Whit Weeks Has A Very Specific Vision for the LSU Defense
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LSU is not the same team it was last year, in so many surface level many.
Even though it's not as easy to see, it's still known that this team is having fun in its new situation. One aspect that isn't always told from the team to the outsiders is the mindset they have going into the season. For the defense, the mindset is clear, as told by linebacker Whit Weeks.
"I wanna bring back that nasty mentality to an LSU defense. I think we've lacked that in my first three years here," Weeks said at SEC Media Days. "I truly do, and I take that personally on myself."
What Weeks' reiteration shows
Weeks was featured last month on the In The Bayou podcast with LSU great Tyrann Mathieu. That was the first time he brought up his desire to bring nasty defenses back to LSU.
"When I was growing up, watching you (Mathieu) play, watching Devin White, Patrick Queen; like teams used to fear to play those defenses," Weeks said.
The love that Weeks has for LSU shows through his words and his desire to stay at LSU for a senior season instead of heading to the NFL after an injury-ridden 2025 season. His loyalty to the program is part of why head coach Lane Kiffin brought him to Tampa for SEC Media Days.
"Whit decided to stay," Kiffin said. "He wanted to see LSU return to dominance, to return to the style of play that he grew up watching, which was the reason why he came here, and he wanted to come back to make sure he was part of that."
LSU can't have a one man band
Weeks is the anchor of the LSU defense, in terms of leadership in reading offenses and in all aspects of leading a high-level college football team off the field. The LSU players rally around Weeks and trust in his vision.
"The entire defense as a whole… you can tell they're self-driven to have something to prove," linebacker TJ Dottery said at SEC Media Days.
The fact that Kiffin brought Weeks to Media Days also shows that he has witnessed him be effective as a leader. He was named a captain last year and will likely get the 'C' patch again in 2026. If Weeks has this vision of nasty defenses, all other players will feel the same.
LSU's defense started to turn a corner last year, led by Weeks, Harold Perkins Jr. and Mansoor Delane. It wasn't yet at the mark of LSU's best defenses, which stalked the gridiron in the 2010s, but the foundation was laid.
Weeks' first two years with LSU, in 2023 and 2024, the team had historically poor defenses, which left LSU without even a chance of a College Football Playoff bid despite having a Heisman-winning quarterback in 2024.
A natural-born leader who has seen how bad it can be and how good it is going to be is a promising look for fans.
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This article was originally published on www.si.com/college/lsu as Whit Weeks Has A Very Specific Vision for the LSU Defense.
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