With Luke Sanders and Ali Highsmith graduating and a good chance that Derry Beckwith is going pro, we could be losing all 3 starting linebackers, how badly do we need a linebacker to come in who could start as a true freshman? Cutrera and Riley look like they will be really good. Sheppard and Riley Odem still seem to be question marks. Who are some other guys on the team that could be moved to LB possibly. Is Shommori Clemons still on the team? haven't heard anything about him in fall camp. Ryan Baker really looks good in his high school clips but might have to put on some weight. Chad Jones and McCray both play SS.
Beckwith could go pro, but I doubt he will. He's from Baton Rouge & hasn't gotten a whole lot of media attention this year. Clemons appears to be redshirting this year. I'm really excited about this guy, but I'm not sure if he's at LB or Safety right now. We're hosting two of the best LB's in the country on Saturday in Brandon Beal & Arthur Brown. We're probably a long shot for both, but stand a better chance with Beal. We already have 3 LB commits in Baker, Prater, and Theriot (ATH). LSU is at the point where it is pretty rare for a true freshman to start, but any of these guys could step up & earn a lot of playing time.
What do you think about McCray or C. Jones moving to LB next season? McCray is always in the right spot on the field and hits like a LB. C Jones is a little bigger, but was recruited as a safety, 5 stars, he may want to stay there. Both play SS, but it would be nice to see both of them starting next season. McCray to me looks to good to keep off the field.
Assuming Beckwith leaves, we have 5 linebackers on the roster for next season: Riley, Odom, Cutrera, Sheppard, and Clemons. I have a lot of faith in Riley, Odom, and Sheppard. Assuming we don't get Brown or Beal, who seem like longshots, then I think we'll probably move Harry Coleman to linebacker for depth. I don't think we need to get a linebacker who can play right away, though it certainly would be nice if we got a player the calibre of Brown, Beal, or Harris. It's not real likely, however.
Both of them are too good at safety to move to LB, IMO. They have the ability, but we've got other guys that are similarly versatile (see: Shomari). Chad Jones is just a freakish athlete - he can play every DB position & we don't want to lose that from our secondary.
What gives you faith in them? We haven't seen much out of any of those 3 guys - particularly Odom who's running with 3rd string & rumored to want a transfer. First I've heard of that, why Coleman? Just curious.
I misspoke on Odom. I meant Cutrera. Cutrera in particular has shown just fine, and when Riley and Sheppard have gotten into games, they've looked dynamic and aggressive. His play on special teams has been very good, and he's a big hitter. He may be a little slow to play much as a safety. He reminds me a lot of Eric Alexander in that way. A move to linebacker would be good for the team, because it would give us a true two-deep even with Beckwith leaving, without having to resort to playing freshmen. This, of course, also assumes Odom stays. If both Odom and Beckwith leave, it will make it even more imperative to find depth from other positions, and probably play freshmen as well.
Harry Coleman seems like a logical move to LB to me. He has the size for LB, and was recruited same as S. Clemmons as a S/LB. Seems like he would be a better fit for LB than S. Other possibilities might be Stephen Francois or Ridley.
This could also go in the thread about how our recruits' stock is during their senior seasons, but a Rivals analysts went to one of Ryan Baker's recent games & talked very highly of him - saying he stood out from other top prospects, called him a Derrick Brooks clone, and said that his stock could be on the rise. We got a really good one here. I wouldn't be suprised to see him get into the Rivals 100. He needs to add about 20lbs though for the SEC.
