After letting Bryce Underwood slip from his grasp. And after doing nothing to make Bo Davis, the defensive line stalwart at his camp. LSU Tigers had opened their off-season with a consecutive string of not-so-pretty headlines. So, moving forward, the LSU head coach, Brian Kelly, had a daunting task of rebuilding. And why would it not?

After all, this was the team in the 2024 season that opened with a defeat by 27-20 and followed it with three more losses. That included the 38-23 thumping of LSU by the Aggies, the 42-13 demolition by Alabama, and lastly, the Gators came and chewed them like raw meat as they ended the game by 27-16. Questions started to come up, and Brian Kelly faced more problems than solutions.

Well, now it seems Brian Kelly is doing everything he can, kitchen-sinking included. This is the case of a football team throwing everything at the wall and hoping some will stick. The Tigers have added a whopping 16 new players to their 2025 roster through transfers, especially their additions for the defensive line and also in the secondary teams. Sure, Kade Phillips and Bryce Underwood’s flipping at the last minute was a loss. But they have patched it up well.

Brian Kelly’s additions, like Bauer Sharp (TE) from Oklahoma, Tamarcus Cooley (Safety) from NC State Wolfpack, and Corner Back Mansoor Delane from Virginia Tech, will provide the added relief Kelly will need. Furthermore, their freshman prospects also look well polished with the 2nd ranked CB DJ Pickett and 1st ranked running back Harlem Berry. However, there’s still the crown jewel amongst all of these additions we haven’t talked about.

Well, that is Josh Thompson, the offensive lineman whose transfer rating is 91 as per ON3 and who was the major starter for Northwestern. This will be the player who will form the wall that Garett Nussmeier will need. Matt Moscona provided the update about when the player will be joining Brian Kelly’s camp.

“Northwestern is on a quarterly system, similar actually to Stanford and some other high-level academic institutions. So Josh Thompson is still in Evanston at Northwestern, completing his bachelor’s degree; so again, unlike LSU, Northwestern’s on a quarter system, so he’ll complete his coursework, and then exams are expected to end at Northwestern according to their academic calendar on March 21st. It is my understanding that after he finishes exams on March 21st, then he will be at LSU.“

This is the player who was a junior last year and will be joining as a senior for one last year at LSU. In the 2024 season, he started 9 games and was featured in one more later. He is also a top prospect because, in the 2024 season, he played both as a guard and tackle and was involved in 94 offensive snaps in the final game against Illinois and didn’t allow a single sack in almost 420 pass-blocking opportunities. So, folks, this player looks like the real deal in all aspects. As to the timeline thing. LSU will be having a total of 15 spring practices, and according to Moscona, he will be involved in at least 7 of them. Now, let’s come on to the backup QB problem for Brian Kelly.

Is there a quarterback problem for Brian Kelly?

Well, we all know that the 2025 season will be the last for Garrett Nussmeier. A lot has been expected from the player, who had a very eventful 2024 season. He threw for 4,052 yards at a 64.2% pass completion rate. Still, there were problems, too. For instance, he had 16 sacks, and LSU ranked 23rd in sacks per game nationally. In any case, this will be the final season that will set the tone for his NFL dreams. But he still will need a QB2 to take the pressure in moments or times when he is down with an injury.

Colin Hurley, the freshman quarterback, was touted to be the backup for Garrett, but he recently suffered a tragic car accident. Brian Kelly talked about the recovery of the player and when we could see him in the roster practicing.”I’ve been there to see him on multiple occasions,” Kelly said. “He’s back in Jacksonville. I talked to his dad yesterday, and it’s really positive. There’s a recovery process there for him”. Furthermore, Matt Moscona also said that the player would not be featured in the Spring games. What does this mean, then?

This essentially means that someone else will need to step up for the practice drills. Michael Van Buren is an option who recently transferred from Mississippi State. But there’s another option too in Ja’ Juan Johnson, who is being pondered by Kelly. And has the potential to reach the skies if an opportunity is presented.