LSU cornerback Ashton Stamps (26) drags down wide receiver Aaron Anderson (1) after the catch for a short gain at the National L Club Spring Game on Saturday, April 13, 2024 at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. LSU cornerback Ashton Stamps (26) makes the stop on Texas A&M wide receiver Ainias Smith (0) in the fourth quarter on Saturday, November 25, 2023 at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Cornerback Ashton Stamps (1) huddles with the defense during LSU football practice on Tuesday, August 13, 2024.
After starting the final three games of his freshman season, LSU cornerback Ashton Stamps was determined over the spring and summer to make sure it wasn’t just a cameo appearance. Judging by the review he received Wednesday from Brian Kelly, it’s apparent the first two weeks of preseason camp were exactly how Stamps envisioned it going coming off his first season with the Tigers. Buoyed by the return to LSU of secondary coach Corey Raymond and the aggressive, attacking scheme of new defensive coordinator Blake Baker, Stamps is definitely in his element playing man-to-man and pressing wide receivers coming off the line of scrimmage.
In other words, he’s quickly made himself at home as the Tigers’ top cornerback and a likely starter for the opener with Southern Cal since the first snap of preseason practice on Aug. 1. That morning, the Archbishop Rummel High School graduate staked his claim to the position with an interception along the sideline in a 7-on-7 drill.
But, it clearly hasn’t been his only highlight in camp. “The report I got this morning on my desk was his man coverage was pretty good relative to balls defended in camp,” Kelly said. “You ask any corner, they all want to play man (coverage).
There’s not a corner that wants to play in zone coverage; they’re best at (man) and that’s good, right? “You want that kind of mentality. Defended balls, pass breakups, his numbers were best in camp. So I think he feels comfortable being out there.
” Stamps is feeling that way because of the change to Baker’s scheme after some horrible results a year ago. LSU ranked 13th in the Southeastern Conference and 115th out of 130 FBS teams in allowing 255.6 yards passing per game.
Stamps hopes to make those numbers drop dramatically with a better understanding of the game and help from Raymond, a longtime LSU assistant coach who was brought back by Kelly in January after spending the past two seasons at Florida. “Just understanding football, slowing down the game, just being a pro,” Stamps said of how his game has improved since LSU’s New Year’s Day win over Wisconsin in the ReliaQuest Bowl. “It’s gone really well, but I’ve still got a lot of stuff to work on,” he said.
“I'm nowhere near where I could be with my potential, so I'll just keep working. I’m not worrying about the past or the future, I’m worried about right now.” Stamps is coming off a choppy first season in which he opened a lot of eyes in the preseason.
He was a backup for the first few games before injuries and suspensions to other cornerbacks thrust him into a starting role for the Ole Miss game in late September. But injuries struck him as well, causing him to miss two games, before he was able to start the final three games — with Stamps and the Tigers winning them all. “He’s moving well, he’s pain-free,” Kelly said of what he’s seen in Stamps.
“He had some nagging injuries last year, so I just think he feels confident out there. “He’s stronger. He’s had a real good year in the weight room and I think his confidence is high that he can play in the SEC against the very best because he goes against them every day.
” Allowing his secondary to play free and fast is another thing that Stamps is comfortable with in the scheme the excitable and energetic Baker has brought to LSU. “Just being free allows you to do freakish things, like you’ve got time to process what the offense is about to do, what the receiver is about to do,” Stamps said. “He’s going to make us push, he’s going to have us aggressive, just fighting.
” That means more man coverage than they played a year ago, which he said is right up his alley. “It's the SEC, that's what you gotta do,” Stamps said of the challenge. “You gotta cover receivers.
I feel like that’s the best part of my game ...
I like being hands-on with somebody, going at it with them. That’s just what I do.” While not looking too far into the future, Stamps likes what Raymond has done with cornerbacks in his previous stint at LSU from 2012-21.
Most recently, Derek Stingley was the third overall pick of the 2022 NFL draft, Cordale Flott was selected in the third round that year and Kristian Fulton went in the second round in 2020. “It’s a good feeling to be coached by somebody that’s put people like that in the league,” Stamps said. “So, just being able to pick up stuff from coach Raymond is big.
” And, it's definitely showing..
