Harold Perkins Jr. Scouting Report
By: Michael Higgins
(Image courtesy of Matthew Hinton/AP)
School: LSU
Class: Redshirt Junior
Position: LB
HT: 6’1
WT: 223 lbs
Background: Harold Perkins was a top 10 player and consensus 5-star in the 2022 class. He was a top linebacker in the class and top player in Texas. Perkins is originally from New Orleans, Louisiana, but played his high school ball in Texas for Cy Park High School. He earned first team All-Greater Houston as a senior. Perkins participated in the Under Armour All-American Game. Perkins chose to play for LSU over Texas, Florida, and Texas A&M.
College: Perkins had a groundbreaking freshman season in 2022 for the Tigers. He was named a Freshman All-American and was First Team All-SEC after posting 72 tackles, 13 TFLs, and 7.5 sacks. He posted similar numbers as a sophomore in 2023 with 75 tackles, 13 TFLs, and 5.5 sacks. He earned Second Team All-SEC honors that year. His junior year was ended early due to injury but came back to contribute in 2025. He had 56 tackles, 8 TFLs, and 4 sacks in his final season with the Tigers, earning All-SEC Third Team honors.
Strengths: Harold Perkins Jr. is the prototypical hybrid linebacker who can be deployed anywhere in the box. He has evident athleticism that helps him play in a variety of different schemes and alignments. He is a fluid mover who is able to go stride for stride with running backs and tight ends in man coverage, while also being able to drop back into the intermediate areas in zone coverage. He constricts throwing windows for the quarterback with excellent lateral agility and change of direction. Perkins loves initiating contact in the phone booth. He has quick and active hands to shed blockers. Perkins triggers downhill and attacks proper pass rushing gaps consistently. Once he leaks into the backfield, he has cheetah-like speed in pursuit of the football. Harold is a high energy player who does not have an off switch, constantly looking for ways to make an impact.
Weaknesses: Perkins is a smaller linebacker when it comes to both mass and length. His smaller size creates problems for him at the point of attack. When he allows blockers to get into his frame and under his pads, he struggles to shed or deconstruct blocks. Perkins can play into his frame by getting lower, but he plays with too high of a pad level with a much too narrow base.
Conclusion: Harold Perkins Jr. brings elite athleticism to the linebacker position and can truly do it all as both a coverage linebacker and a blitzer. His issues stem from his lack of size and the question remains if his frame is maxed out or if he can add some more muscle mass. He can be an elite blitzing linebacker that most offensive tackles cannot handle on the edge.
Best Team Fits: DET, MIA, SF
Player Comparison: Nolan Smith
Player Grade: Round 2 (82.8)
