LSU has won three national championships, five Southeastern Conference titles, and four head coaches have come and gone since the Tigers have had an offensive lineman taken in the first round of the NFL Draft.
It will happen Thursday night in the draft (7 p.m., ESPN, NFL Network, ABC) as LSU’s Will Campbell (6-foot-6, 319 pounds) is expected to go in the top five or 10 picks of the first round and most likely to New England with the fourth overall pick after starting for three fabulous seasons at left tackle for LSU.
“He’s a great fit with the Patriots,” NFL Draft expert Mike Detillier of WWL Radio told Tiger Rag Radio this week. “He’s a culture changer. He’s been a terrific player for three years. He will be a fantastic NFL player at left tackle.”
Campbell, who came to LSU from Neville High in Monroe as a four-star prospect ranked No. 66 nationally and No. 9 at tackle by 247sports.com, will be the first LSU offensive lineman to go in the first round since Alan Faneca of John Curtis High in the New Orleans area in 1998. Pittsburgh took Faneca, now 48, with the 26th pick, and he played there through 2007 with a Super Bowl title in the 2005 season. He went into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 2021 after finishing his career with the Jets in 2008-09 and Arizona in 2010.
“Well, they will Thursday night,” Detillier said. “And I think he goes No. 4 to New England.”
Other LSU players expected to be drafted are tight end Mason Taylor in the second round with an outside chance at late in the first round, offensive tackle Emery Jones Jr. in the late second or third round, defensive end Bradyn Swinson in the third round or early second, guard Miles Frazier in round three and defensive end Sai’vion Jones in the fourth or late third. Running back Josh Williams and guard Garrett Dellinger possibly could go in the later rounds of the seven-round draft.
Draft coverage continues Friday with the second and third rounds at 6 p.m. Friday on the NFL Network, ESPN and ABC and the fourth-through-seventh rounds on Saturday at 11 a.m.
“Miles Frazier is a surprise guy,” Detillier said. “He might go a lot higher than people think. Miles Frazier really played well last year. You could see his growth last year as an offensive guard. He has played some tackle, but really you’re looking at an inside guy. He probably goes in round three. Bradyn Swinson until last year was in the witness protection agency at Oregon and then at LSU. Then the light came on. Don’t be surprised to see him go late in round two or very early in round three.”
Taylor has also risen of late.
“He catches the ball so smoothly,” Detillier said. “Is a rugged runner after the reception. Has gotten better as a blocker. He’s not great there. There’s been some buzz by some teams for late in round one. I have him as a very early second-round pick. Sai’vion (6-6, 280) is a little light for defensive end. He hasn’t played linebacker. But on the field, he gives you everything he’s got. I would look at him as a third or early fourth round. He’s made great strides with his technical skills.”
LSU has had 19 offensive linemen taken since Faneca:
1999 – Center Todd McClure, 7th round to Atlanta.
2001 – Brandon Winey, 6th round to Miami, Louis Williams, 7th round to Carolina.
2004 – Stephen Peterman, 3rd round to Dallas.
2006 – Andrew Whitworth, 2nd round to Cincinnati.
2009 – Herman Johnson, 5th round to Arizona.
2011 – Joseph Barksdale, 3rd round to Oakland.
2014 – Trae Turner, 3rd round to Carolina.
2016 – Jerald Hawkins, 4th round to Pittsburgh, and Vadal Alexander, 7th to Oakland.
2017 – Ethan Pocic, 2nd round to Seattle.
2018 – Will Clapp, 7th round to New Orleans.
2020 – Damien Lewis, 3rd round to Seattle, Lloyd Cushenberry, 3rd round to Denver, Saahdiq Charles, 4th round to Washington.
2022 – Ed Ingram, 2nd round to Minnesota, Austin Deculus, 6th round to Houston, Chasen Hines, 6th round to New England.
2023 – Anthony Bradford, 4th round to Seattle.
“It has not been an area where they had a lot of those type of guys,” Detillier said. “They struggled to get the offensive linemen they were recruiting, especially under coach O (Ed Orgeron). And now, it looks like a strength from what Brian Kelly has done. You’re going to have two offensive linemen selected in the top 100 (Campbell and Jones).”
That has not happened since Lewis and Cushenberry went as draft picks 69 and 83 in 2020 in the third round.
In February, there was chatter that Campbell’s reach was not long enough, which has been ridiculed in some circles.
“It’s these analytical geeks who haven’t watched Will Campbell play one game, OK,” Detillier said. “You get caught up with a lot of that stuff from people who never watch college football.”
Campbell called the criticism of his reach something more than a reach last month.
“For two years, nobody had any measurements on me, and nobody said anything about my play,” he said. “So now, all of a sudden, arm length decides if I’m a good player or not? I think it’s B.S.”
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