LSU DT Jalen Lee will return for a final season
LSU is set to lose the three most-experienced defensive tackles from the 2023 roster, and after a handful of transfers at the position, retention with the remaining players is paramount.
On Wednesday, LSU defensive tackle Jalen Lee told The Bengal Tiger staff he plans to remain on roster for his final year of eligibility during the 2024 season.
Lee, a Live Oak native and former four-star prospect, committed to LSU in high school before later choosing to sign with Florida. He spent three seasons in Gainesville before entering the NCAA Transfer Portal and returning to Louisiana ahead of the 2023 season.
Lee appeared in seven games this season, logging a pair of tackles and a fumble recovery.
Lee gives LSU a veteran defensive tackle
Only four interior defensive linemen saw more than 100 snaps for LSU this past season, with the Tigers leaning on Maason Smith (532 snaps), Jordan Jefferson (379 snaps), Mekhi Wingo (344 snaps) and Jacobian Guillory (238 snaps).
Lee saw the fifth-most snaps (52 snaps), followed by Tygee Hill (45 snaps), Fitzgerald West (7 snaps), walk-on Lane Blue (5 snaps), walk-on Preston Hickey (3 snaps) and Bryce Langston (3 snaps). Hill, West and Langston all entered the NCAA Transfer Portal over the past month.
With Lee’s return, LSU will certainly tap into the former Gators defensive lineman more often.
During the 2022 season at Florida, Lee saw action in all 12 games, including three starts at nose tackle. He finished the year with eight tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss.
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“I think Jalen Lee is a technician,” former Gators defensive line coach Sean Spencer said in August. “He’s on the tape all the time as the example of how to do things.”
In 2021, Lee played in eight games, with his first career start coming against Central Florida in the Gasparilla Bowl. He totaled three tackles and a tackle for loss against the Knights.
As a freshman in 2020, Lee played in five games, tallying two tackles, a sack and a forced fumble. He registered a sack and a forced fumble in the game in his collegiate debut vs. Missouri, and he saw action in the Cotton Bowl vs. Oklahoma.
Lee was a four-star prospect coming out of Live Oak High School in Louisiana. He was the No. 381 overall prospect and the No. 41 defensive tackle in the 2020 class, according to the On3 Consensus.
