{"id":86514,"date":"2026-04-06T17:56:57","date_gmt":"2026-04-06T21:56:57","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/?p=86514"},"modified":"2026-04-06T17:56:57","modified_gmt":"2026-04-06T21:56:57","slug":"what-weve-learned-from-lsu-spring-practice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/2026\/04\/06\/what-weve-learned-from-lsu-spring-practice\/","title":{"rendered":"What We’ve Learned from LSU Spring Practice"},"content":{"rendered":"

As LSU quickly approaches its third week of Spring camp<\/a>, some players have separated themselves from the pack. We used on-field performance and the measured words of Lane Kiffin to present the most impactful LSU Spring practice developments to this point.<\/p>\n

With so much change in one off-season, this team has not evolved to the point where one can accurately assess its ceiling. However, there are a few players and approaches that have already given glimpses of how the team will be different. Time will tell if the differences yield better results than last year\u2019s.<\/p>\n

LSU Spring Practice Developments<\/h2>\n

Freshman Phenoms up Front<\/strong><\/h3>\n

One of LSU\u2019s first and most obvious Spring practice developments has been the play of the young defensive tackles. We haven\u2019t shied away from pointing out the potential<\/a> of LSU\u2019s 2026 defensive line class, and it hasn\u2019t disappointed.<\/p>\n

It wasn\u2019t a shock when the top-rated defensive lineman in the country, Richard Anderson, took reps with the first team defense. But fellow true freshman Deuce Geralds has made a statement by earning more first-team reps than any other tackle. This would be impressive under any circumstances. It’s even more notable considering LSU returns a starting defensive tackle and former five-star Dominick McKinley<\/a>.<\/p>\n

The depth chart isn\u2019t settled at the position, as McKinley and Auburn transfer Malik Blocton<\/a> have also repped with the ones at times. An injury kept Clemson transfer Stephiylan Green<\/a> out of action until the second week of practice. Each of the previously mentioned players will likely play a role in 2026, but the nation\u2019s top overall recruit, Lamar Brown, will add even more competition with his arrival this summer. This room has gotten younger and appears to be deeper than it was in 2025.<\/p>\n

LSU Hits Again at Safety<\/strong><\/h2>\n

Not much went right for Brian Kelly last year, but he hit on arguably the best safety transfer available in AJ Haulcy. It\u2019s quite possible that the new regime has done the same a year later. Early returns on Boise State\u2019s Ty Benefield<\/a> have been overwhelmingly positive.<\/p>\n

Benefield is approaching his senior season and is an imposing presence at 6\u2019-3\u201d and 208 pounds. He\u2019s extremely aggressive against the run, as evidenced by his 107 tackles in 2025. Kiffin has singled out Benefield, left tackle Jordan Seaton, and tight end Trey\u2019Dez Green as \u201cultra elite\u201d players. In short, Kiffin explained that they possess mental approaches to the game that match their superb physical talent.<\/p>\n

Benefield\u2019s arrival has allowed the staff to move returning safety Dashawn Spears<\/a> to the star, a specialized nickelback position, while leaving Tamarcus Cooley<\/a> in the other safety spot. Blake Baker\u2019s defense should be more versatile in coverage with Spears in the star role as opposed to Harold Perkins. Cooley has no time to relax, as Ohio State transfer Faheem Delane<\/a> is battling for a safety spot. True freshman Aiden Hall is battling with redshirt freshman CJ Jimcoilly<\/a> to be the primary backup at star.<\/p>\n

Different Strokes<\/strong><\/h3>\n

Several players have spoken about the differences in the approach from the current coaching staff compared to the last regime. Linebacker and team leader Whit Weeks<\/a> pointed out that the current staff doesn’t do anything randomly or without purpose.<\/p>\n

\u201cEverything we do has a purpose from what time we eat in the morning, to lunch, everything we do within this program has a specific purpose,\u201d Weeks stated.<\/p>\n

Other players, like projected starting running back Harlem Berry, have commented on the value of each practice drill and high level of coaching on the field. It\u2019s clear that the new staff is on one accord and is emphasizing the importance and urgency of getting the most out of each practice.<\/p>\n

Another important LSU Spring practice development is the tempo of the offense. Plays are coming in faster; players are getting lined up, and the up-tempo offense has been quickly implemented. Those who follow the college game closely are aware of the pressure tempo places on defenses, pushing defenses to their physical brink while limiting substitutions. However, sometimes an unintended consequence of fast offenses is putting your own defense back on the field quickly. So, it\u2019s even more important for LSU to develop depth defensively.<\/p>\n

Main Image: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images<\/span><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

As LSU quickly approaches its third week of Spring camp, some players have separated themselves from the pack. We used on-field performance and the measured words of Lane Kiffin to present the most impactful LSU Spring practice developments to this point. With so much change in one off-season, this team has not evolved to the […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4690,"featured_media":86533,"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":[2,35584,3],"tags":[495],"class_list":["post-86514","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-featured","category-lsu-tigers","category-sec","tag-lane-kiffin"],"modified_by":"Tony Siracusa, CFB Managing Editor","_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86514","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=86514"}],"version-history":[{"count":5,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86514\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":86535,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/86514\/revisions\/86535"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/86533"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=86514"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=86514"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/lastwordonsports.com\/collegefootball\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=86514"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}