Whit Weeks, Harold Perkins Jr., Jacobian Guillory, and Chris Hilton Jr. Guess what’s common amongst these LSU players as they played for the team in the 2024 season? All of them are coming back from multiple injury issues and are expected to make a full recovery as fall camp has started. Now, the return of these 4 players is undoubtedly optimistic, but it seems Brian Kelly still has to navigate the injury concerns of two other players now.

Whit Weeks, who is expected to be the starting linebacker for the team, dislocated his ankle and fractured his tibia against Baylor last year. The injury was also concerning since the guy was the leader in solo tackles in the SEC (61) and was crucial for Brian Kelly’s plans for the 2025 season. Apart from Weeks, Harold Perkins, having torn his right ACL against UCLA, was also doubtful, having recorded 17 tackles last year. However, both players have made an incredible recovery now, as Kelly also updated last month.

“It’s been a great recovery. They’ve worked really hard. I think our training staff has done an amazing job of getting both of these guys to the point where they’re already taking part in June activities and football-related activities,” said Kelly, and even talked about the players making a comeback in the fall camp. As for Jacobian Guillory, who suffered an Achilles tear, and Chris Hilton Jr, who had multiple injury issues, they both are also coming back, according to Kelly. But with just one month left for LSU’s first game against Clemson, Kelly has another concerning news.

Matt Moscona of ESPN relayed Kelly’s update on freshman OL Solomon Thomas’s injury on X. “Brian Kelly confirmed to me freshman OL Solomon Thomas broke his fifth metatarsal in his foot and is out for a month. Everyone else is a ‘go’.” Apart from Solomon Thomas, there are also some concerns around wide receiver Nic Anderson, who is going to be the crucial piece in the wide receiver room for Garrett Nussmeier.

“He (Nic Anderson) was dressed today, but didn’t participate in the 11 on 11s. We kept him out of contact today. He had gone through our concussion protocol. He got into a little fender bender. And so we wanted to make sure. So he’s cleared our concussion protocol. Today was his day of non-contact. He’ll be able to get into 11 on 11, seven on seven, tomorrow,” said Brian Kelly in his 30th July press brief. The update is crucial since there was no clarity on Anderson’s health earlier.

Brian Kelly brought Nic Anderson from Oklahoma after the WR received 798 yards last season. The former Oklahoma playmaker was expected to be the leader in the WR room, but now with injury concerns, it seems he is bound to miss some fall camp days. Still, the type of injury doesn’t seem too concerning, and the player will be ready against Clemson, as expected.

As for offensive lineman Solomon Thomas, he is a talented 5-star freshman recruit. ranked 2nd nationally. So, with him absent, it’s likely that Carius Curne, another talented freshman offensive tackle, will take up his duties. That said, Brian Kelly does have a cause for celebration as Garrett Nussmeier is starting to show his NFL-caliber talent.

Garrett Nussmeier is already showing optimism on day 1 of fall camp for Brian Kelly

Despite LSU losing some unexpected games and failing to make it to the playoffs, Brian Kelly still got his guy behind the center. Garrett Nussmeier, after producing 4,052 yards, could have easily gone to the NFL. The media reports at the time even touted him to land on his father’s team, the New Orleans Saints. Despite that buzz, the QB chose to come back for another season. And now with fall camp already started, he’s looking like the real deal.

“Garrett Nussmeier certainly looked very impressive during the first day of @LSUfootball fall camp. During the indoor session in team competition, Nussmeier unleashed a deep bomb that fell perfectly into the hands of Barion Brown in tight coverage for a touchdown,” reported Jacques Doucet on X about Nussmeier’s performance on the first day of the fall camp. So, will this be the ultimate season where the 2019 glory days come back for LSU?

LSU will face Clemson on the road in its first game and will face Florida in week 3. These two games thus become extremely important in dictating momentum for the rest of the season. But with Clemson being already touted to win the natty and Florida with DJ Lagway’s talent, it would surely be a daunting task. Apart from that, the Ole Miss, South Carolina, Aggies, Alabama, and Oklahoma games would also be tough to navigate. However, with Garrett Nussmeier’s brilliance, the relatively tough schedule could surely become manageable.