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2022 CFB: The Emergence of Harold Perkins

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Every so often the college football world welcomes a special player into its ranks. A player who even as a freshman can have a fanbase clamouring for more, whilst having opponents game planning around them. 

True freshman Harold Perkins has burst onto the scene in a big way after flashing early on a rebuilding LSU defence. Under the tutelage of Matt House, (Super Bowl winner as KC linebacker coach) Perkins has done more than many have expected as a true freshman. Mirroring previous number 40, Devin White, in all but name it’s clear he has a bright future ahead. So let’s break down his strengths, weaknesses and what to expect from Perkins for the remainder of this season.

Strengths:

A dynamic two way player in high school, Perkins is an elite level athlete. At Cy Park High School in Texas, Perkins dominated on offence with 345 yards and six touchdowns on the ground from only 14 carries. At 6’1” 210lbs, Perkins has been a wrecking ball with 36 tackles, 2.5 sacks and a pick. He can do it all. As a pass rusher he has looked downright scary as offensive lines, tight ends and backs have had trouble stopping him as he regularly pressures QB’s and wreaks havoc on teams just trying to stop him. 

In run support it’s more of the same, pure speed allowing him to get into the backfield and wrap up runners before they can gain any proper momentum. His athletic ability has led to him impressing in coverage too as his speed allows him to stay with many receivers and his power means he won’t be outmuscled by most tight ends as he battles them upfield. 

Weaknesses:

While his 6’1” 210lbs frame might be perfect for the college game, Perkins is going to have to pack on some muscle to allow him to compete against the larger, more pro ready guys in college football. His speed can also get him in trouble as he can drift out of position when he reads an offence wrong and even his elite closing speed can’t save him when he leaves a gap allowing the offence to make a play or negate his effectiveness.

Perkins will likely follow in the footsteps of fellow Tiger Devin White, as the similarities are too obvious to ignore… yes he will be a first round pick and lose out on superbowl MVP due to an ageing star and quarterback bias. In all seriousness, though Harold Perkins is a special player and playing at such a high level as a true freshman isn’t something we see all that often. So remember when you tune into ‘Bama Vs LSU at Death Valley this Saturday, keep an eye on 40 as he has Bryce Young on his toes all game be it in the pocket, scrambling or just trying to avoid the big hit from the young star. It’s going to be special.

Be sure to follow @KieranHorneCFB on Twitter and KieranHorneCFB on YouTube for upcoming videos on the LSU tigers and other college football content.

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F10Y CFB – Week 8 Scouting, LSU vs. Ole Miss

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Week 8 didn’t have too many stand out match ups, but this encounter between LSU and Ole Miss looked like it could be decent on paper, and it certainly was.

I’d seen these teams much earlier in the season, so I was eager to get some eyes back on them and see what they were like now we’re in the thick of conference play.

It certainly seems that LSU have turned a corner and look very much on an upward curve, and even in defeat the Rebels still look like a very talented team that can push the very top of the SEC to their limits.

We’ll start the scouting notes with the very impressive Tigers…

LSU

The quarterback position has been a bit of a struggle for the Tigers since Joe Burrow led them to their greatest ever season.

The fans don’t have to worry anymore though, as Arizona State transfer Jayden Daniels is playing out of his mind right now. He absolutely destroyed the Rebel defense to the tune of 242 yards and two touchdowns through the air, and 121 yards and three scores on the ground.

He has such a calm demeanour about him, stays cool under pressure and takes care of the football, all very important traits to have. He was impressive during his career with the Sun Devils, but he has taken it up another level here in the SEC and this won’t go unnoticed.

There are limitations and question marks when it comes to evaluating him for the NFL.

Like, how much does he actually weigh? Why does he struggle with short touch passes? And, how good of an arm does he actually have?

But as a college quarterback he certainly is an entertaining watch, and he is putting himself into the Heisman trophy conversation too, which isn’t bad for a transfer who wasn’t expected to even win the starting job in the summer.

On the receiving end of Daniels throws should be star wide receiver Kayshon Boutte, but I think it’s fair to say he isn’t having the season that everyone was expecting.

Boutte hasn’t been playing at 100% health wise, and there was a run in with new head coach Brian Kelly before the season, so there are factors to why he is struggling, but right now he looks a shadow of what we saw the past two years.

He had 4 catches for 43 yards in this game, which aren’t big numbers at all, and he did have a drop too, but he was out there blocking his ass off on run plays when bigger ego players might not have bothered.

With a wide open WR1 for the 2023 draft, Boutte is still in that mix, but if the production doesn’t increase he’ll have to wow the scouts in interviews, and with his athletic testing to reach that lofty goal.

The recent Tiger defense’s haven’t always lived up to the levels that their predecessors were famed for, but they always produce NFL talent year in year out.

The 2023 NFL draft will have plenty of Tiger defenders in it, and there’s certainly one who could be a first round pick. EDGE B.J Ojulari is that player with a first round shot, and in this performance against Ole Miss it’s easy to see why. He is the brother of NY Giants EDGE Azeez Ojulari, and they certainly have a very similar style of play.

He is lightning quick out of his stance, can convert speed to power nicely and can dip under and around tackles in the flash of an eye. He isn’t the biggest and can get washed out on some plays, but there’s enough elite talent here to get first round looks, and at worst case he should end up a top 50 pick, just like his brother.

The Tigers other EDGE Ali Gaye is someone I wasn’t as high on as others during summer scouting, and he hadn’t impressed me in the couple of early season games I caught, but he was terrific here and showed why he could be a day two player.

He lacks the athletic traits that his teammate Ojulari has, but Gaye is a much bigger end who defended the run in this game well, and still showed enough as a pass rusher to worry the young Rebel tackles.

Testing will be key for him, but he looked a different beast in this game to what I’d seen previously, and hopefully he can continue to put these types of games on tape. 

LSU knows how to produce cornerbacks, and the next one in line is Louisiana transfer Mekhi Garner.

He was part of a very stingy Ragin’ Cajun defense the last couple of years but decided to make the leap to the SEC and he has shone every time I’ve watched him. He was tested more in this game than my previous watches, but he came through well showing fluid transitions and good route recognition skills, which considering how big he is (6’2 217lbs) is very impressive.

Garner did give up a pass interference call on a quick slant where he was a fraction early on the play, but he really does look the part out there, and if he can answer the question about his long speed with good testing, he has the ability to be a round two guy for me.

It would be wrong if I didn’t mention true freshman Harold Perkins, who is having himself an excellent season. You can tell he is going to be a special player already, and although he is mainly lined up as an EDGE right now, with time you can see him moving inside to a more traditional off ball linebacker.

He could very well be the next Micah Parsons, we’ll just have to wait another couple of years before we get to talk about him in regards to the NFL draft. 

Mississippi

Any Lane Kiffin coached team is exciting to watch, and these Rebels are no different. Defensively they were found out in the second half, but the offense was a fun watch and they were just inches away on a couple of big plays that would have kept them up with LSU.

Quarterback Jaxson Dart is a true sophomore who transferred in from USC in the summer and has impressed so far this season at Ole Miss. He has nice touch, good arm strength and can be creative out of structure. He is also a very capable runner which he displayed in this game too, so a good all round package player.

Dart isn’t afraid to take a chance or two down the field, and that will get you into trouble at times as well, but let’s face it, we’d all prefer that type of quarterback over the boring efficient ones! Certainly a name for next year’s draft, which is shaping up to have quite a few top end QB prospects in it already.

It’s not often you get a transfer between Ole Miss and Mississippi State, but that’s what Wide Receiver Malik Heath has done, and it’s paying off handsomely for him. 

You’d have thought being a receiver in the Bulldogs air raid system would be a better fit for him, but he is having the most productive year of his career in this more balanced Rebel offense, and also showing scouts there’s a more complete receiver profile to him.

Heath is a big, strong pass catcher who displays really good hands and strength at the catch point. There’s a little bit of former Rebel A.J Brown about him, but not as dynamic as the current Eagle is.

He has impressed me every watch so far this season and he may be one of my favourite sleepers at his position for the 2023 NFL draft. 

The Rebel offensive line had struggles in this game, which isn’t surprising considering they were starting two freshman tackles. They do have two highly rated draft eligible guys on this Line, but both are having indifferent seasons.

Former Left Tackle turned Guard Nick Broeker was highly thought of during the summer, but I was never quite as high on him as the consensus was, and I’m still not.

For me, he struggled at tackle the past couple of years, so the move inside to guard was expected, but the level of play still remains inconsistent. There are nice flashes at times but there were so many plays in this game where he was beaten to his set points or just knocked off balance too easily, and it’s a big concern if he is still viewed as a top 100 type player.

I was much higher on former right tackle-turned-guard Jeremy James than most during the summer, but his move inside to guard for me isn’t playing to his strengths, and it’s causing him to slide down boards.

He is excellent in pass protection and staying at tackle would have showcased that more, but inside at Guard he is having to do more of the dirty work.

That said, he did consistently beat up on LSU defensive tackle Jaquelin Roy, who I’m pretty high on, so this tape is still good, I just wish he was out at tackle where I’m pretty sure he’ll be drafted to play in the NFL.

As I said earlier, this Rebel defense was torn to shreds in the second half of this game, but there was one stand out player who needs to get mentioned.

EDGE Jared Ivey is a transfer from Georgia Tech and he has taken the step up in competition to the SEC in his stride.

He has ideal size (6’5 265lbs) and length, and does a nice job rushing the passer from both the traditional outside role, and also inside as a three technique at times too. He has some decent bend to him and isn’t afraid to go through a lineman too if needed with brute strength, so plenty of nice traits to work with. He had a sack in this game, giving him 3.5 on the year so far, which is more than double what he managed in over 600 career snaps at Georgia Tech. Certainly a player on the rise, but as a true junior he may well go back to school to continue his progression and improve his draft stock.


Follow Keith on Twitter – @LordLucken

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Post Mortem Route : Tigers fall to FSU, 23-24

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A heartbreaking blocked extra point probably isn’t the way Brian Kelly envisioned losing his first game at LSU. Credit where credit is due though, Florida State played an amazing game led by their star QB and an amazing haul of transfers who showed out in a big way in a big game. 

Jordan Travis is the Florida man:

In the words of Andy Moore (@AJMoore21 on Twitter) “I told you so”.

I was sceptical of Jordan Travis coming into this game, even with my apprehension regarding LSU’s somewhat shaky secondary, he proved me wrong though and put the rest of college football on notice with an incredible performance that should have the rest of the ACC worried.

With that said the stat line of 260 yards and 2 touchdowns doesn’t really show how good he was all night. With LSU’s elite defensive front coming after him on every play Travis kept cool making plays with his arms and legs. He found Ontaria Wilson in the endzone twice, once with a beautiful flea flicker that left the LSU defence with their hands in their pockets and again when Wilson hauled in a one handed grab for one of the most impressive catches of the week.

Johnny Wilson and Myach Pittman also made their presence felt; seemingly unguardable for a majority of the contest and to round off the Seminoles attack, running back Treshaun Ward was also harder to bring down than Derrick Henry as he went up against one of the best defensive lines in college football. 

Florida State’s defence was also solid, not allowing LSU to get into a rhythm until late with Albany transfer Jarred Verse blowing past the LSU offensive line on almost every play. Verse racked up two sacks, three tackles and enough pressure to suffocate any signal caller out there.

Tatum Bethune and Renardo Green seemed to be everywhere as well, wrapping up LSU players left, right and centre ensuring finding the endzone was almost impossible for the Tigers.

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The All-American underachiever, Kayshon Boutte:

With 2 catches for 20 yards Kayshon Boutte very much disappointed last night especially as he’s the best receiver in college football (in my humble opinion). Boutte looked bothered and lethargic all night but is poised for a big bounceback as the Tigers face southern next week, probably just needed to shake the cobwebs off. 

Jayden Daniel’s looked shaky early behind a bad line, bad snaps and some bad reads. He managed to bounce back as the game progressed becoming the second LSU QB to pass for 200+ yards and rush for 100+ yards in a single game. Daniels found Jaray Jenksins twice for the end zone while hitting Mason Taylor, Brian Thomas Jr. and Malik Nabers as he moved down field. Nabers suffered the wrath of the LSU fan base this morning as his 2 dropped punts allowed FSU to get two scoring opportunities inside the 10 one of which was turned into points.

The LSU defence went exactly as expected, a shaky secondary exploited by a star QB when they should’ve been picking up slack from the offensive line that lost Maason Smith early to an injury and Ali Gaye to one of the most reckless plays I’ve seen from a player in a while. Despite his early trip to the medical tent BJ Ojulari looked solid all game with freshman Harold Perkins getting stuck in early and Senior safety Jay Ward showing his understanding of the defence and leadership skills as he helped control the defence from the secondary early on trying to pick up the slack left by his corners throughout the game. 

Oh and LSU’s kicker struggled, punter looked good though…

A disappointing outing for the new look Tigers but an absolutely stellar performance from FSU, a team I will very much look forward to seeing in the coming weeks. An ACC championship should be their goal now.


For more follow me on YouTube and twitter @KieranHorneCFB

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SEC Preseason All-Conference Team

With the college football season around the corner, it’s time for us to lay a marker down as a team and give you guys an idea of who the very best players in each conference are, and we are going to do that by dropping our all-conference selections for each of the Power-5 conferences.

Since these are quite short and easily digestible, they will be dropping rapid-fire with a couple each day and then we’ll hit you with the second half of our pre-season questions as well.

Here is our SEC All-Conference selection from our guy Will Lane;

Read Will’s Analysis:

A lot of these positions felt like it came down to a coin flip, there are a lot of players to love this season which can make it hard to choose at times.

That is true for most, but definitely not the quarterback position, clearly Bryce Young is the best quarterback in the SEC. Doesn’t feel like much of a debate as the Alabama quarterback is coming off of a Heisman campaign in 2021, there are plenty of talented QBs in the SEC but none of them are like Bryce.

Now at running back it was hard not to pick somebody who goes by the name of Tank Bigsby, that just screams SEC all over it. Just missing this list was Kentucky running back Chris Rodriguez Jr. Next up at wide receiver we have LSU’s Kayshon Boutte and Tennessee’s Cedrick Tillman. Boutte was no debate, and neither was Tillman in all honesty, these two really stand out in 2022. At the flex we have receiver Jermaine Burton, the transfer from Georgia is entering an Alabama system where he will be looking to be their number one guy, he also has the benefit of playing with one of the game’s best in Bryce Young.

Thanks for reading, let us know what you think of this one! Next up will be our Big Ten selection later today.