Ed Orgeron didn't really expect Myles Brennan to return to the field this season, but the Tigers QB's decision to transfer remained an emotional one.
Brennan made the decision along with his family, Orgeron said, and spoke with his coach Monday before entering the NCAA Transfer Portal.
"He was teary-eyed, it was a tough decision for him," LSU head coach Ed Orgeron said. "He thought that he just needed to find a place that he could go play for one year, start."
It's a disappointing culmination to an LSU career that began with a quarterback battle between Brennan and Danny Etling. The freshman Brennan came out of that as the backup, left in waiting for his chance. Then Joe Burrow arrived, and Brennan was again on the wrong side of a quarterback battle. Burrow went on to have arguably the best season of all-time by a college quarterback en route to a title in 2019, a Heisman trophy and the No. 1 selection in the NFL draft.
The 2020 season was finally Brennan's time to shine, and he looked every bit like a starting SEC quarterback through three games. But his first major injury struck during a loss to Missouri, ending his season early. Injury struck again this season before what was expected to be a close QB battle between Brennan and sophomore Max Johnson. The Mississippi native vowed to return to the Tigers shortly after the broken arm and surgery that effectively ended his 2021 season, but it now appears his next college snap will come elsewhere.
Related
"I’ve got to give it to Myles and his family. They remained patient," Orgeron said. "He waited his turn and I thought he played really good last year at the beginning of the year. ... He got hurt again this year and things happened that way where he thought that he had to move on and take a shot at another place. Joe Burrow did the same thing, it worked out for him. I hope the same thing works out for Myles. He wants to play pro ball. I hope he gets that shot.”
While he's disappointed to see Brennan depart, Orgeron said the quarterback room won't see much affect. Orgeron didn't expect Brennan to play this season. He's got other ailments, including a knee injury, to get healed before he can consider stepping back out onto a football field. It'll be Johnson remaining as the starter, with Garrett Nussmeier serving as the backup. The freshman can appear in one more game before losing his ability to redshirt this season and retain an extra year of eligibility, and LSU plans to keep that option available if it can.
"Nothing’s changed really, for the remainder of the year. I don’t know they’re going to bring in … that’s for them," Orgeron said, with his run as head coach coming to an end after this season. "But nothing’s changed because he wasn’t with us."
Even without a quarterback controversy, Johnson will have his work cut out for him in avoiding the same blowout fate suffered in the 2020 matchup at Tiger Stadium.
But as Orgeron put it: “It’s LSU-Alabama. Throw all the records out. That’s enough said."
━━━━
ON BEING 28.5-POINT UNDERDOGS TO ALABAMA
“We don’t pay attention to that. This is the first I’ve heard of it. I remember when I was at Ole Miss and we came to play LSU we was a 27-point underdog, went into overtime. Those games can go either way. They’re a very good football team, give them credit. But we’re going to be ready to play."
Related
━━━━
WILL ALL THE TRICKS COME OUT OF THE BAG VS ALABAMA?
“Yea, sure. I saw a great onside kick Friday night, man, in the third quarter. … If it’s there we’ve gotta do it. We’ve gotta be smart. They’re going to expect us to do it. But we’re going to have all that in our arsenal. But it’s just gotta be at the right place at the right time. Sometimes it’s a gut feeling."
━━━━
HAVE YOU REFLECTED ON THE WIN LAST TIME YOU VISITED TUSCALOOSA?
“I haven’t had time, I was sitting out there thinking, ‘wow, how things have changed.’ Last time we’re going over there, I was sitting over on my porch, I knew if we win that game we had a chance, but we had to go through Alabama. That was a big victory for us. Things are differnt now, but it’s still LSU-Alabama. My job is to get these guys to play as hard as we can, we’re gonna be prepared and we goin.”
Related
