n Perkins\u2019s answer suggests a closer relationship with Baker than his last defensive coordinator and linebackers coach. In a sense, it seems that Baker not only \u201ctalks the talk\u201d but also \u201cwalks the walk\u201d. Communication was not a strong suit of LSU’s defense in 2023, resulting in the arrival of a new defensive staff<\/a>. Football knowledge in a coach is important, but teaching ability is vital.<\/p>\n On his role in the offense:<\/p>\n Kelly mentioned the receivers, but the offensive talent that left for the NFL also provides an opportunity for the tight ends in the Tiger passing attack. Taylor established himself as a weapon as a freshman but was slowed by injuries in 2023. Now he\u2019s healthy along with matchup (and auto-correct) nightmares in 6\u2019-6\u201d Ka\u2019Morreun Pimpton<\/a> and 6\u2019-7\u201d Trey\u2019Dez Green. Considering the players that could have made the trip to Dallas, Taylor’s presence for LSU at SEC Media Days is a statement in itself as far as the LSU staff’s expectations for his impact this year.<\/p>\n <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" LSU Kicks off Talking Season At a certain point in the offseason, time seemingly stops as tormented college football fans gasp for air, craving sustenance. Mercifully, SEC Media Days are here to serve as the next milestone for surviving until Week Zero. Coaches and players invaded Dallas, TX on Monday to talk ball. Brian Kelly […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4690,"featured_media":61295,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_lmt_disableupdate":"no","_lmt_disable":"","sfio_featured_image":false,"sfio_embed_code":"","_ef_editorial_meta_date_first-draft-date":"","_ef_editorial_meta_paragraph_assignment":"","_ef_editorial_meta_checkbox_needs-photo":"","_ef_editorial_meta_number_word-count":"","footnotes":""},"categories":[3,10906,2056],"tags":[4504,729,86,3303,33806,33807],"class_list":["post-61276","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-sec","category-cfb","category-top-25","tag-blake-baker","tag-brian-kelly","tag-lsu-tigers","tag-sec-media-days","tag-trey","tag-treydez-green"],"modified_by":"Tony Siracusa, CFB Managing Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61276","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4690"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=61276"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/61276\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/61295"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=61276"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=61276"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=61276"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}\n
Garrett Nussmeier<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n
\n
Harold Perkins<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n
Mason Taylor<\/strong><\/h3>\n
\n