Injuries the Primary Concern for Ed Orgeron as LSU Fall Camp Reaches Midway Point
Ed Orgeron joked with the media that one of his biggest concerns was the amount of pork chops he'd been eating recently. The other, much more important concern for the Tigers' head coach is the litany of fall camp injuries that have crept up on the purple and gold.
It's getting to that midway point of fall camp where injuries aren't uncommon as the pads come on and teams start hitting on a more regular basis. Orgeron said the biggest priority is finding that fine line between pushing the players to be ready for the season and knowing when to pull back to keep the team healthy.
But Orgeron also knows that the work that's put in during this time at fall camp will ultimately benefit the team during the season.
"The work that we do yesterday and today will show up in the season," Orgeron said. "We're preparing for those days and the only way to do that is to get out in the elements, it was challenging today, guys are banged up."
There's reason to be concerned about not just the amount of injuries on the team but who is out. Derek Stingley, Tyrion Davis-Price, Glen Logan and now key players along the offensive line have all had disruptive camp injuries in the early going of fall practice.
Orgeron gave some updates on guys as Davis-Price returned to practice Tuesday but tweaked the injury again, which is something the team will need to monitor moving forward. As for Stingley, the Tigers will be extra cautious with the star cornerback and hold him out of practice through next week.
That would mean his return to the practice field would be the week of the UCLA opener. But the biggest issue to follow are the injuries to offensive linemen Chasen Hines and Anthony Bradford, who are both taking reps at that right guard spot. None of the injuries are ones that will hold out the players into the season with the exception of potentially one unnamed player
"You're at a point right now where you have to push and you have to be out in the elements and scrimmage," Orgeron said. "But we gotta get our guys game ready also and it's a fine line. We hit two days in a row so I'll give them a break tomorrow, a break Friday and see how healthy we are on Saturday."
There is also no hurry to rush veteran quarterback Myles Brennan back from that broken arm he suffered right before fall camp. Orgeron says Brennan has reached a point where he's getting over the pain and that it's unlikely he starts throwing a ball for another month or so.
"It was emotional for him and I think they're going to try and put the pads on him as soon as he can, but I'm not gonna rush him," Orgeron said. "I want him to be ready. I was told he'll come back this season, as late as the open date, Alabama, but that's not a definite."
Keeping those significant injuries from occurring, particularly on the offensive line, is incredibly important to seeing this team fulfill its true potential. It doesn't appear that any will linger into the season at this time so the coaching staff will need to make sure it stays that way.
