When it lined up for its first snap of the season, the LSU defense contained a surprise. It had not given one of its first-team cornerback spots to the incumbent starter, the prized five-star freshman or the third-year transfer it plucked from a Southeastern Conference rival.

The job belonged to PJ Woodland , the true sophomore who joined the No. 3 Tigers (1-0) last season as a lightly recruited, undersized three-star prospect.

Why start Woodland against Clemson? Why start him over more experienced LSU corners?

“Well, he earned it,” coach Brian Kelly said Wednesday.

In doing so, Woodland jumped two or three rungs up the cornerback ladder that LSU used to begin preseason practices, proving the Tigers have more depth in the secondary than they’ve ever had in Kelly’s four-year tenur

See Full Page