LSU strengthening defensive tackle is key to fixing defense

LSU cleaned house of its defensive staff after last season’s woes, putting pressure on the incoming coordinator a and his staffers to succeed in year one of their new-look defense.

With so much turnover on the staff and roster, Bengal Tiger’s Billy Embody identified the interior defensive line as the area where LSU’s defense needs to improve heading into summer training.

“It’s about finding the best available defensive tackles and just getting them on board,” Embody told On3’s Andy Staples. “Look, there is a sort of a scholarship crunch in a way for LSU as they try to address his position that really needs two defensive tackles to come in and just give them good, quality reps. And so there are still options out there. They need to work quickly before summer begins and these guys start to make those decisions.

“We’ve seen Damonic Williams we’ve seen Simeon Barrow end up elsewhere. They’ve been linked to different guys throughout the spring portal window but the reality is, now it’s about finding guys who can give you some steps at 100 percent and you have a complimentary guy next to him or coming off the bench who can give you snaps at 100 percent. By way of quantity, maybe that would make LSU’s interior of their defensive line better.”

Embody said that LSU has also had a thought of moving Saivion Jones, who’s a defensive end, to the interior after having him bulk up throughout the offseason. The Tigers might even have to be creative and have walk-ons like Preston Hickey and former offensive lineman Kimo Makaneole fill into the lineup as needed.

“They’re trying just about everything to make this work,” Embody continued. “But LSU, at this point, you missed on the big fish — gotta go out and just address a position however you can with numbers. Maybe it’s Adin Huntington from ULM who’s gotten some good burn in the portal since entering, he was All-Sun Belt.

“Maybe it’s another player, but they have to just go out and quite honestly at this point, take whoever’s got some starting experience and some production no matter the level and just bring him in and get him on board.”

Regardless of the personnel, Baker and the rest of the defensive staff will be tasked with prepping the Tigers for the season opener against USC on Sept. 1 to the best of their abilities.