With kickoff against Clemson now 14 days away, LSU’s countdown to the opener has turned into a look at who’s wearing No. 13 in Baton Rouge now and who recently made that number his own.
The newest Tigers to take on the jersey are a running back who has quickly pushed himself into the spotlight and a defensive back with a family name that already carries weight in the program.
Dilin Jones entered camp as a promising backup with the chance to become more. Instead, he’s been the loudest name coming out of drills and may be the one LSU leans on to open the season. Jones and Harlem Berry have been working at the front of the line in practice, but Jones has stood out most so far.
His path to LSU included two seasons at Wisconsin, where he ran 92 times for 388 yards and two touchdowns and added nine catches for 21 yards. Most of that production came as a redshirt freshman, when he finished second on the Badgers with 300 rushing yards.
Wisconsin’s top rusher that year had 83 carries for 363 yards and two scores. It wasn’t exactly the ideal setup for Jones to show everything he could do.
Coming out of high school, Jones was ranked No. 146 nationally and No. 13 among running backs, two spots ahead of Kewan Lacy.
The other current No. 13 is Faheem Delane, whose last name will ring a bell for LSU fans. His brother, Mansoor, had a one-year stay with the Tigers before being drafted sixth overall by the Kansas City Chiefs and beginning his rookie year.
Faheem came to LSU after one season at Ohio State, and the move was tied to the family’s appreciation for the defensive coaching staff and the chance for him to keep learning there. He didn’t play much after transferring, but he did get on the field, and LSU clearly sees him as part of what’s coming next even if he doesn’t crack the starting lineup right away.
The most recent major name to wear No. 13 at LSU was Garrett Nussmeier, who had the number from 2021 to 2025. For Tigers fans, he hardly needs an introduction. Now, his pro career is underway after the Chiefs took him in the seventh round of April’s NFL draft.
Nussmeier is in Kansas City’s quarterback room behind Patrick Mahomes. Justin Fields is the favorite to serve as the immediate backup, while Nussmeier is competing for the third-string role.
After the way his college career ended, that would still be a strong place to begin. In the preseason, at least, he looks a little better.
In Other News...
Jayden Daniels Finally Addressed The LSU Dispute As Week 1 Nears
Jayden Daniels finally got his first preseason snaps with the Washington Commanders in a loss to the Detroit Lions, a small but meaningful step as he shifts from camp work to game preparation. Even with the NFL spotlight starting to sharpen, Daniels has had one off-field issue lingering in the background: a legal dispute with LSU over the use of his name, image and likeness, tied to the school assigning his former jersey number to another player.
Daniels has now addressed the matter and, for the moment, his focus is where the Commanders need it most, on getting ready for the season opener against the Philadelphia Eagles. For LSU fans who followed his rise closely, the dispute adds another layer to a quarterback era that still resonates, even as Daniels moves deeper into his professional routine. [Read more 🡒]
LSUs Running Back Battle Just Took A Turn Fans Didnt Expect
LSUs preseason camp has already started sorting out a few competition lines, and the running back room has been one of the most interesting to watch. Redshirt sophomore transfer Stacy Gage has been running ahead of junior Caden Durham on the depth chart, but a recent full-contact scrimmage reminded everyone that the picture is far from settled. Durham worked with the first team and broke off some significant runs, while Dilin Jones opened as the No. 1 back before leaving the scrimmage and not returning.
The bigger takeaway for LSU is that the Tigers are still testing combinations all over the field, not just at running back. The starting offensive line has been taking shape, the second team has seen movement, and even the defensive backfield is showing some tweaks, with Jhase Thomas getting work ahead of Tamarcus Cooley at safety. For a staff trying to build clarity before the opener, the backfield battle now looks like one of several places where camp could keep shifting right up until the final week. [Read more 🡒]
Nick Saban Just Reinforced Why LSU Recruiting Never Slows Down
Nick Sabans latest reminder of why Louisiana matters in football circles traces back to the early 1990s, when he was an assistant with the Cleveland Browns and Bill Belichick asked him to figure out which state produced the most NFL talent per capita. The answer, Saban said, was Louisiana, and that view of the state as a deep well of football ability helped shape why he later took the LSU job. He has long tied that kind of talent base to what made recruiting in Baton Rouge feel different from other stops in his coaching career.
For LSU, the broader point is simple: the pipeline never really shuts off. The Tigers have stayed in the top 10 of recruiting classes in recent years, and Sabans remarks only reinforce the idea that Louisiana gives the program a built-in edge before the work even starts. Even as coaching staffs change and the recruiting landscape keeps shifting, LSU continues to benefit from being in one of the countrys most productive talent pools. [Read more 🡒]