This is your time, Kayshon Boutte.

Seize the moment.

You were one of the most productive receivers in the country last season.

Then you got hurt.

You were thought to be the best player on the LSU team entering this season.

You were chosen to wear jersey No. 7, given annually to the team’s most dynamic player.

But you have not been dynamic. You have not been the best player for the Tigers. You have not been one of the most productive receivers in the country.

Still, LSU (6-2, 4-1) is ranked No. 15 and competing for the SEC West title. If the Tigers defeat No. 6 Alabama (7-1, 4-1) on Saturday night at Tiger Stadium they will have the lead in the division.

This would be a really good time for Boutte to go back to performing like the player who was chosen to wear No. 7, the player who was probably the favorite to win the Biletnikoff Award before getting hurt midway through last season and the player who set the tone for last season’s breakout with a record-setting performance in the 2020 season finale.

There have been signs recently of the junior from New Iberia, La., perhaps being on the verge of returning to top form.

In his first 4 games this season he had 11 catches for 97 yards and no touchdowns.

Then he caught 6 passes, though for a mere 33 yards, and scored his only touchdown of the season against Tennessee.

There was another 6-catch game against Florida that – with 115 yards – nearly doubled his yardage for the season. It was his first 100-yard receiving game since the 5th game of 2021 against Auburn.

Then he had 4 catches for 43 yards in the Tigers’ most recent game, against Ole Miss.

And speaking of Ole Miss … it brought a reminder of Boutte’s first game against the Rebels to conclude his freshman season in 2020. In that game he posted 308 receiving yards, good for SEC record, on 14 catches and 3 touchdowns.

That was the start of something big, until 2 surgeries to repair ankle damage last season. At the point of the injury, in a loss to Kentucky, Boutte led the SEC with 9 touchdown catches and had 38 catches for 509 yards.

Now, the Tigers passing game is evolving through the course of head coach Brian Kelly’s first season.

Kelly brought in former Cincinnati offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock to run his offense. Arizona State transfer Jayden Daniels won the starting quarterback job.

Boutte was going to be the central figure in the passing game, but nothing has gone according to plan.

Kelly sent a message through the media before spring practice that his inability to work out on the field while rehabbing wasn’t an excuse to avoid offseason preparations.

The coach has since praised his response and his emergence as a leader on the field and off.

The season got off to a slow start as there was trouble connecting with Daniels. There was a dropped pass here and there. But things are improving for Boutte and for the passing game as a whole.

Jaray Jenkins has been the Tigers’ big-play receiver, grabbing a team-high 5 touchdown passes.

Malik Nabers has become Daniels’ primary target, grabbing 36 passes for 455 yards, and Brian Harris Jr. has been in the mix with 20 catches for 280 yards and 3 scores.

Quietly, Boutte has become the team’s No. 2 receiver statistically, grabbing 27 passes for an average of a modest 10.7 yards a catch.

But that’s not going to get the job done against Alabama.

The Tide gave up 5 touchdown passes in a 52-49 loss to Tennessee just 2 games ago. Sure they defended Mississippi State’s passing game a heck of a lot better last time out, a 30-6 win. But Kelly said early this week that his best players have to have big games if LSU is going to pull off the upset.

Boutte remains one of the Tigers’ best players.

He is not going to win the Biletnikoff Award this season.

His NFL prospects are still bright, though scouts no doubt are wrestling with the disparity between the pre-injury Boutte and the post-injury Boutte.

But he is healthy now. Denbrock’s offense has scored 45 points in each of the past 2 games. Daniels has grown by leaps and bounds, passing for 5 touchdowns and rushing for 6 in the past 2 games.

There’s just one piece missing from a puzzle that could form an elite offense on a possible division champion.

That missing piece is you, Kayshon.

The time is right for you to have a special game.