In the age of the transfer portal, paranoia is at an all-time high among college football coaches. Consequently, most won’t offer any information of substance this time of year. LSU Defensive Coordinator Blake Baker talked recently about Spring camp developments regarding the Tiger defense. Now that Baker has spoken to the media, we read between the lines to extract what he really thinks of his defense so far.
The one thing that every coach seemingly has in common in April is that they love their team. We’re all accustomed to the boilerplate, copy-and-paste statements that indicate every player is “buying in” and “improving every day”. Here’s what we really learned after looking beyond the surface of his words.
Blake Baker Talks Defense
Baker Talks Cornerbacks
“I mean, when you look at DJ Pickett from the first three bowl practices to now, he’s a different animal out there…Every day I go in the indoor, he’s got the VR (virtual reality) on. He works at it. He’s very, very humble. He loves football. He’s very hardworking. Mansoor‘s a guy we can put all over the secondary…Ja’Keem is really good, really fast, really long. So all those guys are bringing something different to the table.”
“Then you mix it in with Ashton Stamps, who started 12 games. Michael Turner has gotten significantly better as the Spring has gone on. PJ’s a defensive weapon. He’s so smart. We put him at nickel. We put him at dime. ”
Baker was asked specifically about the newcomers, so don’t read too much into him mentioning them first. He is obviously pleased with the progress of the true freshman, Pickett. He seems to have the work ethic to match his physical gifts. If that’s the case, we lean towards him starting in Week One.
While careful not to read too much into what Baker didn’t say, it’s possible that he likes Mansoor Delane’s versatility as much as his coverage ability. Delane and PJ Woodland could be used in different ways depending on the needs of the team. Of the two, Delane is more likely to win a starting job.
On that note, don’t forget about the returning starter, Ashton Stamps. He has length and competitiveness, but one name we continue to hear is Michael Turner. His athleticism rivals that of the Florida transfer Ja’Keem Jackson. It doesn’t matter who the starters are at this point, but it’s clear that Baker likes his options in this competition more than he did last season.
Baker Talks Linebackers
“I think it’s been really good. When you talk about Davhon and West, they’ve played a bunch of snaps…We’re actually flip-flopping them every day to their position. One day they’re playing Mike. Then the next day they’re playing Will…So they’re getting a lot of position flexibility. It’s helping them.”
“I tell C.J. Ross, when you look at Davhon Keys and Ty Singleton, I believe we had one more early enrollee last year because of the depth we had. They were getting like three to five snaps a day. Like, Charles, you’re getting 30. It’s been really good for his development. Ty Singleton’s another one that last spring, he didn’t get a lot of reps…So I kind of look at it almost like this is his real first spring. He’s getting better.”
Davhon Keys and West Weeks are getting valuable reps at different linebacker positions that will only help their understanding of the responsibilities on the defense. Keys and Whit Weeks have athleticism reminiscent of playmakers like Patrick Queen and Deion Jones. To improve as a unit, it’s critical that they increase their understanding of the game to read and diagnose quicker.
Early enrollee Charles Ross is in a better position than the freshman linebackers of last year due to the extra rep opportunities. Ross is the fastest of the group and has a leg up on the linebackers of this class who didn’t enroll early. No slight to Singleton, but that wasn’t exactly a glowing review. It’s a critical year for him to climb the depth chart, as LSU added three new linebackers in the 2025 class.
Baker on Harold Perkins
“Quite frankly, we sat down at the end of the year and I said, ‘Where are you most comfortable?’ And he said, ‘The STAR.’ He’s got that capability to still allow us to be flexible from a coverage standpoint. But I do think that he’s a really good space player…It’ll also keep offenses not necessarily knowing where he’s going to line up every single snap.”
It’s odd that Harold Perkins finds himself in the stream of consciousness of the national media more than the local media, but he’s still a difference maker when healthy. After years of attempts to find Perkins’ best fit with mixed results, he’s set to start at Baker’s star position on the defense. The star is somewhat of a safety-linebacker hybrid – former safety Major Burns played it last year. This change gives Baker the flexibility to choose carefully when he wants Perkins to blitz or cover. More importantly, it moves Perkins away from offensive linemen into space where he can thrive off his athleticism.
Main Image: Stephen Lew-Imagn Images
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