LSU defensive tackle Maason Smith has returned to practice as a full participant for the first time since he suffered a season-ending ACL injury last fall.
Smith went through every drill Tuesday morning at practice, which was open for 20 minutes during individual periods. So far this spring, he had run on another field with injured players as he neared a return.
Smith’s left ACL tore as he celebrated a stop on the first defensive series of the 2022 season opener against Florida State. Coach Brian Kelly expects him to give LSU an inside pass rush it lacked with him sidelined.
“When you start to move the center to him or use a (running) back inside, now you’re going to leave our edge players one-on-one and we’ll have a really good, balanced pass rush,” Kelly said. “He brings that presence, which we didn’t have last year.”
Seven months removed from the injury, Smith wore braces on both knees, which is standard for LSU’s linemen. He also used a sleeve on his left leg. He worked with the second-team defense in an interception return drill.
Freshman edge rusher Da’Shawn Womack (shoulder) and redshirt sophomore safety Matthew Langlois (knee) also appeared as full participants for the first time this spring, and starting safety Greg Brooks has returned after missing time with an ankle injury.
LSU opened practice for the last time before its spring game Saturday inside Tiger Stadium. The Tigers, who had closed their previous two practices, were missing junior starting linebacker Greg Penn, freshman tight end Mac Markway and redshirt sophomore defensive tackle Bryce Langston.
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