LSU LB Micah Baskerville signs with Bears as UDFA
LSU linebacker Micah Baskerville was not selected in the 2023 NFL Draft, but he quickly landed an undrafted free agent deal when he agreed to sign with the Chicago Bears, per multiple reports.
Baskerville helped pace LSU on defense in 2022 with 89 tackles, which included a season-high 15 against Tennessee. He had 11 tackles in a win over Florida and nine against Georgia in the SEC Championship Game. Baskerville tallied 259 tackles, 22.5 tackles for loss and three sacks during his five years with the Tigers.
Baskerville stepped up this season and the biggest thing that changed is mental preparation.
“Okay, well, first I say doing the little things. He harps on that a lot because in every game there’s something you got to do. If you keep doing the little things, the routine plays, then we see it come out successful,” Baskerville said this fall.
“Another thing is our mental preparation. He’s big on our mental preparation. He feels that if we do have great mental preparation, we can play fast, play free and give all our effort without thinking. Those are some things that I see about his process that he talks about a lot that are very important.”
The Shreveport, La. native took over as a starter during his junior season in 2020 and started the last 20 games he has played in. Baskerville missed the Texas Bowl loss to Kansas State for undisclosed reason.
In 2021, he racked up 83 tackles, nine tackles for loss, a pair of sacks, an interception and three passes breakups. The Tigers finished 6-7 on the season as Ed Orgeron was fired, but new head coach Brian Kelly is taking over the program and retooling the roster quickly.
In LSU’s run to a National Championship, he made 15 tackles, four of which went for loss, a sack and a pass breakup.
According to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies, Baskerville was the No. 38 linebacker in the nation coming out of Evangel Christian.
The 2023 NFL Draft is from Thursday, April 27 through Saturday, April 29 in Kansas City, Missouri. The event is at the plaza just outside of Union Station. The draft will be broadcasted throughout the weekend on both ESPN and NFL Network.
