Harold Perkins’ position changed again when LSU beat South Carolina, and coach Brian Kelly thought the new spot made the junior linebacker feel “more comfortable.”
After playing weakside linebacker the first two games, Perkins moved to strongside linebacker as LSU switched to a 4-3 defensive front. The change let the Tigers use three linebackers at once against a run-heavy team.
“I thought that there were some good things,” Kelly said. “Things to build on. I thought he started to feel a lot more comfortable. He was in the action a lot more. There's growth there.”
LSU had spent the first two games in a 4-2-5 defense with senior Major Burns at the STAR position. A cross between a nickelback and strongside linebacker, the STAR generally lines up closer to the line of scrimmage. It can blitz, handle underneath zones and play man coverage.
While the STAR and a strongside linebacker can have similar responsibilities, Perkins did not exactly replace Burns, who returned to safety. Burns had only played 10 snaps at the line of scrimmage and 46 inside the box over the first two games, according to Pro Football Focus.
Perkins, on the other hand, played 41 snaps inside the box and 14 on the line of scrimmage against South Carolina, per PFF. The difference in his usage was he also played 13 snaps in the slot after having 11 combined over the first two games.
Perkins also landed at strongside linebacker last season as LSU tried to determine his position. But Kelly noted that while there are similarities to how LSU eventually used him his sophomore year, “it’s not the same” as what he did against South Carolina.
“We're asking him to fit in the box a little bit more than he did last year,” Kelly said.
In the 36-33 win, Perkins finished with three tackles, a tackle for loss, one fumble recovery and a season-high two hurries. He also missed two tackles, including one on South Carolina’s first play that turned into a 17-yard gain.
“There's some things that he'd like back, but I thought by and large he started to feel a lot more comfortable,” Kelly said. “The first glance at it, in terms of where he played, I think we walked away feeling like, 'We made some progress here.'”