By RON HIGGINS, Journal Sports
BATON ROUGE — LSU redshirt junior wide receiver Chris Hilton Jr. has been excited during the current spring practice since play calls for tunnel screen passes have become more frequent.
“It has the potential to be a game-changer,” Hilton said. “I ran one in high school that won the state championship game.”
Yes, it’s a play that will forever live in Zachary High football lore.
In the 2018 Class 5 state championship game in the Superdome, No. 1 seed West Monroe leads No. 6 seed Zachary by four points. First-and-10 for Zachary at its 20-yard line with about 2 minutes left in the game.
Broncos senior quarterback Keilon Brown bobbles the shotgun snap, then throws a wobbly to speedy sophomore Hilton who catches the ball behind two of his offensive linemen.
Instead of squeezing between his blockers, Hilton correctly reads the defense, bounces outside to his right, jets around the West Monroe containment and sails 80 yards for the game-winning TD with 1:51 left, glancing at the Jumbotron to check out the position of defenders chasing him.
“I didn’t realize he (Brown) bobbled the ball,” Hilton said. “I remember coming back to the ball. But he got it to me, I caught it. Hit the crease. Gone.
“I don’t know what made me look up the big Jumbotron in the Superdome while running. That was the first time I’ve ever done that.”
This season will be the sixth anniversary of the play. It seems like a lifetime ago for Hilton, who’s showing this spring he’s ready to ascend to become LSU’s next breakout wide receiver and a potential NFL Draft first-round choice.
Malik Nabers and Brian Thomas, Jr. are projected as first-round picks in the April draft, as is LSU Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback Jayden Daniels. That duo will be on display along with 12 other ex-Tigers when LSU holds Pro Day today in its indoor practice facility.
Six NFL head coaches and 100 assistant coaches/scouts/other personnel will be on hand. So will Hilton, who wants to familiarize himself with the process and cheer on his former teammates.
After the first 8 of 15 spring practices, there has been a palpable buzz about the 6-foot, 190-pound Hilton.
“At times (in the past), maybe you could argue that he lacked consistency, whether it was hurt or whether he would drop a ball,” LSU head coach Brian Kelly said. “He’s had a really good spring, he’s been consistent. He’s out there daily practicing at a high level.”
Following two injury-riddled seasons and a slight breakthrough in 2023 with 13 catches for 225 yards and two TDs, Hilton is now flashing 4.31 seconds 40-yard dash speed and showing the vertical that made a three-time high school high jump champion with a best of just over 7 feet.
“I feel what I bring to the table is I’m a game changer,” Hilton said. “Like it’s just like all it takes is one play to be a game changer.”
Hilton played that way in high school, catching 73 passes for 1,388 yards and 18 TDs combined in his junior and senior seasons.
He was one of five receivers signed in previous LSU head coach Ed Orgeron’s final recruiting class in 2021. The others were Nabers, Thomas, Deion Smith (who had grade problems at LSU, transferred to a junior college and signed with Ole Miss last December) and Jack Bech (who started 11 games for LSU in two seasons before transferring to TCU a year ago).
Hilton was the only signee who didn’t come roaring out of the game as a freshman. He tore the meniscus in both knees, returned at the end of the year and caught an 89-yard TD on the final play in the Texas Bowl vs. Kansas State.
His 2022 season started with 7 catches for 109 yards combined in two early non-conference games before missing the last 10 games after surgery for a torn labrum in his shoulder.
The second injury mentally blindsided Hilton.
“I found myself in the dark hole,” he said. “There were points in time when I was wondering what I was really doing because I got hurt three times in two years. So, you get to questioning yourself like, `What are you doing with your life?’”
Hilton’s strong religious faith, his teammates urging him to stay the course and counseling from LSU’s assistant director of football player development and engagement Dr. D.F. Arnold all flipped him to a positive mental path.
Last season, Hilton began sitting in on early morning meetings with Daniels, the other quarterbacks and assorted personnel. It proved to be enormously beneficial.
“I learned to pay attention to the small details,” Hilton said. “When you play in this conference (the SEC), the competition is way better. Everybody’s on an equal playing field. So, you’ve got to the small stuff to separate yourself.”
Hilton started his march toward the upcoming season on Jan. 1 when he had 3 catches for 56 yards and a game-tying 14-yard TD in LSU’s 35-31 ReliaQuest Bowl win over Wisconsin.
Once back in school for the spring semester, he turned it up a notch.
“I’ve seen Chris go up and get balls, his vert is crazy,” projected starting LSU center DJ Chester said. “He can really run fast and he has great hands.”
Kelly sees a different Hilton who’s aware all the eyes in the receiving room are looking at him because he’s now a veteran.
“He knows that the mantle has been passed to him,” Kelly said. “And it’s his time. He’s really done an outstanding job being the next wide receiver up at LSU.”
Contact Ron at ronhigginsmedia@gmail.com