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Week one of LSU football is here. Ed Orgeron will meet with the media for what will become the weekly press luncheon on Monday. Among the assorted game notes and information passed out will be a week one depth chart.
Now these things are always somewhat nebulous for a lot of reasons: among them, starters don’t always necessarily play the most minutes, and lines will often shuffle based on injuries. That said, based on some camp chatter we’ve been able to here, let’s venture a guess as to how we think it all might shake out:
Preseason Depth Chart: Offense
| Position | First Team | Second Team |
|---|---|---|
| Position | First Team | Second Team |
| QB | Joe Burrow (Sr.) | Myles Brennan (So.) |
| RB | Clyde Edwards-Helaire (Jr.) | John Emery Jr. (Fr.) -or- Tyrion Davis-Price (Fr.) |
| FB/HB | Tory Carter (Jr.) | |
| WR (X) | Ja'Marr Chase (So.) | Trey Palmer (Fr.) |
| WR (Z) | Terrace Marshall Jr. (So.) | Racey McMath (Jr.) |
| WR (Slot) | Justin Jefferson (Jr.) | Jontre Kirklin (Jr.) |
| TE (Y) | Stephen Sullivan (Sr.) | Thaddeus Moss (Jr.) |
| LT | Saahdiq Charles (Jr.) | Dare Rosenthal (Fr.-RS) |
| LG | Adrian Magee (Sr.) | Chasen Hines (So.) |
| C | Lloyd Cushenberry (Jr.) | Chasen Hines (So.) |
| RG | Damien Lewis (Sr.) | Badara Traore (Sr.) -or- Cameron Wire (Fr.-RS) |
| RT | Austin Deculus (Jr.) | Badara Traore (Sr.) |
| P | Zach von Rosenberg (Jr.) | Avery Atkins (So.) |
| K | Cade York (Fr.) | Connor Culp (Jr.) |
| KOR | Clyde Edwards-Helaire (Jr.) | |
| PR | Derek Stingley (Fr.) |
- Clyde Edwards-Helaire seems like a sure fit for the direction LSU wants to take its offense in, and I think we’ll see him get the starting nod while the two freshmen get the -or- designation at No. 2.
- Likewise, Dee Anderson’s suspension has likely opened a door for other players and closed one on him. Racey McMath and Trey Palmer will likely be the next two guys off the bench after the entrenched top three.
- Transfer Thad Moss finally appears set to take the field after a ton of injury-related false-starts in 2018. It wouldn’t surprise me if he gets the -or- designation with Sullivan, either.
- Most expected Chasen Hines to push for a starting job but I suspect the senior Magee gets the nod at guard. Hines has also been banged up, and as the No. 2 center they may not be in any hurry to push him back yet.
Preseason Depth Chart: Defense
| Position | First Team | Second Team |
|---|---|---|
| Position | First Team | Second Team |
| NT | Tyler Shelvin (So.) -or- Siaki Ika (Fr.) | Joseph Evans (Fr.) |
| DL | Rashard Lawrence (Sr.) | Neil Farrell (Jr.) |
| DL | Breiden Fehoko (Sr.) -or- Glen Logan (Jr.) | Jarell Cherry (Fr.-RS) |
| OLB (Bench) | K'Lavon Chaisson (So.) | Andre Anthony (Jr.) |
| ILB | Damone Clark (So.) | Michael Divinity (Sr.) |
| ILB | Jacob Phillips (Jr.) -or- Patrick Queen (Jr.) | Micah Baskerville (So.) |
| OLB (Field) | Michael Divinity (Sr.) | Ray Thornton (Jr.) |
| CB | Kristian Fulton (Jr.) | Cordale Flott (Fr.) |
| CB | Derek Stingley Jr. (Fr.) | Kary Vincent Jr. (Jr.) |
| Nickel | Kary Vincent Jr. (Jr.) | Todd Harris (Jr.) |
| S | Grant Delpit (Jr.) | Todd Harris (Jr.) |
| S | Jacoby Stevens (Jr.) | Cameron Lewis (Jr.) |
- Shelvin and Ika will split the starting nose guard spot. The freshman Evans might be listed as the backup, but I think that’s more of an emergency scenario.
- As previously mentioned, I more or less consider Lawrence, Fehoko and Logan as co-starters at the other defensive line spots.
- Calling my shot here on Damone Clark — I think he takes over one of the starting inside linebacker spots and shifts Divinity outside. Chaisson is the key guy here that won’t be -coming off the field much, but Clark is one of the best four at linebacker, I’m told.
LSU won’t be in its base 3-4 set too often, but here’s a quick look at what some of the more common lineups will look like:
Base
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Nickel 3-3-5
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and Peso, which will likely be where LSU deploys the “Green Team” four-man front. Although there will likely only be two “true” defensive linemen on the field.
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Just some things to remember about what we might see this season.