Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 51-10vs Clemson | 2 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 45-14vs Louisiana Tech | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 3 tackles |
| Total | 5 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#42
Davhon Keys
Davhon Keys led LSU in tackles last fall and finished second in the entire SEC. His reward for 2026: a projected spot as the third linebacker on his own team. When the man who edged you for the conference tackle crown shows up in your locker room, this is what depth looks like.
6′0″ · 227 lb · Aledo, TX · Aledo HS
CFB Index 56 · #240 of 583 LBsHigh confidenceReturning to LSU for 2026
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The numbers
5
tackles · 2026
1 TFL
2 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 2 tackles, 1 TFL, vs Clemson
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Davhon Keys led LSU in tackles last fall and finished second in the entire SEC. His reward for 2026: a projected spot as the third linebacker on his own team. When the man who edged you for the conference tackle crown shows up in your locker room, this is what depth looks like.
- Signed as a 4-star recruit to LSU in 2024.
Davhon Keys led LSU in tackles last fall and finished second in the entire SEC. His reward for 2026: a projected spot as the third linebacker on his own team. When the man who edged you for the conference tackle crown shows up in your locker room, this is what depth looks like.
The framing around Keys this offseason is almost cruel in its math. He led LSU with 92 tackles in 2025 while filling in for an injured Whit Weeks, a total that, as Tigers beat coverage put it, "would make him a starter at virtually any other program in the country." Instead, Weeks is back and First-Team All-SEC, and LSU added TJ Dottery, who happened to lead the entire SEC with 98 tackles for Ole Miss's playoff run. Dottery and Keys finished No. 1 and No. 2 in the conference in tackles last season; now they share a position room, and Keys is the odd man out on the projected depth chart.
The board sentiment splits between "this is the best linebacker unit in the SEC" and "how is a 92-tackle kid LB3?" Sports Illustrated's LSU site literally ran the headline that Keys "could get buried on the depth chart." The saving grace everyone keeps pointing to is scheme: Blake Baker rotates heavily in his 4-2-5, so Keys won't actually be glued to the sideline. He'll spell Weeks and Dottery, and given his freshman-year flash, a 41-yard pick-six in the Texas Bowl over Baylor as a true freshman, the talent isn't the question.
The forward stake is simple and it's the one LSU fans keep circling: in a room this loaded, does Keys claw back to a full-time role, or does the most productive returning linebacker on the roster spend his junior year as the SEC's most overqualified backup?
How he plays
Keys is a downhill, instinctive tackler who reads run fits fast and gets to the ball sideline-to-sideline, the trait the Butkus watch note flags as his calling card. The production backs the scouting: 92 stops as a sophomore, 35 of them solo per his 2025 line, plus 3.5 tackles for loss and a half-sack, so he's a finisher in space more than a blitz-heavy edge presser. His pass instincts are real too, with two pass breakups in 2025 and a true-freshman pick-six on his resume, suggesting coverage range to match the run-and-hit. No play-by-play percentiles are available for him, so this is a scouting read, not a percentile profile: think reliable, rangy, high-volume off-ball linebacker whose floor is high enough that depth, not ability, is the only thing keeping him off the field.
src
- SI / LSU: Why This LSU Linebacker Could Get Buried on Depth Chart Next Season
- SI / LSU: Ranking LSU's 3 Strongest Defensive Positions for 2026
- Louisiana Sports: Spring Depth Chart - veteran linebackers headline Baker's defense
- NOLA.com: Trey'Dez Green, Davhon Keys lead LSU freshmen in Texas Bowl win over Baylor
The story
The framing around Keys this offseason is almost cruel in its math. He led LSU with 92 tackles in 2025 while filling in for an injured Whit Weeks, a total that, as Tigers beat coverage put it, "would make him a starter at virtually any other program in the country." Instead, Weeks is back and First-Team All-SEC, and LSU added TJ Dottery, who happened to lead the entire SEC with 98 tackles for Ole Miss's playoff run. Dottery and Keys finished No. 1 and No. 2 in the conference in tackles last season; now they share a position room, and Keys is the odd man out on the projected depth chart.
The board sentiment splits between "this is the best linebacker unit in the SEC" and "how is a 92-tackle kid LB3?" Sports Illustrated's LSU site literally ran the headline that Keys "could get buried on the depth chart." The saving grace everyone keeps pointing to is scheme: Blake Baker rotates heavily in his 4-2-5, so Keys won't actually be glued to the sideline. He'll spell Weeks and Dottery, and given his freshman-year flash, a 41-yard pick-six in the Texas Bowl over Baylor as a true freshman, the talent isn't the question.
The forward stake is simple and it's the one LSU fans keep circling: in a room this loaded, does Keys claw back to a full-time role, or does the most productive returning linebacker on the roster spend his junior year as the SEC's most overqualified backup?
SOURCES
- SI / LSU: Why This LSU Linebacker Could Get Buried on Depth Chart Next Season
- SI / LSU: Ranking LSU's 3 Strongest Defensive Positions for 2026
- Louisiana Sports: Spring Depth Chart - veteran linebackers headline Baker's defense
- NOLA.com: Trey'Dez Green, Davhon Keys lead LSU freshmen in Texas Bowl win over Baylor
His career
He was on the field for 3 seasons. That is rarer than it sounds.
Keys is a downhill, instinctive tackler who reads run fits fast and gets to the ball sideline-to-sideline, the trait the Butkus watch note flags as his calling card. The production backs the scouting: 92 stops as a sophomore, 35 of them solo per his 2025 line, plus 3.5 tackles for loss and a half-sack, so he's a finisher in space more than a blitz-heavy edge presser. His pass instincts are real too, with two pass breakups in 2025 and a true-freshman pick-six on his resume, suggesting coverage range to match the run-and-hit. No play-by-play percentiles are available for him, so this is a scouting read, not a percentile profile: think reliable, rangy, high-volume off-ball linebacker whose floor is high enough that depth, not ability, is the only thing keeping him off the field.
Written by our staff.
20247 games
- Signed with LSU4-star out of Aledo
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★★
CFB
College
LSU
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
3 coachesPlayed under 3 different head coaches: Brian Kelly, Frank Wilson, and Lane Kiffin. Multi-era developmental context.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2024LSU9-4HC: Brian Kelly · Pass-leaning
2025LSU7-6HC: Frank Wilson · Balanced, slow tempo
2026LSU2-0HC: Lane Kiffin · Run-leaning, fast tempo
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
High confidence
Concern: tackles (0th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
Percentiles are versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score production. There are no play-by-play efficiency bars here: CFBD's play-value model credits offensive players only, so no defensive EPA exists to rank.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 2.5 TKL/g, 0.5 TFL/g, 0.0 SACK/g, 0.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Lane Kiffin
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2025
Starter
Tackle volume for the position at a full-time starter's level.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Production · CFB Index Score
56 · #240 of 583 LBs
Former four-star. Now #240 at the position.
2026 outlook
Outside shot for All-SEC
Based on 2025: #40 of 76 SEC LBs
How the All-SEC estimate is computed
15% estimated, 95% confidence interval 13–17%. Base rate measured from players who finished at a comparable rank in their conference and came back the next season. It is an estimate from a small sample, not a forecast of this player.
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 51–10
vs Clemson
2 TOT · 2 SOLO · 1 TFL
Dominant 41-point win at home against Clemson.
With S. Leavitt — 230 yds · 1 TD · 1 INT · 113 rush yds (12 car) · 2 TD · W. Watkins — 14 rush yds (1 car)
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Keys is a downhill, instinctive tackler who reads run fits fast and gets to the ball sideline-to-sideline, the trait the Butkus watch note flags as his calling card. The production backs the scouting: 92 stops as a sophomore, 35 of them solo per his 2025 line, plus 3.5 tackles for loss and a half-sack, so he's a finisher in space more than a blitz-heavy edge presser. His pass instincts are real too, with two pass breakups in 2025 and a true-freshman pick-six on his resume, suggesting coverage range to match the run-and-hit. No play-by-play percentiles are available for him, so this is a scouting read, not a percentile profile: think reliable, rangy, high-volume off-ball linebacker whose floor is high enough that depth, not ability, is the only thing keeping him off the field.
Our classifier reads him the same way: is steady in every phase without a signature trait.
2026 Outlook
LSU
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Linebacker · LSU
Returning around him
- 7 LSU players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: +3 net (44 in / 41 out)
2026 Award watch
- Butkus
LSU · Last season: 7-6 (AP #20) · Talent rank #8 · 2026 recruiting class #11
DNA match
Player DNA
Balanced Linebacker
Solid in every phase without a signature dimension.
LB
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Edwin Spillman’s 2025 season.
Matches Edwin on
Tackle volume
Hurry rate
Sack rate
Differs from Edwin on
Class year (higher)
Height (lower)
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to MarcAnthony Parker's sophomore season at Navy (2025).
77%match
All-AAC
Matches MarcAnthony on
Weight
TFL rate
PD rate
Player DNA
Players who play like Davhon Keys
The linebacker corps · LSU
- #6TJ Dottery98 tackles · 2025
- #42Davhon Keys89 tackles · 2025
- #7Whit Weeks27 tackles · 2025
- #24Tylen Singleton15 tackles · 2025
- #31CJ Jimcoily4 tackles · 2025
6 more on the roster · LSU team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology