HP #56

Harold Perkins Jr.

Linebacker · LSU

A former five-star phenom whose electric freshman year at LSU made him a household name before injuries slowed his climb to the draft.

Harold Perkins Jr. arrived at LSU as the No. 8 overall recruit in the 2022 class and looked every bit the part as a freshman, wrecking games from all over the Tigers' defense. A torn ACL in 2024 and a positional shift toward off-ball linebacker cooled his stock, but Atlanta bet on the talent late in the 2026 draft.

★ First-Team All-SEC and Freshman All-America (2022)

★ Third-team All-SEC (2025)

★ No. 8 recruit in the 2022 class

★ 35.5 career tackles for loss and 17 sacks at LSU

Path to the league

Perkins was a five-star recruit out of New Orleans and the No. 8 player in the 2022 recruiting class before enrolling at LSU. The Falcons selected him in the sixth round with the 215th overall pick of the 2026 NFL Draft.

Career highlights

As a true freshman in 2022, Perkins put together a dominant campaign with 72 tackles, 13 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks, earning First-Team All-SEC and Freshman All-America honors. LSU used him all over the formation, lining him up at off-ball linebacker, on the edge and over the slot, and he finished his career with 35.5 tackles for loss and 17 sacks in 43 games.

2025 season recap

Coming back from the ACL tear that ended his 2024 season after just four games, Perkins returned for a full senior year in 2025 and posted 56 tackles, 8 tackles for loss, 4.5 sacks and 3 interceptions across 12 games, earning Third-team All-SEC recognition.