LSU Football: The most underrated player in Tigers’ 2020 signing class

LSU football signed a tremendous class during the 2020 recruiting cycle.

LSU football added a lot of great playmakers during the 2020 recruiting cycle.

Names like Arik Gilbert, Elias Ricks, Kayshon Boutte and Jaquelin Roy headlined the class.

The Tigers’ 2020 class, however, isn’t just made up of those four elite names. There are 18 other players that signed with LSU during the last recruiting cycle. And they’ll all be important players for Ed Orgeron and the Tigers.

But there’s one specific player that I think is particularly underrated.

Four-star linebacker Antoine Sampah, who signed with LSU over offers from Alabama, Clemson, Florida, Ohio State and Virginia Tech, among many others.

Sampah, 6-foot-2/220 lbs from Woodbridge, VA, was rated in 247Sports’ composite rankings as the No. 2 player in the state of Virginia and the No. 6 inside linebacker in the nation.

Those rankings don’t exactly scream “underrated”, but I think Sampah is a player that will be a star in the SEC.

The Virginia native is an ideal middle linebacker in a 4-3 scheme, which means he should be a perfect fit in Bo Pelini’s defense.

Sampah, who will obviously be behind Damone Clark and others on the depth chart to start his college career, has the skillset and intelligence to be the quarterback of the Tigers’ defense.

247Sports national recruiting analyst Brian Dohn described Sampah as an “ideal inside linebacker”. Dohn also noted that Sampah is “quick to diagnose plays and move downhill”, adding that Sampah possesses “closing speed” and can be an “effective interior blitzer”.

If Sampah can prove to be capable in coverage, he’ll have all the traits to dominate for the Tigers.

Dohn compared Sampah to NFL linebacker Christian Kirksey, who spent six seasons with the Cleveland Browns before being released earlier this month.

Every position on the football field is important. But on the defensive side of the ball, there’s nothing more important than the guy making all the calls.

Sampah is going to be that guy for LSU. It might not happen in 2020, due to his lack of experience. But eventually he’s going to be a force in the middle of the field for the Tigers.