This Position Group Will Be Key In Top 10 Clemson vs LSU Clash

When making Week 1 predictions and analysis, there tends to be a question that many turn to: What do we already know about these teams?

For Clemson and LSU, a question of interest will be both teams’ offensive lines, which seem to be on opposite sides of the spectrum in terms of the question mentioned above. 

To begin, let’s look at the Tigers from the Upstate. Four of five starters return from a season ago, except for Marcus Tate, who was the team’s left guard. This leaves left tackle Tristan Leigh, center Ryan Linthicum, right guard Walker Parks and right tackle Blake Miller, who have all seen at least 1,000 snaps on the offensive side of the ball.

Tristan Leigh: 32 games, 23 starts, 1,587 snaps

Ryan Linthicum: 23 games, 14 starts, 1,085 snaps

Walker Parks: 53 games, 42 starts, 2,810 snaps

Blake Miller: 41 games, 41 starts, 2,893 snaps

Clemson finished 57th in the country in sacks allowed with 25 across 14 games, having the same amount allowed as the Georgia Bulldogs. However, with another year of development under Matt Luke, that number has a very good chance to go down this season, barring everyone staying healthy for the majority of the season. 

To fill Tate’s spot, head coach Dabo Swinney has remarked on a few players who could move around and take the position. Redshirt sophomore Collin Sadler and junior Harris Sewell have seen plenty of time at each position, especially in the team’s 2023 season that saw most of its line depleted. Sadler has recorded 683 snaps across the line, while Sewell has 1,007 under his belt. 

Sophomore Elyjah Thurmon, who saw the field in eight games last year got the call at times before he suffered a season-ending injury against Pittsburgh. 

Even with all this, Swinney has been “cross-training: various rotational players, like Thurmon, Sadler and Sewell, as well as starters, like Parks at the center position, to play multiple positions on the line if it is needed. 

On the flip side, LSU will look to fill a line that only allowed 15 sacks throughout the entire season, putting them in the top 20 in the country. It allowed for the extended success of quarterback Garrett Nussmeier, who now enters 2025 as one of the top returning quarterbacks in the country. 

However, head coach Brian Kelly saw most of his line stripped away. His two tackles, Will Campbell Jr. and Emery Jones, were selected in the first and third rounds, respectively, of the 2025 NFL Draft. His guards, Miles Frazier and Garrett Dellinger, have both run out of eligibility and cannot return this season.

That leaves one player, the center, DJ Chester, as the only player who returns. The redshirt sophomore saw 1,006 total snaps with the team while playing a majority of the season at center, a position that he wasn’t recruited for. He could also play different positions around the line. 

With Kelly’s additions in the portal, Chester is expected to move back to left guard, while Virginia Tech transfer Braelin Moore will be the primary snapper in the middle of the line. Moore recorded 757 snaps with the Hokies and started in all 12 games last season. 

Right guard Josh Thompson was another transfer pickup from Northwestern. The fifth-year senior did not allow a sack in his last 18 games for the Wildcats and added 1,429 snaps of experience, which is the most by any lineman in the LSU room. 

The question marks will arise on the outside. Expected left tackle, Tyree Adams, saw 139 snaps on offense a season ago. While offensive line coach Brad Davis speaks highly of the 6-foot-7, 310-pound lineman, the redshirt freshman has big shoes to fill from Campbell, who was the No. 4 overall pick in this year’s draft. 

Right tackle will most likely be Weston Davis, who only saw 20 offensive snaps last season. While he was a five-star recruit in the 2024 class, the question will be if he can take the next step at a developmental position in his sophomore season. 

With nothing permanent with the line, Kelly even said that there could be as many as seven or eight offensive linemen that play against the Tigers this weekend, saying in his press conference on Monday. 

Comparing Clemson’s offensive line to LSU's experience, as well as the chemistry, will favor the home team in this situation. Although there is a long season ahead for Kelly’s team to gel, facing the likes of junior standouts T.J. Parker and Peter Woods in the opening week will be a tall task. 

Despite all this, Kelly believes that his unit has the capability to be elite. 

"I've coached for a long time,” Kelly said. “Had a lot of guys in the NFL. A lot of first-round draft picks. I think I've got a pretty good eye for what an offensive line looks like. This group is going to be really good...we have five guys that play well together."

With the game being played at Memorial Stadium on Saturday night, communication on that offensive line will dictate how much Nussmeier and this LSU team will be able to do on offense, making it one of the most important position groups to watch this weekend. 

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