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Three LSU standouts ranked among College Sports Network's top 50 returning players

by:Jerit Roser•03/04/25
NCAA Football: Texas Bowl-Baylor at Louisiana State
Dec 31, 2024; Houston, TX, USA; LSU Tigers linebacker Whit Weeks (40) defends in coverage against the Baylor Bears during the first half at NRG Stadium. The Tigers defeat the Bears 44-31. Mandatory Credit: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images

Three LSU standouts earned spots on College Sports Network’s top 100 returning football players for 2025.

All three Tigers ranked in the top 50 of the list released this past week.

Rising junior linebacker Whit Weeks earned the highest position of the group at No. 7, with senior quarterback Garrett Nussmeier at No. 32 and sophomore running back Caden Durham at No. 45.

“Expectations heading into the 2024 college football season centered around the LSU Tigers having one of the best linebackers in the country,” the article shared. “While that ultimately came to pass, Whit Weeks and not Harold Perkins Jr. asserted themselves as the very best at the position as the season unfurled. The true junior returns to Baton Rouge among the very best of the top 100 college football players for 2025.

Weeks’ season ended in tragedy with a dislocated ankle suffered in the Texas Bowl win over the Baylor Bears. Yet that shouldn’t overshadow a sensational sophomore campaign. He led the SEC with 61 solo tackles, tallied 10 tackles for loss with 3.5 sacks, snagged an interception, and forced two fumbles. His injury also shouldn’t prevent him from becoming the best linebacker in the country, fueled by his hair-on-fire energy.”

Weeks was the nation’s top linebacker in the College Sports Network article.

Nussmeier was the sixth quarterback on the list and fourth SEC quarterback, behind Penn State’s Drew Allar (No. 8), South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers (No. 11), Texas’ Arch Manning (No. 16), Florida’s DJ Lagway (No. 17) and Duke’s Darian Mensah (No. 28)

Durham was the seventh-highest ranked running back and third in the SEC, behind Notre Dame’s Jeremiyah Love (No. 6), Missouri’s Ahmad Hardy (No. 14), Mississippi State’s Fluff Bothwell (No. 26), Oregon’s Makhi Hughes (No. 27), Penn State’s Nicholas Singleton (No. 31) and Louisville’s Isaac Brown (No. 42)

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