LSU Football: Meet Freshman Linebacker Whit Weeks, An Emerging Star
LSU linebacker Whit Weeks is living the dream as a true freshman starting in the SEC, and after bursting onto the scene in the blink of an eye, he's eager for more.
The youngster filled in for Omar Speights in Week 3 against Mississippi State once Speights was ruled out with a hip flexor injury and carried his success into Week 4 after earning the nod once again.
It's been a meteoric rise for the first-year Tiger and he's living in the moment every step of the way.
Emerging as a Star
Weeks is a small town kid where the entire city knew who he was growing up, but making the move to Baton Rouge provided him a chance to press the restart button.
That was, until now.
"It's changed a lot because not a lot of people knew who I was before I played against Mississippi State. It's different for sure because back home, I'm from a small town. Everybody kinda knew who I was," Weeks said. "It was cool coming here. Nobody knew who I was, and now people are kinda starting to notice me."
Why LSU?
Weeks wasn't a highly-rated prospect coming out of high school but he was certainly a coveted recruit. In-state Georgia made its push for the talented linebacker with others lining up as well, but one visit to Death Valley had Weeks know where he wanted to be.
"I think the first visit I took here was in March of my junior year. They took me into that room — I don't even know what it's called. It's like a theater, and there's eight nice seats in there," Weeks said. "They're playing the hype video and it's loud and there's a supper big bass. I was like, 'Holy smokes, playing in Death Valley would be the coolest thing ever.'
I was like, 'That's why I'm going. I'm going for that experience right there. That's the best two hours of your life.' And then experiencing that in Death Valley last Saturday was just mind-blowing. I'm still just in shock of how awesome that was."
WATCH: LSU LB Whit Weeks discusses his rise up the depth chart, first start, his brother's guidance and more:
The First Start
Weeks' life certainly changed after his first start against Mississippi State in Week 3. The true freshman provided a spark at the second-level of defense and gave this unit life.
It was a morning full of emotions before taking the field but a stretch Weeks will remember for the rest of his life.
"Throughout the week, I knew that I was getting the nod because Omar [Speights] was already out and I was getting all the reps," Weeks said. "But I couldn't think about it during the week because I was like, 'If I think about it, I'm not going to be able to sleep.' Throughout the whole week, I put it in the back of my mind. I was like, 'Just go do your job at practice and don't think about 'Oh my gosh, you're a freshman starting the first SEC game of the year.'
"I didn't even think about it, and the day before the game, I was sitting in the hotel, and I was like, 'Holy smokes, this is real. I'm about to do this.' Before the game, I remember warming up I was all excited. Then we were about to run out onto the field, and you could just hear the cowbells and everything just vibrating in the locker room. I was like, 'All right, let's do it.'"
Small Town Kid, Big City Dreams
It's been a meteoric rise for Weeks. A small town Georgia kid who's been thrown in the fire of SEC ball right before LSU's schedule ramps up, he's living in the moment.
The people back home are just as ecstatic as he is and he couldn't be happier to represent his hometown.
"It's awesome. I got so many texts from people, from mentors, from my friends' parents, my friends and they're like, 'Holy cow, I'm seeing you on TV.' I was like: 'I know! It's pretty cool!'"
Now, Weeks continues his rise as the true freshman looks to get his third consecutive start when the Tigers travel to Oxford to take on Lane Kiffin and the Ole Miss Rebels.
