LSU Football: Only fitting 'DBU' would have the SEC's premier safety duo

Lost in the madness that is the college football offseason, which for Louisiana State University included everything from high-profile suspensions to high-profile coaching changes, is the belief that the Tigers have quietly returned, perhaps, the most talented secondary in the nation.

Us media types have done the Tigers some serious favors by continually focusing on the perceived lack of talent at the quarterback position and completely glossing over just how talented the 2015-16 squad is.

On the offensive side of the ball, the loss of the best lineman of head coach Les Miles’ tenure in Baton Rouge, La’el Collins, won’t stop the Tigers from fielding the most talented offensive line in the program’s history.

Left tackle Jerald Alexander, interior lineman Ethan Pocic and right tackle Vadal Alexander could very well all see their names included on All-American lists, while other players like Will Clapp, K.J. Malone, Josh Boutte and Chidi Valentine-Okeke could very well end up receiving the same type of accolades later on in their careers.

The receiving corps is filled with explosive targets in the form of Travin Dural (6’2″, 192 lbs), who may be the premier deep threat in the conference, Malachi Dupre (6’3″, 187 lbs), Trey Quinn (6’1″, 194 lbs), John Diarse (6’1″, 210 lbs), D.J. Chark (6’2″, 184 lbs), Jazz Ferguson (6’5″, 214 lbs) and 5-star freshman Tyron Johnson (6’2″, 192 lbs).

Dupre is poised for a breakout season as both an intermediate and deep threat for a potentially explosive Tigers’ offense under coordinator Cam Cameron and his multiplicative scheme.

The backfield has a legit Heisman hopeful in sophomore Leonard Fournette, 6’1″, 230 pounds, but also includes a player who would start on most SEC squads in the 6’1″, 230-pound Darrel Williams. Add in a couple of highly touted true freshmen in Nick Brossette (6’1″, 214 lbs) and Derrius Guice (5’11”, 216 lbs), and you have an offense that’s talented enough for any QB to succeed.

The defense has potential first- and second-level stars like interior linemen Christian LaCouture and Davon Godchaux, both of whom check in at 6’5″, 300 pounds and 6’4″, 298 pounds, respectively, who front uber-talented “Mike” linebacker Kendell Beckwith in a front seven that has a chance to be extremely stout against the run.

But I believe we can make a strong case that the secondary, in particular the safety duo of Jamal Adams and Jalen Mills, is the strength of the entire team.

And for a program that has been rightfully dubbed “Defensive Back University,” it’s hard to say this isn’t the best safety duo in the program’s history.

Now that’s scary.

Jalen Mills

The 6’1″, 194-pound Mills is a defensive coordinator’s dream as he adds about as much value as you can get out of one player. With today’s multiplicative defensive schemes, safeties have to be able to “fill the alley,” act as a single-high player in Cover 1 schemes, fill in for “Sam” or “Will” linebackers in sub packages and, most importantly, act as nickel corners when teams go to “10,” “11,” or “oo personnel” groupings.

The frequent use of versatile tight ends, along with the now en vogue hurry-up no-huddle pace, has rendered the old one-dimensional, in-the-box safety virtually useless.

Coming out of Desoto, TX., Mills was branded a 3-star prospect, and the No. 784-ranked player in the entire country by the reputable 247sports recruiting service.

In a case where a player clearly outperformed their ranking, Mills found himself in the starting lineup as a true freshman playing a corner spot on a very talented LSU defense. He, along with redshirt freshman Jalen Collins looked as if they’d be stalwarts at the corner position for the next three to four season in Baton Rouge.

However, Collins fell out of favor to talented newcomers like Tre’Davious White, Rashard Robinson and Dwayne Thomas, while Mills was ultimately moved to safety in a move I didn’t quite understand at the time.

Mills was a good man-to-man corner, with an above-average mirror technique, who was extremely physical. He was money in area coverage because he wasn’t afraid to support the run.

I thought he had early round draft potential had he been allowed to cultivate his skills out at corner. But it goes to show you just how talented the LSU staff is as the move to free safety highlighted those aforementioned skills just as much, and his versatility allowed for the team to run coverages many teams would fail at.

Mills got the season kicked off in the Tigers’ undervalued win over Big 10 West champs, the University of Wisconsin, where his range, instincts and ball skills were on full display with an athletic interception over TE Troy Fumagali.

I can’t emphasize just how versatile Mills is as he can truly be used in an interchangeable safety scheme as he’s a very talented tackler in space. The Tigers are able to provide multi pre-snap looks by aligning Mills close to the line of scrimmage or pushing him back single-high. This is significant as quarterbacks routinely become creatures of habit and can get used to seeing certain personnel in specific spots; changing up looks lends itself to the versatility of the Tigers’ roster.

Jamal Adams

Adams arrived on campus in a much different manner than his counterpart as a 5-star prospect from Carrollton, TX., and the No. 31-ranked recruit in the entire country. At 6’1″, 206 pounds, Adams is every opponent’s nightmare as he flies around with a reckless abandon and will let you know such during the game.

He’s as confident of a player as I’ve ever studied on film, and he’s further along in his development than any other safety during head coach Les Miles’ tenureship with the Tigers. It’s very hard to spot a flaw in his game as he’s fast, instinctual and a lot better in coverage than given credit for.

The Tigers love to play him around the line of scrimmage much like the University of Alabama did with the highly touted Landon Collins, but Adams can also moonlight as a Cover 1 safety if necessary.

But his work as an in-the-box safety is something to behold.

Here we see Adams working the mesh point of a read-option play against Notre Dame University. After crashing the box, he was able quickly decipher who actually had the ball and was in good position to make a tackle in space (with some assistance from a teammate, of course).

Adams’ ability to tackle in space is very reminiscent of Collins as both can erase a two-way go in a heartbeat. But Adams, unlike Collins, has the ability to be used like Mills for the fact that he, too, has corner skills. He caught my eye at a skills challenge in high school where he faced off against his future teammate Dupre in one-on-one drills.

Dupre is one of the most polished receivers in the Southeastern Conference and will be giving even the most talented cornerback nightmares with his blend of elite athleticism and refined route running. So the fact that Adams was able to stay patient in his pedal phase, trust his speed in being able to flip his hips to run with Dupre, execute the feel-and-locate technique and generate a pass breakup, says a lot about a player who excels in the box.

Big Nickel/Rickey Jefferson

The Tigers have the ability to play a scheme that potentially counteracts today’s use of multi-tight end sets, the Big Nickel. Where most teams would deploy an extra corner in nickel situation, LSU can throw out Adams, Mills and the ultra-talented Rickey Jefferson to combat the use of “12, “13” and “22 personnel,” which is becoming more and more prevalent with teams looking to be versatile in the passing game but still be able to run the ball — without substituting.

The 6’1″, 204-pound Jefferson is every bit as talented as Adams and Mills and has come up huge in key spots before (like the below sequence). Having all three of these players on the field simultaneously gets three of the better tacklers in the scheme while providing a little bit more size than your average nickel set.

Jefferson is a solid tackler who has the range to be a Cover 1 safety, which allows for two-deep looks with Adams playing closer to the line or using his man coverage skills on a receiver or TE. With so many teams deploying its “Y” players out wide, it’s in everyone’s best interest to recruit versatile safeties who can travel out to the edges and not look lost.

The Tigers effectively have not one, not two, but three players who can fill that particular role; chalk one more up for “DBU.”