Ed Orgeron Comments On New DE Starter Ali Gaye & The Roles For LSU's Defensive Ends

LSU's Week 1 depth chart revealed that junior JUCO transfer Ali Gaye will start at defensive end for the Tigers in Saturday's season opener vs. Mississippi State.

Head coach Ed Orgeron spoke about Gaye this week and talked about the different roles for the strongside & weakside defensive ends on the team.

One thing the stood out during Orgeron's comments was his praise for true freshman B. J. Ojulari who was described as "probably the best pass rusher right now" on the team.

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Q. You've been pretty hot on Ali Gaye throughout preseason camp. What does he do to stand out?

ED ORGERON: I like his range. He's 6' 6. He's smart. Works hard every day. Very humble young man, wants to learn, physical at the point of attack. A very good pass rusher. He's tall; he's got a lot of batted balls. He had a batted ball for interception I think the third play of the scrimmage last Friday. Great young man. Him and Travez Moore are going to anchor down that left end. They'll probably have equal reps backed up by Jarell Cherry, but I think right now that Ali is starting. He's earned that starting position. He knows his assignments. He does well, plays hard. I think he's going to have a great season for us.

Q. You talked about Ali Gaye and Travez Moore holding down that strong side on the defensive end. Could you maybe explain a little bit the roles for those defensive ends, on both ends, the weak side and why the people are good for those spots?

ED ORGERON: The left end is usually the bigger end. Most teams are right-handed, they want to run their ball to the right with a tight end there. So we put the left end there. The right end is a smaller, quicker end, sometimes. Should be your best pass rusher because he's coming from the cornerback's blind side. That's the reason we do that. Andre Anthony is at right. Ali Gaye is left. Ali is a little bigger. B. J. Ojulari is at right end. Travez Moore is at left end. B. J. is a very, very talented young man, you're going to see a lot of snaps out of. He's probably our best pass rusher right now. So you're going to see a rotation of at least four guys at defensive end left and right.

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