How big/little of a drop-off will LSU have in the secondary this season?

we lose our DB coach, Ron Cooper, and we lose 3 of our top DBs
--Claiborne, Thorpe Award winner, All-American, #6 overall pick in NFL Draft
--Brandon Taylor, early 3rd Round pick in NFL Draft
--Ron Brooks, 4th Round pick in NFL Draft

returning is:
--TM7, Bednarik Award winner, All-American, and Heisman finalist
--Eric Reid, 2nd Team All-SEC (by the AP, didn't make coach's 2011 All-SEC team)

ESPN:

http://insider.espn.go.com/blog/colleges/lsu/post?id=1508&_slug_=five-things-to-know-defensive-backs&action=login&appRedirect=http://insider.espn.go.com/blog/colleges/lsu/post?id=1508&_slug_=five-things-to-know-defensive-backs#more

not exact quotes, and I added everybody's rankings as a recruit because i thought it was interesting to do so...

replacing the likes of
--Claiborne (#26/#58 ATH, #90 WR as recruit),
--Taylor (#9/#17 CB, #24 ATH as recruit) and
--Brooks (#6/#26 WR, #15 ATH as recruit)
will be no easy task. The loss of so many proven players means unproven players will have to replace NFL-quality production.

CB -- Tyrann Mathieu (#6/#13/#31/#36 CB as recruit)

CB -- When counting returning starters, one may also include Tharold Simon (#9/#13 S, #15/#19 ATH as recruit), the Tigers' third cornerback a year ago who played starter-like snaps because of defensive coordinator John Chavis' preference for playing Mathieu inside. This year, Simon will "officially" be a starter. With his height -- he's listed at 6-foot-3 -- and speed, he'll be a draft prospect. Last year, he started vs Oregon and Arkansas, and appeared in every game except vs Auburn... compare to Brooks, who started vs West Virginia, Auburn, and Arkansas, and appeared in all 14 games)

CB -- Jalen Collins (#22/#33/#98 CB as recruit), a redshirt freshman, appears to have the inside track to the third corner position, a spot that's key because it allows Mathieu to play inside as a nickel, where he's most effective. Also in the mix here could be redshirt freshman David Jenkins (#5/#11/#21/#21 CB as recruit)

S1 -- Eric Reid (#4/#6/#7/#8 S as recruit)

S2 -- Sophomore Ronald Martin (#45 S, #60 CB, #74 ATH as recruit), who had an interception in the spring game, and redshirt freshman Micah Eugene (#23/#63 CB, #40 S as recruit) both had good springs at safety and are candidates to go from unknowns to the newest stars. as for junior Craig Loston (#1/#1/#1 S as a recruit), his story has been about a litany of injuries: A broken wrist in 2009, a concussion and rib injury in 2011 and a toe injury that forced him to miss LSU's spring game. If you are trying to find Loston, check the injury report first. But if the imposing Loston can finally stay healthy, he would likely move into Taylor's strong safety spot, allowing youngsters Martin and Eugene could ease into their roles at a more manageable pace.

 

ty...Jenkins changed to RS freshman in OP

 

The AP All-American team ranked by Rivals.com before attending college. When they came out of high school.


Mo was the 58th. ranked Athlete
TM7 was the 13th. ranked CB.
Wing was the 5th ranked kicker.

As of late, the DB positions have been a plus over the years.

 

I read that Jenkins had requested a transfer...can anyone confirm?

 

The drop off in talent will be slight, if at all. The bigger loss is Ron Cooper, IMO...

 

LSU was DBU before Ron Cooper arrived. We find diamonds in the rough all the time. I agree with MLUTiger. We shouldn't see much of a decline, if any.

 

no drop off. new DB coach means new ideas to add to old training.

 

While those ESSPN heaux meauxs fixate on the secondary, they lose sight of the DL pressure up front that makes that secondary more effective.

We'll be fine.

 

Yep. Not to mention the upgrades at LB.

Idiots are acting like we've never had anyone drafted before.