Week 1 brought plenty of performances worth a stripe, and the Geaux Deep Dive crew wasted no time handing them out. David Billiot Jr. and the podcast team kept their weekly tradition rolling for football season, snake-drafting honors the same way the NHL rolls out its “Three Stars of the Week.” This time, Matt Miguez and Anthony Parker of Talk SEC joined the fun, with the draft order starting Anthony, then Matt, then David and Zach before it snaked back through the board.
At the top of the list were Whit Weeks, Dilin Jones, Sam Leavitt and Deuce Geralds, each landing three stripes in their own way.
Weeks set the tone on defense. He tied for the team lead with six tackles, added 1.5 tackles for a loss and one QB hurry, and his impact showed up right away when he helped LSU get a stop and force a field goal after Sam Leavitt’s interception on the opening drive. The number-seven linebacker was around everything.
Jones made his Death Valley debut count on offense. Lane Kiffin and Charlie Weis Jr. leaned on the run game early, and Jones delivered with 23 carries for 113 yards and two touchdowns. He also forced 10 missed tackles and produced 99 yards after contact, the kind of day that matched all the offseason buzz around him.
Leavitt answered the questions about his foot in a big way. Coming off the Lisfranc injury and recovery, there had been plenty of curiosity about what week one would look like.
After that first drive, the 2024 version of Leavitt started to show back up. The offense still has work to do, especially in building trust between QB1 and the receiving corps, but Leavitt’s line - 230 passing yards, 113 rushing yards and three total touchdowns - was enough to earn him three stripes in his debut.
Geralds was the surprise at the three-stripe level, at least if you were looking only at the box score. He had just one tackle, but the freshman defensive lineman from Suwanee, Georgia, was one of the night’s quiet difference-makers. He occupied blocks and freed up teammates around him all game long, a sign that more stripes are probably coming.
The two-stripe group featured Jordan Ross, TJ Dottery, Jordan Seaton and Princewill Umanmielen.
Ross probably had a case for even more. He tied for fifth on the team in tackles, logged two tackles for a loss, got credit for one sack - and, as noted, maybe should have had two - and finished with a huge pick-six late in the first quarter. The former 5-star Tennessee transfer was a wrecking ball for a Tiger defense that had trouble generating pressure in 2025.
Dottery also made his presence felt. Some Clemson fans wondered whether facing one of his two former schools would affect him, but there was no sign of that.
The SEC’s leading tackler from last season finished with five tackles, a half tackle for a loss and a QB hurry. A dropped interception kept him from having an even bigger night.
His pairing with Weeks should be one of the more fun developments to watch as the season goes on, and the comparison to the Bash Brothers from the Mighty Ducks movies fit the moment.
Seaton earned his stripes along the offensive line. The whole group kept Clemson from getting home, allowing no sacks and just three tackles for a loss, but Seaton stood out for what he did in the run game.
At 6’5” and 311 pounds, the Colorado transfer gave Kiffin and Weis Jr. a reliable edge to run behind. There’s still room for refinement when he’s blocking on an island, but this was a strong debut.
Umanmielen rounded out the two-stripe names and had a strong case for three. He tied for the team lead with six tackles, led the team with two sacks and also led the way in tackles for a loss. Along with Ross and Dylan Carpenter, who also recorded sacks off the edge, the early read is that the 2026 pass rush could be a clear step up from 2025.
The one-stripe category included Death Valley, Ty Benefield, Winston Watkins Jr. and Phillip Wright III.
The crowd got a stripe, and maybe more than one. The night included a two-hour wait after a lightning delay, at least one forced timeout on defense, 129 decibels recorded and more than 100,000 wet behinds in the seats ready to show Clemson who the real Death Valley is.
Benefield didn’t post a huge stat line, but he was everywhere early. He finished with two tackles and one pass breakup, and his impact was felt no matter whether Christopher Vizzinia or Tait Reynolds was on the field. Clemson had to keep track of number two all night.
Watkins was exactly the kind of weapon he was expected to be. Familiarity with the offensive staff and his talent made him a likely week one contributor, and he backed that up with seven catches for 110 yards and a touchdown. As the quarterback-receiver connection keeps developing, Watkins looks like he’ll stay central to the offense.
Wright also flashed late. With Watkins making a case as WR1, the next question is who steps into the number-two role, and Wright gave himself a strong answer.
He caught all three of his targets for 70 yards and a touchdown. On the scoring play, he ran a curl route, worked back a few yards, then blew past the Clemson secondary down the sideline.
Those were the full Week 1 stripe winners from the draft.
In Other News...
LSUs Ex-Pro Fight Just Ran Into A Bigger Roster Problem
LSUs roster picture got a lot tighter this week after the Tigers added injured players Aidan Anding and Gabriel Reliford to the official list, bringing the program to the NCAA limit of 105. For a team already juggling roster management and outside scrutiny, the move matters because it leaves no immediate room to add former NFL players DaeQuan Wright and Zxavian Harris, even as the program continues sorting through the broader mess.
The situation has also spilled well beyond the depth chart. The SEC has threatened penalties and even a vote to expel LSU over its efforts to bring in the ex-professionals, while legal action involving LSU officials and the conference is still moving forward. Lane Kiffin has publicly backed the idea of signing Wright and Harris, saying he believed both were deserving of fifth seasons, but for now the Tigers are stuck with a roster logjam and no clear answer on what comes next. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Just Made A Roster Decision Fans Never Expected Under SEC Pressure
LSUs roster crunch got a lot more complicated after the Tigers added Gabriel Reliford and Aidan Anding to their 105-player roster, a move that quickly closed the door on two former NFL contract signees, DaeQuan Wright and Zxavian Harris. The decision comes in the middle of a broader fight that has put the program in an uncomfortable spotlight, with the SEC taking a hard line on athletes who previously signed professional contracts and LSU pushing back on that interpretation.
The timing matters because this is not just a depth-chart issue, but a conference-level dispute that already escalated into an amended lawsuit threatening LSUs standing in the SEC. For now, the Tigers have chosen to move forward with two non-former professional players instead of opening those spots to Wright and Harris, leaving the bigger question unresolved as the legal and conference pressure continues to build. [Read more 🡒]
LSU Faces Mounting SEC Pressure In Fight That Could Force A Response
LSUs roster decision has turned into a broader SEC headache, with the conference now pressing the school over a move that brought former NFL players back into college football. Tony Clayton, who represents DaeQuan Wright and Zxavaian Harris, publicly took aim at commissioner Greg Sankey after LSU declined to roster his clients and instead added two injured players, a sequence that has only added fuel to an already tangled dispute.
The conference has threatened to expel LSU for violating bylaws that bar former professional players from returning to college, and the matter has spilled into federal court with the SEC, NCAA and LSU all caught in the legal crosscurrents. Lane Kiffin has denied orchestrating the players return, but he has backed them legally, leaving LSU in the middle of a fight that is no longer just about a depth chart and could end up forcing a response from the conference office. [Read more 🡒]