It’s no secret that LSU is going to be relying upon its defense to carry the team early in the upcoming season.

Following the offseason loss of offensive standouts Derrius Guice and D.J. Chark, in addition to the departures of recent starting fixtures Danny Etling and Will Clapp, LSU also faces arguably the most formidable early-season stretch in the nation. The Tigers open in Arlington against a potential top 10 preseason ranked Miami and follow that up with a trip to Auburn to take on a team eager for revenge following last season’s game which featured an LSU second-half rally in a game the Tigers from the Plains should have won.

Taking those early season obstacles into account, Dave Aranda’s defense is going to need to set the tone immediately out the gate if LSU is going to survive the first three weeks of the season unscathed. During his recent Metairie appearance on the Tigers Caravan tour, Aranda was asked about his thoughts on his defense looking ahead to the fall.

According to Aranda, two offseason additions — that arrived in Baton Rouge in unique circumstances from one another, are poised to make immediate impacts on his defense.

When discussing 2018 signee Kelvin Joseph, a four-star member of LSU’s latest signing class and the No. 5 safety prospect in the nation, and Stanford graduate transfer defensive back Terrance Alexander, Aranda essentially said the same thing regarding both players: they have the ability to play immediately in his defense this fall.

“Joseph is coming in, he’s got an ability to play… Terrence Alexander is coming in, he’s got an ability to play. The little that we’ve seen from him… really quick feet, great maturity and intelligence,” Aranda said in a YouTube video posted by NOLA.com. “There’s enough options there were I think we can make that, throughout the year, make that be a strength of the team.”

When asked about his unit as a whole, Aranda pointed toward the growing leadership as one of the most exciting aspects of the offseason.

“The leadership is what excites me the best, or the most,” Aranda continued. “Devin White, I think is a great leader for us. Rashard Lawrence is a good leader for us. I think in the back end, Greedy has been a steadying influence for a lot of the young DBs that are now going to have to see time.

“There have been guys that were in position to play but really haven’t played a lot at DB and now they are going to have to play this year. They are going to look to Greedy to be a calming influence on them, I think he’s providing that. You feel good about the leadership that we have, the experience that we’ve had — a lot of young guys have played… Those pieces of the puzzle are there but its got to come together you know? That’s going to be a little bit wait and see.”

Aranda has done a lot so far to make Ed Orgeron look like a capable coach in Baton Rouge, his defenses have held opponents to fewer than two touchdowns in eight of the 21 games he’s worked under Coach O, but his toughest task may be staring directly at him with the Tigers’ opening to 2018. If Orgeron is still around in 2019, he’ll likely owe his fate to how well Aranda’s defense steps up to the challenge in the coming season.