LSU linebacker Harold Perkins Jr. (4) jogs across the field before the National L Club Spring Game on Saturday, April 13, 2024 at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. – If could do the 2023 season over again, one thing he’d do differently, he said Monday, is tie down and tell him to eat more.
Kelly envisions a future for Perkins as an NFL inside linebacker. But to make that vision a reality, the star junior first needed to bulk up, adding muscle to his 6-foot-1 frame so he could better withstand the punishment he’d take in the box and around the line of scrimmage. “You can't play inside linebacker at 210 pounds,” Kelly said.
“Well, you say you can, but you can't, because you just can't hold up inside.” Kelly estimated at Monday’s Southeastern Conference media days that Perkins put on about 15 pounds this offseason to better prepare him for his back to the heart of LSU’s defense. Now, Kelly said, he weighs around 225 pounds.
The added weight could help LSU find a more consistent role for Perkins, already one of the top defenders in the SEC. As a freshman, Perkins played limited snaps as a specialty pass rusher. He’d careen off the edge, using his speed to glide past opposing tackles and his strength to disrupt quarterbacks in the pocket.
Even in a limited role, he tallied 7.5 sacks and 13 tackles for loss. But Perkins didn’t make the same impact in his sophomore season.
He started the season as an inside linebacker, but LSU abandoned that experiment a.