Four days is all that remains before the LSU Tigers take the field in Vegas for the season opener against USC. Four days means we move on to our fourth best LSU player of the 21st century, and for the second day in a row, we have a defensive back: Patrick Peterson.
Peterson is one of the highest-rated recruits to ever grace LSU's campus. In 2008, Peterson was a five-star who ranked as the No. 1 corner and No. 5 overall player in the class. The Florida native had offers from pretty much every school imaginable, but he decided to take his talents to the Bayou.
As a true freshman, Peterson played in all 13 games and started the final four games of the season. He recorded 41 tackles, one interception and three pass breakups.
Heading into his sophomore season, expectations were that Peterson would become one of the best corners in the nation, and he did just that. In LSU's season opener against Washington in 2009, Peterson recorded nine tackles and two pass breakups as LSU beat the Huskies, 31-23.
Two weeks later in the Tigers first SEC game of the season against Mississippi State, Peterson got his first interception of the season, which he returned for 37 yards and a touchdown. On top of that, he recorded two more pass breakups as he helped the Tigers move to 3-0 on the young season.
As the season progressed, Peterson only tallied one more interception, but he was completely lockdown in coverage. He held AJ Green and Julio Jones - two of the best WRs in the country - to a combined seven catches and finished the season with 15 PBUs, which ranked fourth in the SEC. Peterson was awarded with First-Team All-SEC and Second-Team All-American honors for his efforts.
Heading into 2010, Peterson was regarded as one of, if not the best corner in the country. There was a lot of pressure on him to perform, and perform he did.
In LSU's 2010 season opener against North Carolina, Peterson was special, but not necessarily in the way people thought. He was great on defense, but he was even better in the return game, totaling 257 yards and one touchdown on seven punt/kickoff returns.
Just like in 2009, in LSU's first SEC game against Mississippi State, Peterson got his first (and second) interception of the season. He'd go onto finish the year with four interceptions; two against Miss. State, one against ULM and one against Ole Miss.
After a stellar 2010 season where he recorded 42 tackles, four interceptions and 10 passes defended, Peterson was given countless honors including the Thorp Award, given to the best defensive back of the year and the Bednarik Award, given to the best overall defender in college football. He was also named a consensus First-Team All-American.
On top of all that, Peterson led the SEC and was fourth in the nation in punt return average (16.1). He finished the year with over 900 kick return yards and over 400 punt return yards, which included two touchdowns.
Peterson's time at LSU was special. When he left, he was one of the most decorated defensive backs in the program's history, and will forever be one of the greatest Tigers to wear the purple and gold.
The Arizona Cardinals selected Peterson with the fifth overall pick in 2011, and since then, Peterson has been widely regarded as one of the best corners in the league. He's nearing the end of his career, but still had a solid campaign with the Steelers in 2023.
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