LSU football got back to practice this week as it readies for the 2021 season, but it got unfortunate injury news at a position with some of the most turnover on the roster.
Nick Storz, a Brooklyn native and former LSU baseball pitcher, is expected to be a medical redshirt this season and his football playing career could be over. Tigers coach Ed Orgeron revealed the news after the team's practice Friday, but didn't detail the issue itself.
"We’re not sure yet. We’re still getting some information," Orgeron said. "It’s unfortunate."
LSU was dealt another injury blow earlier in the week when quarterback Myles Brennan broke his left arm preparing for a fishing trip. He underwent surgery and is hopeful to return to the team, but the quarterback competition has been decided in favor of Max Johnson.
The team is also looking to replace Arik Gilbert, who transferred out of the program after eight games and is now a member of the Georgia Bulldogs. Orgeron said the team expects to rely on sophomore Kole Taylor -- at this point probably best known as the owner of a flying shoe in the Florida upset -- as its primary tight end.
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"I believe in Kole," Orgeron said, adding that the TE has bulked up to over 240 pounds.
The team could also look to contributions from new faces in the tight end group, including sophomore Jack Mashburn. Freshman Jack Bech has also been converted from wide receiver to tight end.
"I do believe we’ve got some guys who can do it," Orgeron said. "I’m really looking forward to Jack and Pat backing up Kole and going into that rotation and get some reps. But it looks like Kole is gonna be our main guy."
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“I do believe that it’s time for Tyrion [Davis-Price] and John [Emery] to do it. I’d like to see that. It doesn’t mean I don’t want to see Armoni Goodwin, I don’t want to see Josh [Williams], I don’t want to see Corey Kiner — I want to give them a chance. But [Tyrion and John], in my opinion, have to be the lead dogs for us to get where we need to go.
"Now, if another guys beats them out then he beats them out. But I think it’s time for those guys to shine. I think they’re very capable of doing it. I think they’re, for the most part, in great shape. I think [running backs coach Kevin Faulk's] got them in the right mindset and I’m interested to see how they play this year.”
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WILL MAX JOHNSON BE A RUNNER, OR WILL YOU TRY TO PROTECT HIM?
“I think you gotta do the things you have to do to win, just like we did with Joe. We ran quarterback draws with Joe. He scrambled. He extended plays with his feet against Georgia. He made plays when he had to. ...
"Max is supposed to be a dropback quarterback, we talked about that. I don’t think we’re going to have 15 different quarterback runs, him being a primary runner. He’s a passer, but there’s some things that we have to do to challenge the defense, to win the game. And you know, hey, there’s some things in football you gotta do and there’s some things we’re gonna do. But you gotta be smart.”
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ON SHORT-LIVED QB COMPETITION
“Well first of all, we miss Myles, it’s very unfortunate. And I think Max and Myles and the whole team was looking forward to the competition. It was very close. We didn’t know who was going to be the starting quarterback. I thought the competition would’ve been very good for the football team, to see that, because there’s competition at every position, almost."
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Follow Jeff Nowak on Twitter @Jeff_Nowak or contact him by email at jeffrey.nowak@audacy.com