LSU Football: Junior linebacker putting in extra work to be great

LSU football’s Damone Clark is poised for a big season.

Junior linebacker Damone Clark will have a big opportunity for LSU football in 2020, as he’s expected to be one of the Tigers’ starting linebackers in Bo Pelini’s new 4-3 base defense.

Clark, a former four-star recruit who signed with LSU during the 2018 recruiting cycle, is an extremely versatile linebacker that can play inside or outside for the Tigers.

That’s important, considering LSU lost all four of the starting linebackers from their 2019 championship team. K’Lavon Chaisson, Michael Divinity, Jacob Phillips, and Patrick Queen all left Baton Rouge for the NFL, leaving a massive void in the middle of the defensive depth chart for the Tigers.

Clark, who played in all 15 games for LSU last season and totaled 50 tackles, should start on the inside for LSU in 2020 — though the Tigers won’t always be in a traditional 4-3 look (Pelini likes to mix things up a bit). Regardless of where Clark plays, he’ll be ready.

Clark has been putting in the time to be great for LSU football

LSU head coach Ed Orgeron was quick to praise Clark on Tuesday morning during an appearance on 104.5 ESPN in Baton Rouge.

Coach O noted that Clark has been spending Saturdays watching film on his own time (via Brooks Kubena).

Watching film is of utmost importance for inside linebackers. Part of what makes a linebacker great is their ability to quickly diagnose plays. The great ones are able to tell whether a play is a pass or a run in a split-second. That doesn’t happen without extensive film study.

The Tigers lost a lot of productive players to the NFL, but it sounds like Orgeron and Pelini should be able to plug in a guy like Clark into the defense without missing a beat.