By ANDRE CHAMPAGNE, Tiger Rag Staff Reporter
With sophomore starting left tackle Tyree Adams ruled out for No. 20 LSU (5-2, 2-2 Southeastern Conference) against No. 3 Texas A&M (7-0, 4-0 SEC) on Saturday (6:30 p.m., ABC) after suffering an ankle injury at Vanderbilt, the Tigers could be looking for a new left tackle.
But coach Brian Kelly sounded like he was going to stay with sophomore D.J. Chester, who replaced Adams in the first quarter against the Commodores, but the starting center a year ago did not play well.
“Well, that’s the best fit for us as a five,” Kelly said at his press conference on Monday. “For five guys that we’re going to put out there, that’s our best situation.”
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Kelly and his staff have considered moving starting right guard Josh Thompson to left tackle.
“But that is not going to do it for us,” Kelly said.
Chester graded at a poor 49.9 by Pro Football Focus after allowing a sack, a hit and a pressure. But Kelly still believes in him, or doesn’t have another quality plan.
“He had one stumble where his foot got caught on the ground on the turf, and we had a sack that was given up,” Kelly said. “But by and large, he did what was expected of him. And I have confidence that he can go out there and do the job.”
Freshman Carius Curne is a possibility at left tackle. He graded an 80.3 in pass blocking against Ole Miss.
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“We’re in a situation now where we’ve got a matchup this weekend against a veteran team and a great pass rush, and Carius is coming on,” Kelly said. “But to throw a true freshman in there, I don’t want to put him in that situation. I could see him playing, but I’d prefer to play a guy that’s had a lot of experience at that position (Chester).”
Chester, though, mainly played inside until Vanderbilt.
The Aggies rank No. 6 in the nation in sacks with 25 as senior edge Cashius Howell has eight.
“They’ve got an outstanding pass rusher over there,” Kelly said. “We’ll have to help. You’ve got to get somebody that chips. You’ve got to put a tight end over there and elongate the pocket, get the ball out quickly. But I feel like if we do that, we’ve got a guy that’s played a lot of football.”
DEFENSIVE BACKS MICHAEL STAMPS, JARDIN GILBERT LIKELY TO BE RED-SHIRTED
Junior cornerback Michael Stamps, who started all 13 games last season and four of 11 games the previous season, and fifth-year senior Jardin Gilbert, are not in the plans for the Tigers this season.
Neither played on Saturday at Vanderbilt and were not dressed out. Each has only played in three games as reserves. Stamps, who went to Rummel High in Metairie, has one tackle and two pass breakups. Gilbert, a transfer from Texas A&M after the 2023 season who played at University High, has four tackles with a half sack and a quarterback hurry.
“We’re trying to protect them – both of them,” Kelly said Monday. “They’ve both played in three games. So, if we can in fact protect their year, we would try to.”
Players can see time in a maximum of four games in a season, not lose that season as far as eligibility, and still be red-shirted for an extra season.
“This would be a week where they could play their fourth game and still maintain eligibility,” Kelly said.
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