Tiger Watch: Five LSU players to watch out for against Utah State

Chaisson, Fulton headline players to watch against Utah State

The Tigers final non-conference matchup of the year is now 48 hours from kickoff. The visiting Utah State Aggies sport one of the best quarterbacks the Tigers will see all year in Jordan Love, who is already receiving first round pick buzz around the nation.

No. 4 LSU might have a few tricks up its sleeves with some potential movement in the secondary and the return of a few key members of the pass rushing unit. Here are five players Tiger fans should have their eye on this weekend.

Kristian Fulton (senior defensive back)

Over the bye week, the Tigers experimented with moving Fulton from the outside cover corner to the nickel safety spot, where he could primarily cover the slot receiver. The middle of the field has been an area where LSU has struggled this year.

By putting one of its lockdown corners in the middle of the field, it could put a plug in the problem. Coach Ed Orgeron has stressed continuously that any change would only come in certain coverages they may see and not a permanent move.

"Looked good, I think we'll continue to look at it this week," Orgeron said of Fulton's slot performance. "Against certain sets you may say it."

Because modern day offenses are so effective in utilizing the slot position, it would make sense for LSU to exhaust every possible option by putting a cover corner there instead of a safety or linebacker. The Tigers, for example moved Justin Jefferson to the slot this year and it's paid dividends as the junior has racked up 392 yards and five touchdowns in four games this season.

In turn, it would allow freshman Cordale Flott to get more experience on the outside as the coaching staff is very bullish on his potential and production thus far.

Cordale Flott (freshman defensive back)

The other beneficiary of Fulton's potential move to nickel safety is the freshman Flott, who has seen work in all four games this season and registered four tackles with a pass breakup.

Flott has been impressing the coaching staff dating back to fall camp. Flott got a good taste of SEC action against Vanderbilt when Kristian Fulton left the game for a few series due to discomfort in his shoulder. Flott registered two tackles against the Commodores and has continued to earn the respect of his teammates since.

Just ask junior safety Grant Delpit. 

"Coach [Dave] Aranda has the confidence to put him in the game," Delpit said. "That says he's been balling which is huge. All of our freshmen corners have been balling so him getting that opportunity is huge."

Ed Ingram (sophomore guard)

With now two weeks of practice under his belt since being reinstated, sophomore guard Ed Ingram could make his return on Saturday in a reserve role. Some of that has to do with senior Adrian Magee, who has shown improvement in his first four games of 2019 at left guard.

Some of it, according to Orgeron, is Ingram is still working his way back into football shape and is not ready to handle a 60 or 80 play game.

"He was very physical and he was in good shape," Orgeron said Monday. "Still has some conditioning, football conditioning left to do. I don't know if he's ready to go 60, 80 plays without a break. I wouldn't say that. Normally he would be. We're going to see how he does this week but it was good to have him back."

A healthy and in shape Ingram is one of if not the best offensive linemen on the LSU team. As a freshman in 2017, Ingram appeared in all 13 games, getting the start at right guard for 12 of those games, playing more than 700 snaps.

That kind of experience should be utilized and it will be interesting to see how much the coaching staff will ease him back into a game situation on Saturday against Utah State.

K'Lavon Chaisson (sophomore outside linebacker)

During his Wednesday night radio show, Orgeron let the cat out of the bag, saying that Chaisson would be making his return Saturday after a two game absence due to an ankle injury suffered against Texas. 

"K'Lavon Chaisson looks like he's gonna play. I'm going to start him," Orgeron said on his weekly radio show. "It looks like he's ready to go. He went through all the drills this week. So that's very good news for us."

It's been a battle for the sophomore, who is without a doubt the best pass rusher on the team, because of the two injuries he's sustained this season coming off a torn acl in 2018.

With Chaisson back in the fold, LSU is hoping the pass rush can really take off, as the front seven has been down four starters over the recent weeks and quarterback pressure has been hard to come by. Orgeron said Chaisson looks 'a lot better' as he's been able to participate in all practices with no limitations this week.

Rashard Lawrence (senior defensive end)

Another positive development along the defensive line was revealed Wednesday night as Orgeron also hinted that senior Rashard Lawrence is 'probable' for Saturday's game against Utah State.

In two games this season, Lawrence has two tackles, a sack and a fumble recovery.

This comes as a pleasant surprise as earlier this week Orgeron was hesitant to say whether or not Lawrence would be able to suit up against the Aggies. The senior participated in practice Monday and Tuesday and despite a "minor setback" on Wednesday, Orgeron believes he could be ready to go.

With potential first round quarterback Jordan Love coming to town, the Tigers will feel more confident about their pass rush with both Lawrence and Chaisson back in the fold. It's now known at this time how many snaps the two will see, particularly since they haven't played in a game in nearly a month.