K'Lavon Chaisson
K'Lavon Chaisson (born July 25, 1999) is an American football defensive end for the Jacksonville Jaguars of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at LSU and was drafted by the Jaguars in the first round of the 2020 NFL Draft.
Chaisson in 2019 | |||||||||||
No. 45 – Jacksonville Jaguars | |||||||||||
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Position: | Defensive end | ||||||||||
Personal information | |||||||||||
Born: | July 25, 1999 | ||||||||||
Height: | 6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) | ||||||||||
Weight: | 254 lb (115 kg) | ||||||||||
Career information | |||||||||||
High school: | North Shore High School (Galena Park, Texas) | ||||||||||
College: | LSU | ||||||||||
NFL Draft: | 2020 / Round: 1 / Pick: 20 | ||||||||||
Career history | |||||||||||
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Roster status: | Active | ||||||||||
Career highlights and awards | |||||||||||
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Career NFL statistics as of 2020 | |||||||||||
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Player stats at PFR |
Early life and high school
Chaisson was born and grew up in Houston, Texas and attended North Shore Senior High School. He quit playing football as a freshman in order to focus on basketball. He returned to football going into his junior season.[1] He became an immediate starter at defensive end for the Mustangs, leading Texas high schoolers with 15.5 sacks along with 50 tackles, including 13 for loss, and forced three fumbles and helped lead North Shore to the Class 6A Division I state championship game and was named first-team All-State by the Associated Press.[2] Chaisson was named the defensive MVP of the game after recording two sacks, four tackles for loss, a blocked kick and a forced fumble in the game and making a game-saving tackle at fourth and goal to preserve a 21–14 win over offensive powerhouse, Sam Ehlinger-led Westlake High School.[3] As a senior, Chaisson was named the 21-6A District Defensive MVP as well as All-Midlands by Scout.com and was invited to play in the 2017 Under Armour All-America Game.[4] In the game he recorded six tackles, five of which were for loss, and tied the game's record with three sacks.[5] Rated a five star recruit by Scout.com and four star by 247Sports, ESPN and Rivals, Chaisson committed to play college football at Louisiana State University over offers from Florida and Texas.[6]
College career
As a true freshman, Chaisson started the first game of the Tigers' season against BYU and recorded his first two career sacks in the next game during a 45-10 win over Chattanooga.[7] He was named to the Southeastern Conference All-Freshman team after finishing the season with 27 tackles, two sacks and 4.5 tackles for loss in 12 games played (three starts).[8] Named a starter at outside linebacker going into his sophomore season, Chaisson made five tackles with a sack, a tackle for loss and a quarterback hurry in the season opener against Miami before suffering a knee injury in the fourth quarter. He was diagnosed with a torn ACL the following day, ending his season and forcing him to use a medical redshirt.[9]
Chaisson was chosen to wear the No. 18 Jersey by the Tigers' coaching staff going into his redshirt sophomore season.[10] He finished the season with 60 tackles and led the team with 6.5 sacks, 13.5 tackles for loss, and six quarterback hurries along with two passes broken up and a forced fumble and was named first team All-SEC.[11] Chaisson was named the Defensive MVP of the 2019 Peach Bowl after a six-tackle, two-sack performance against Oklahoma.[12] Chaisson had two tackles in LSU's 42–25 win over Clemson in the 2020 National Championship Game. On January 17, 2020, Chaisson announced that he would forgo his remaining two years of eligibility and enter the 2020 NFL Draft.[13] He finished his college career with 92 total tackles, including 19 for loss, 9.5 sacks, and 1 forced fumble.
Professional career
Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand size | |||||||||
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6 ft 3 in (1.91 m) |
254 lb (115 kg) |
32 1⁄4 in (0.82 m) |
9 7⁄8 in (0.25 m) | |||||||||
All values from NFL Combine[14] |
Chaisson was selected with the 20th pick in the 2020 NFL draft by the Jacksonville Jaguars.[15] The Jaguars originally acquired the selection in an October 2019 trade with the Los Angeles Rams that sent cornerback Jalen Ramsey to the Rams.
Chaisson made his NFL debut on September 13, 2020 in the season opener against the Indianapolis Colts, making two tackles.[16] In the following week's game against the Tennessee Titans, Chaisson recorded his first career sack on Ryan Tannehill during the 33–30 loss.[17]
Personal life
Chaisson's father, Kelvin Chaisson, played linebacker at Baylor University. Kelvin Chaisson was shot and killed in 2014 at the age of 33 when K'Lavon was a sophomore in high school.[18]
References
- Dellenger, Ross (May 26, 2017). "How LSU found superstar 2017 signee K'Lavon Chaisson and the story behind his quick football ascent". The Advocate. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
- "Texas defensive end K'Lavon Chaisson goes from relative unknown to Under Armour All-American". USATodayHSS.com. October 17, 2016. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
- Brooks, Gabe (December 22, 2015). "K'Lavon Chaisson Dominates State Title Game". 247Sports.com. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
- Powers, Greg (January 16, 2017). "LSU Visit Off the Scale for No. 1 Texas DE". 247Sports.com. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
- Boudwin, Julie (January 15, 2017). "LSU, Texas lead for elite pass rusher K'Lavon Chaisson, but he will also visit USC, Colorado". The Times-Picayune. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
- Johnson, Chris (January 31, 2017). "LSU wins recruiting battle for five-star defensive end K'Lavon Chaisson". SI.com. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
- Martell, Brett (September 10, 2017). "Guice scores twice, No. 12 LSU pounds Chattanooga 45-10". APNews.com. Retrieved April 26, 2020.
- Suss, Nick (December 7, 2017). "4 LSU youngsters named to SEC All-Freshman team". Dayton Daily News. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
- Khan Jr., Sam (September 4, 2018). "LSU linebacker K'Lavon Chaisson out for season". ESPN.com. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
- Martel, Brett (August 22, 2019). "No. 6 LSU hoping Chaisson's return has transformative effect". Yahoo Sports. Associated Press. Retrieved November 8, 2019.
- Just, Amie (January 11, 2020). "How LSU's K'Lavon Chaisson fought back from ACL tear, turned checkers into 'game of chess'". The Advocate. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
- Adam, Brandon (December 28, 2019). "LSU crushes Oklahoma 63–28 in Peach Bowl; Tigers will play in New Orleans for National Championship". The Daily Reveille. Retrieved January 14, 2020.
- "Thaddeus Moss, K'Lavon Chaisson latest to leave LSU". ESPN. January 17, 2020. Retrieved January 17, 2020.
- "K'Lavon Chaisson Combine Profile". NFL.com. Retrieved October 2, 2020.
- Gantt, Darin (April 23, 2020). "Jaguars take K'Lavon Chaisson with the 20th pick". NBC Sports. Retrieved April 23, 2020.
- Patra, Kevin (September 14, 2020). "Gardner Minshew after win over Colts: Young Jaguars 'got that swag about them'". NFL.com. Retrieved September 14, 2020.
- Ricks, Robert (September 20, 2020). "The Good, the bad, and the ugly from the Jags' 33-30 loss vs. Titans". Jaguars Wire. USA Today. Retrieved September 21, 2020.
- Sayles, Damon (April 15, 2016). "4-Star Recruit K'Lavon Chaisson Honors His Late Father Through Football". Bleacher Report. Retrieved November 8, 2019.