The LSU football team has struggled to run the ball this season, and whether it was the approach to play calls, the play of the offensive line or the running backs missing open holes, nothing seemed to come together for a program known for success in the ground game.

In a week six road loss at Kentucky, the Tigers found some life as they leaned heavily on gap-scheme runs with plenty of calls for pulling guards, and the choice to add walk-on tight end Jack Mashburn - the team's best blocker - to the mix gave starting running back Tyrion Davis-Price not just room to run, but enough chances to eclipse the 100-yard mark for the first time this season.

One week later, LSU moved to 4-3 on the year with an upset when over the Florida Gators. And once again, it was the offensive line, Mashburn and Davis-Price that looked in sync, and Davis-Price set the program's single-game rushing record with 287 yards and three touchdowns on 36 carries.

Mashburn, now in his third year in the program, was a key piece to the success, and it's clear he's set to have a big role on the offense moving forward into the final five games of the regular season.

How did a walk-on turn into a starter for the Tigers?

In 2019, Mashburn left St. Paul's High School in Covington as a quarterback in the 5A ranks, where he passed for 1,611 yards and six touchdowns and rushed for 718 yards and 16 touchdowns as a senior. During his junior season the year prior, Mashburn not only passed for 1,500 yards and rushed it more than 80 times, but he also logged 29 catches for nearly 300 yards.

As a versatile athlete, Mashburn found his way onto campus for a summer camp for post-graduates, which then booked his ticket to walk on to the 2019 National Championship team.

Three season later, he's taking center stage in helping rebuild a struggling run game, and he met with the local media this week to discuss his rise and more.

On his path to becoming a starting TE at LSU...

"Honestly out of high school I was planning on coming here and playing football and seeing what position they would throw me at. I tried to be a quarterback first, but they had the room full. They switched me over to tight end, last year I moved to receiver, then back to tight end this year. I had to gain a little bit of weight, and then it all took off from there. I worked throughout the whole offseason and all camp and during the season, and it kind of just worked out."

On being used to the physicality of the position...

"I have always kind of hitting more than quarterbacks usually do. Growing up I have always been on the bigger side and been more physical and didn’t need to be taught that. It’s kind of natural, and I’ve enjoyed that."

On knowing he was going to be a key part of the game plan vs. Florida...

"Throughout the week I was taking a lot of the (first-team) reps, so they prepared me to be ready both mentally and physically for the role I played. Then we repped a lot of the main plays we ran through that game, and we did it through all different looks, so we had it mapped out. Then it all fell into place, and it was just a good day."

On his uncle Pat Mashburn, a longtime Louisiana sports writer, helping get a foot in the door with Ed Orgeron at LSU...

"He has known Coach O for a while. I guess that kind of helped out a little bit to get me here. I talked to some of the recruiters coming out of high school my senior year, then came for a camp coming into my freshman year over the summer, and they told me I could walk on here. They gave me a spot, so I came in for camp that 2019 year."

On his level of interest from college coaches coming out of high school...

"I had very few offers. I had a couple other preferred walk-on (offers), but I really didn’t have very many offers at all. It was from a couple small schools. Growing up in Louisiana, I always wanted to come to LSU. It has always been a dream of mine after coming to LSU games almost every weekend. It’s always been a dream of mine, so whenever they told me I had an opportunity to walk on here, I couldn’t pass it up."

On his body transformation from a high school QB to an SEC TE...

"When I came in as a freshman, I was about 205 pounds. Now I’m 230-235. Obviously the last three years I have naturally put on weight, because with Coach Moffitt’s weight program and the nutrition center and how they feed us, you can naturally put on some weight. But they have been giving me some good meal plans and weight gain shakes, so they have been on me about gaining weight, and it hasn’t been too much of a struggle."

On how he celebrated the win over the Gators and his biggest game in purple-and-gold...

"I was excited. My family was in town, and my brother came in from Atlanta, so I hung out with him a lot. Both my parents were here, so we kind of just celebrated in our own little way and laid low and didn’t do a lot, but it was definitely exciting."