LSU Tigers

BATON ROUGE, La. -- With the 2012-2013 school year winding down, the members of the LSU signing class of 2013 should be arriving on campus soon for summer workouts. The Tigers brought in eight early enrollees in the spring and 19 more will come this summer.

Here's how we see them fitting in.

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LAKE CHARLES, La. -- If one drives down West McNeese Street in Lake Charles, a town of about 75,000 people in Louisiana's southwest corner, you can't help but notice the "Brag Board" at Barbe High School's baseball field.

It mentions the six state championships the Bucs have won in Louisiana Class 5A, all since 1998. It talks about the program's numerous national rankings and its distinction of being named one of the nation's 10 best programs in the 2000s by Baseball America Magazine.

Cross the street to Barbe's football field and you'll see a beautiful prep facility, but it lacks that brag board.

Barbe, you see, is a noted baseball power, first and foremost.

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BATON ROUGE, La. -- GeauxTigerNation writer Gary Laney took your questions:

From Joseph (Pacific Northwest): It seems that the (LSU) strategy to employ a no huddle offense is designed to keep dangerous defensive personnel groups off the field, or mitigate the pass rush through exhaustion, on passing downs. As a northwesterner now, I have had to live through the incessant touting by Oregon fans of the invincibility of their vaunted high-speed offense. Needless to say, a defense with equal speed and superior size has been Oregon's undoing (OSU, Auburn, LSU, Stanford); there are several defenses like these in the SEC, and on LSU's 2013 schedule. Is trouble brewing?

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BATON ROUGE, La. -- So far, neither junior college transfer in LSU's 2013 signing class has become the obvious starter at their positions.

On the other hand, it looks like the six freshmen who entered college early might already be reaping some rewards from their early entry.

Here is a look at how LSU's eight new players have done after three weeks of spring.

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In recruiting, there's always that guy that emerges that the typical recruiting follower might have known little about.

For LSU, a year ago it was Kevin Spears, the basketball player-turned-wide receiver who signed with the Tigers after a huge senior season at New Orleans Holy Cross High School.

This year? The candidate might be tight end Kendall Ardoin (Ville Platte, La./Ville Platte) who might the late bloomer.

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BATON ROUGE, La. -- When LSU hired Cam Cameron as its new offensive coordinator, tight end Travis Dickson had reason to be excited.

Cameron's reputation for using tight ends in the passing offense preceded him.

"I heard, then I looked into it myself," Dickson said. "And once I saw (the offense) my mind was blown. I couldn't wait to start spring (practice)."

Cameron's offense did, indeed, employ tight ends more in the passing game, not so much because Cameron has a particular infinity for the position where he has enjoyed coaching talent like Antonio Gates and Dennis Pitta, Dickson said. He said it's because Cameron is position agnostic and will cater the offense to its strengths.

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BATON ROUGE, La. -- How deep is the football talent in Louisiana?

Consider this: Every football bowl subdivision (FBS) conference in the nation has had a least two Louisiana players sign letters of intent with its member schools for the 2013 recruiting cycle, according to the ESPN database of recruits.

Louisiana high schools sent 92 players to 29 FBS programs, the data shows. Players will spread from coast to coast, with players at Stanford (wide receiver Taijuan Thomas) and Miami (tight end Standish Dobard). And they will play as far north as Kent State and as far south as Hawaii.

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BATON ROUGE, La. -- There's a perception in Louisiana that as long as LSU puts a recruiting fence around the state, so to speak, the Tigers will have a top 10-15 team annually.

There is truth to this notion, but also some exaggeration.

In most years, there are positions where LSU might feel compelled to leave the state to fill the need.

So that makes the 2014 class that much more remarkable.

Save quarterback, one can find major prospects in Louisiana at every position. This is a year when LSU can sign a great class without leaving the state. Here's how:

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BATON ROUGE, La. -- It's not official yet, but it looks like LSU will probably soon have a new offensive coordinator in Cam Cameron.

For an offense not known for its passing game, it's an interesting choice,

Known as a follower of the "Air Coryell" offense popularized by Don Coryell's late-70s San Diego Chargers teams, Cameron has a history with successful quarterbacks. At Michigan, he tutored future NFL quarterbacks Elvis Grbac and Todd Collins as QB coach from 1990-93, working alongside Michigan assistant coach Les Miles. With the Washington Redskins, he coached Gus Frerotte to his only Pro Bowl.

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GeauxTigerNation took your questions via Twitter, Facebook and email for DeSean Smith, the ESPN 150 tight end who will sign with LSU on Wednesday.

Here's a little background: Smith, a 6-foot-5 hybrid tight end, played in a wide-open passing offense at Lake Charles (La.) Barbe. Smith, and Barbe, put up big numbers and he impressed with his length, speed for his size and remarkable hands.

Here are your questions and the answers from a "hungry and humble" Smith:

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Nebraska tight end commit Cethan Carter plays basketball for Metairie (La.) Archbishop Rummel, so he might be comfortable with the full-court pressure he's receiving from a local school.

"LSU has been recruiting him hard," Rummel coach Jay Roth said. "They've been by to see him a lot."

The three-star tight end committed to Nebraska Jan. 17 after a visit to Lincoln the previous weekend. At the time he had offer from LSU, but it was just a grayshirt offer.

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BATON ROUGE, La. -- The last time LSU had anything close to a high-powered passing offense was back in its last national championship season, 2007, with Matt Flynn at quarterback.

Since then, the Tigers have consistently had, at best, mediocre passing numbers, a trend they hope to snap next season in Zach Mettenberger's senior year at quarterback. Whether that happens remains to be seen. One thing that's clear, however, is that the Tigers have invested heavily to try to improve the passing game in the future.

The 2013 class will finish with four receivers, two tight ends and two quarterbacks, nearly a third of the class devoted to an improved ability to pitch and catch.

"It's exciting," said tight end DeSean Smith (Lake Charles, La./Barbe)," the highest-rated of the eight players by ESPN. "When we look at our class, we think we can do a lot with three wide receiver sets and maybe four and we can even get one or two tight ends in as part of that."

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BATON ROUGE, La. -- With national signing day two weeks away, LSU is close to the finish line, but the Tigers still have some big names they are after:

Team needs: LSU was decimated on the defensive line by graduation and early NFL draft entrees.

The Tigers will be without six of the nine defensive linemen who played the majority of the snaps, including three potential first-round NFL draft picks, led by lightning-quick speed-rushing end Barkevious Mingo.

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