LSU Football Spring Game 2017: 5 things to watch for

3. Who Steps Up With Arden Key Not On Field?

By most accounts, defensive end Arden Key was primed to secure his position as a top-five pick in the 2018 NFL Draft with a follow-up to his monstrous 2016 in the upcoming season. However, Key and Orgeron announced in February that the talented defensive star would be taking a leave of absence due to “unspecified personal reasons,” per Sports Illustrated. He won’t be around for the LSU Football Spring Game, but his status beyond that is also unclear.

Frankly, no one knows if Key’s leave of absence will extend into the regular season or not. For a player that was essentially primed to be the heartbeat of the defensive front, that’s a major loss. At the same time, it opens up the opportunity for players to show that they can be leaders as well.

Specifically, there will be plenty of eyes on Christian LaCourture and Andre Anthony on the line at the spring game. LaCourture has seen time on the field at LSU, but returns to the Tigers coming off of a season-ending knee injury one year ago. Meanwhile, Anthony is a younger player that’s largely unproven, but has the physical tools and pedigree to potentially have success as well.

Regardless of if Key returns to the team or not, LSU is going to need players to establish their presence on the line considering that it will largely be a new unit up front. Playing in the spring game without Key will afford players such as LaCourture and Anthony the opportunity to prove that they can be that type of player — and perhaps for less heralded options to also put their names in the mix.