LSU players have always found home with Arizona Cardinals

Throughout the years, an impressive group of LSU football players have found their way onto the Arizona Cardinals’ roster

Since taking over the Arizona Cardinals’ general manager position in 2013, Steve Keim has found success recruiting from Louisiana State University. Over the last four seasons, the school has provided his club with 50% of it’s starting secondary. Patrick Peterson has a stranglehold on one of the squad’s cornerback spots, while Tyrann Mathieu landed at safety.

Peterson’s career is off to a brilliant start. He found his way onto the NFC Pro Bowl roster as a kick-return specialist, following his rookie campaign of 2011. The former first-round pick (fifth overall), has since added five more Pro Bowl appearances to his resume, all at his cornerback position.

Peterson is annually recognized as one of the league’s best shutdown corners. The former LSU Tiger is well on his way to matching the success that two other Cardinal cover guys enjoyed in their respective careers. Aeneas Williams and Roger Wehrli both have busts in the NFL Hall of Fame, a feat Peterson hopes to accomplish one day.

Mathieu, who was raised in Louisiana, played for LSU head coach Les Miles from 2010 to 2011. But failed drug tests got him booted from the team in August of 2012. After the “Honey Badger ” announced he’d be entering the 2013 NFL Draft, quite a few eyebrows were raised.

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On the recommendation of Peterson, Keim decided to take a gamble on the defensive back. The Cards drafted Mathieu with the 69th-overall pick (third round) of the ’13 draft. Injuries have impacted his Arizona career up until this point, but he did make the Pro Bowl following the 2015 campaign.

Eric Hill was drafted out of the school in 1989 by the then Phoenix Cardinals. Taken in the first round (10th overall), the 6’2″, 265 pound thumper played middle linebacker for the team all the way through the 1997 season. He collected 1,044 tackles and nine sacks over an 11-year stay in the NFL.

Lance Smith was a starting guard on one of the best offensive lines in franchise history. The then St. Louis Cardinals drafted him out of LSU in the third round of the 1985 draft. Smith started 165 games in the pros, playing on a Cardinals’ line that included Luis Sharpe, Tootie Robbins, Todd Peat and Derek Kennard.

Inside linebacker Kevin Minter was another Tiger brought to the desert by Keim. The second-round pick (45th overall) tallied 223 tackles and five sacks during his time in Arizona. He left via the free agency route this past March, signing with the Cincinnati Bengals.

Wide receiver Early Doucet, besides attending LSU, was also a native of Louisiana. A third-round pick in 2008, he was a rugged, physical receiver in the mold of Anquan Boldin. He caught 139 balls for 1,491 yards and seven touchdowns during his five years with Big Red.

Tight end Greg Lafleur was another third-round draft pick from the university. Drafted in 1981 while the club still resided in St. Louis, the 82nd-overall pick played with the Cards until 1986. His career consisted of 64 receptions, 729 yards and three scores.

Yet another third-round pick from LSU, Ramsey Dardar, spent more time behind bars than he did on the football field. He pleaded guilty to burglary three separate times from 1990-98. Dardar played in 16 games for the Cardinals in 1984, his only playing time in the NFL.

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