#5 Jay Ward Season 2023
2023 Senior Bowl Participant
2022 SEC Defensive Player of the Week vs. Mississippi State
2020 SEC Academic Honor Roll
CAREER
Versatile defensive back who played safety, cornerback and nickel back during his LSU career … 46 career appearances with 23 starts … 164 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss and 6 interceptions … Developed into a leader in the secondary for the Tigers and served as a coach on the field … Had breakout season in 2021, ranking among team leaders in tackles with 71 … Followed that with 60 tackles as a senior in 2022 … Has a knack for finding the football and coming up with the big play … Tremendous hand-eye coordination and ball skills, which was evident in his highlight reel interception against Florida in 2020 when he fell out of bounds, re-established himself inbounds and then intercepted a pass on his knees … Also thrived on special teams – blocked a field goal in fourth quarter against Arkansas that helped preserve LSU win in 2020 … Also had a blocked field goal against Auburn in 2021 … Member of the 2020 SEC Academic Honor Roll … Majoring in interdisciplinary studies … Invited to play in the 2023 Senior Bowl … Announced in December his intentions to enter NFL Draft however still played in LSU’s Citrus Bowl win over Purdue.
SENIOR SEASON (2022)
Played in 13 games with 9 starts … Started at 3 positions in the secondary – cornerback, safety and nickel – Finished with 60 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, an interception and a fumble recovery … Named SEC Defensive Player of the Week after tying a career-best with 11 tackles in win over Mississippi State in conference opener … Added 1.5 tackles for loss (-3), an interception and a pass breakup in win over Mississippi State … Opened season with 8 tackles vs. Florida State … Recovered a fumble and returned it 23 yards for a TD in comeback win over Auburn … The fumble-return for TD ignited a rally that saw the Tigers erase a 17-0 first half deficit to win, 21-17 … Added 6 tackles and a pass breakup vs. Auburn.
JUNIOR SEASON (2021)
Played and started 11 games in 2021 … Made 7 starts at safety, 2 at cornerback and one at the dime position … Finished third on team in tackles with 71 … Led Tigers with a pair of interceptions … Added 4 pass breakups, a forced fumble and blocked a kick … Had career-best 11 tackles and blocked a 52-yard field goal attempt against Auburn … Other double-digit tackle game came against Ole Miss with 10 stops … Capped year with 9 tackles and 2 pass breakups against Kansas State in the Texas Bowl … Returned an interception 26 yards in the second quarter to setup an LSU touchdown, putting the Tigers ahead 21-6 … Other interception came in second quarter against Louisiana-Monroe and setup another Tiger touchdown, putting LSU up 10-0 … Had 6 tackles in 4 games – at Mississippi State, Florida, at Alabama and Louisiana-Monroe.
SOPHOMORE SEASON (2020)
Appeared in nine games with three starts as a sophomore in 2020 … Started three of LSU’s final four games … Starts came against Texas A&M, Florida and Ole Miss … Finished year with 29 tackles, six pass breakups and three interceptions … Also blocked a field goal … Had great all-around game in win over Florida with career-best eight tackles and first career interception … Made a highlight reel interception against Florida after falling out of bounds, then re-established himself inbounds to pick off the Kyle Trask pass from his knees … That interception halted a Florida drive inside the LSU 20-yard line … In win over Arkansas, came off the edge to block a 44-yard field goal attempt that helped preserve LSU victory … At the time of the blocked field goal, LSU was clinging to a 27-24 lead with 1:20 left in the contest … Closed out season with six tackles and two interceptions in win over Ole Miss in Tiger Stadium … Returned a first quarter interception vs. Ole Miss 31 yards for a TD to give the Tigers a 10-7 lead … Picked off a pass in the third quarter against Ole Miss and returned it 16 yards to the Rebel 44-yard line setting up another LSU touchdown … Opened season with five tackles and career-best three pass breakups against Mississippi State.
FRESHMAN SEASON (2019)
Saw action in 13 games in 2019 … Recorded four tackles, broke up three passes and had a quarterback hurry … Had two pass breakups in LSU’s win over Oklahoma in the national semifinals …. One tackle each in games against Florida, Mississippi State, Alabama and Arkansas … Contributed on special teams as well … Quarterback hurry came against Florida.
HIGH SCHOOL
Another extremely athletic defensive back in LSU’s 2019 class … Led his team to a 14-1 record and an appearance in the Georgia 7A State Championship Game as a senior … Capped his senior season with 50 tackles and six interceptions … As a junior, recorded 46 tackles, 12 pass breakups and four interceptions … Capped career with 11 interceptions … Listed as a three-star recruit by 247Sports, Rivals, and ESPN … Ranked No. 50 nationally among cornerbacks by 247Sports and No. 57 nationally by Rivals … Older brother Johnny Ward played football at South Florida, where he played in 47 games with 18 starts from 2013-16 … Coached by Rush Propst.
Jay Ward’s Career Highs
Tackles: 11, 2x (Last: vs. Mississippi State, 2022; First: vs. Auburn, 2021)
Tackles for Loss: 1.5 vs. Mississippi State, 2022
Interceptions: 2 vs. Ole Miss, 2020
Pass Breakups: 3 vs. Mississippi State, 2020
Blocked field goals: 1, 2x (Last: vs. Auburn, 2021; First: at Arkansas, 2020)