LSU has changed more than football coaches since Brian Kelly was hired as Ed Orgeron’s replacement.
Since Kelly’s arrival in December, the Tigers have players to the transfer portal, while others have declared for the NFL Draft with eligibility still remaining. LSU has also been active in the portal, adding seven transfers over the past month.
Defensive back Greg Brooks Jr. (West Jefferson), safety Joe Foucha (McDonogh 35), and wide receiver Kyren Lacy (Thibodaux) prepped at Louisiana high schools. Running back Noah Cain is from Baton Rouge.
LSU lost one in-state transfer, offensive lineman O’Cyrus Torrence, to Florida on Jan. 17.
Here are the additions and subtractions to LSU’s roster since Kelly became the coach.
ADDITIONS
Jarrick Bernard-Converse
Position: Cornerback
Previous school: Oklahoma State
Height/Weight: 6-1, 200 lbs.
Breakdown: Bernard-Converse addresses a need at cornerback, where LSU lost three starters from 2021. Derek Stingley Jr. and Cordale Flott declared for the NFLU Draft, while Eli Ricks transferred to Alabama. In four years at Oklahoma State, Bernard-Converse had 195 tackles, four sacks, two interceptions and 24 pass breakups in 49 career games. He has one year of eligibility remaining. A Shreveport-native, Bernard-Converse prepped at Evangel Christian and was part of a state championship team in 2016. He chose OSU over Arizona State, Arkansas, Kansas State and Memphis among others. He was the 45th ranked prospect in Louisiana, per 247Sports.com, for the 2018 class.
Jay Bramblett
Position: Punter
Previous school: Notre Dame
Height/Weight: 6-1, 197 lbs.
Breakdown: Bramblett is the only Notre Dame player to follow Kelly to LSU. Under special teams coordinator Brian Polian, who holds the same title at LSU, Bramblett averaged 43.1 yards per punt with a long of 72 yards last season. He pinned opponents inside the 20-yard line on 16 of his kicks. Bramblett has one year of eligibility left. Avery Adkins, who handled the punting duties in 2021, declared for the NFL Draft. Freshman Peyton Todd, the nation’s top-rated punter in 2021 out of West Monroe, battled injuries last season.
Greg Brooks Jr.
Position: Defensive back
Previous school: Arkansas
Height/Weight: 5-11, 185 lbs.
Breakdown: Brooks, a junior, has two years of eligibility remaining. He was a three-year starter for the Razorbacks at nickelback, where he made 39 career tackles with four interceptions. Brooks fills a position of need at cornerback and the nickel alongside Sage Ryan. Cordale Flott, who started at both positions last season, declared for the NFL Draft. Derek Stingley Jr. also declared for the draft and Eli Ricks transferred to Alabama. Brooks, from Harvey, Louisiana, was the 35th ranked cornerback and 18th overall prospect in Louisiana for the 2019 class.
Noah Cain
Position: Running back
Previous school: Penn State
Height/Weight: 5-10, 220 lbs.
Breakdown: A Baton Rouge-native, Cain returns to his hometown with two years of eligibility. The IMG Academy product ran for 806 yards and 12 touchdowns in three seasons with the Nittany Lions. Cain adds depth to a running back group that includes freshmen Armoni Goodwin and Corey Kiner, junior John Emery Jr. and sophomore Tre Bradford. LSU lost Tyrion Davis-Price, who set the single-game rushing record in 2021, to the NFL Draft. Cain was the sixth-rated running back in the country and 13th ranked player in Florida for the 2019 class.
Joe Foucha
Position: Safety
Previous school: Arkansas
Height/Weight: 5-11, 205 lbs.
Breakdown: Foucha, a New Orleans-native, made eight starts last season and made 133 career tackles for the Razorbacks. He has one year of eligibility left. Foucha gives LSU another experienced safety to pair with senior Jay Ward and freshman Major Burns, who battled injuries in 2021. He was the 21st ranked player in Louisiana and 43rd nationally at his position in the 2018 class. LSU offered Foucha out of high school, alongside Alabama, Auburn, Tennessee and Texas A&M.
Miles Frazier
Position: Offensive tackle
Previous school: Florida International
Height/Weight: 6-6, 321 lbs.
Breakdown: Frazier was the 10th ranked player and second overall offensive tackle in the transfer portal. He earned first-team freshman All-American honors last season. Frazier, who only played in one game in 2020, has three years of eligibility remaining. Offensive line is a pressing need after Chasen Hines and Ed Ingram declared for the NFL Draft. Five-star signee Will Campbell, the No. 1 offensive tackle prospect in the country, enrolled at LSU in January. Cam Wire is the only returning offensive line starter from 2021. A three-star prospect out of Camden, New Jersey, Frazier chose FIU over Bowling Green, Buffalo and Central Michigan.
Mekhi Garner
Position: Cornerback
Previous school: Louisiana-Lafayette
Height/Weight: 6-2, 217 lbs.
Breakdown: A junior, Garner was a two-year starter for the Ragin’ Cajuns after transferring from Navarro (Texas) College. He has two years of eligibility remaining. Garner made 58 career tackles with three interceptions. His size gives LSU another cornerback to line up on the short side of the field in man coverage. Dwight McGlothern, who transferred to Arkansas, filled a similar role for the Tigers over the past two seasons. Garner signed with Navarro out of Poteet High School in Mesquite, Texas in 2018.
Kyren Lacy
Position: Wide receiver
Previous school: Louisiana-Lafayette
Height/Weight: 6-3, 213 lbs.
Breakdown: Lacy, who has two years of eligibility left, caught 50 passes for 668 yards and 10 touchdowns in two seasons with the Ragin’ Cajuns. The Thibodaux-native adds depth to a wide receiver group that could use some. LSU returns Kayshon Boutte, Malik Nabers, Chris Hilton Jr. and Brian Thomas Jr., but the numbers fall off after them. Devonta Lee, Deion Smith, Trey Palmer, Koy Moore and Alex Adams all placed their names in the transfer portal. Lacy was the eighth-best receiver in Louisiana for the 2020 class, also earning offers from Miami, Virginia and Houston. He was a key contributor on Thibodaux High’s 2019 state championship basketball team.
Tre’Mond Shorts
Position: Offensive line
Previous school: East Tennessee State
Height/Weight: 6-4, 326 lbs.
Breakdown: The versatile Shorts can play both center and guard. He anchored the offensive line for an East Tennessee State team that won the Southern Conference and fell to eventual national champion North Dakota State in the FCS quarterfinals. ETSU averaged 213.5 rushing yards per game and allowed 23 sacks in 13 games. LSU is short-handed on the interior with center Liam Shanahan out of eligibility and guards Ed Ingram and Chasen Hines declaring for the NFL Draft. Short took visits to LSU, Mississippi State, Central Florida and North Carolina.
West Weeks
Position: Linebacker
Previous school: Virginia
Height/Weight: 6-2, 205 lbs.
Breakdown: Weeks made 31 tackles as a true freshman at Virginia last season. He has three years of eligibility remaining. Weeks also had five pass break-ups and one fumble recovery. He joins a talented group of linebackers that lost its best player from 2021. Damone Clark, one of the most productive linebackers in LSU history, was a second team All-American and a finalist for the Butkus Award. LSU returns Micah Baskerville, Mike Jones and Greg Penn III. Weeks, from Watkinsville, Georgia, was the 54th-rated prospect in Georgia for the 2021 class.
Mekhi Wingo
Position: Defensive tackle
Previous school: Missouri
Height/Weight: 6-1, 280 lbs.
Breakdown: Wingo made six tackles with one sack and an interception as a freshman in 2021. His most productive stretch was a combined 11-tackle performance in three consecutive games against Tennessee, North Texas and Texas A&M. Wingo has three years of eligibility remaining. Robert Steeples, LSU’s new cornerbacks coach, was Wingo’s high-school coach at De Smet Jesuit in St. Louis, Missouri. LSU must replace defensive tackles Neil Farrell Jr. and Glen Logan from last season. Joseph Evans, who was injured for most of 2021, and Jaquelin Roy return. Maason Smith played defensive tackle and defensive end as a freshman. Wingo was the 74th-rated defensive tackle and the eight overall prospect in Missouri for the 2021 class.
SUBTRACTIONS
Transfer Portal
QB Max Johnson (Texas A&M)
CB Eli Ricks (Alabama)
CB Dwight McGlothern (Arkansas)
WR Trey Palmer (Nebraska)
DL Landon Jackson (Arkansas)
WR Alex Adams (Akron)
WR Deion Smith
WR Koy Moore
WR Devonta Lee
LB Navonteque “Bugg” Strong
LB Nate Harris
DL Eric Taylor
NFL Draft
CB Derek Stingley Jr. (Jr.)
CB Cordale Flott (Jr.)
RB Tyrion Davis-Price (Jr.)
K Cade York (Jr.)
LB Damone Clark (Sr.)
DT Neil Farrell Jr. (Sr.)
OL Ed Ingram (Sr.)
OL Chasen Hines (Sr.)
P/KOS Avery Atkins (Grad. Sr.)
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