LSU OL Garrett Dellinger Out With Hand Injury, Another New Rotation in Works
Sophomore offensive lineman Garrett Dellinger will reportedly miss Saturday’s contest against the Auburn Tigers. The starting guard suffered a hand injury that required surgery, sidelining him for LSU’s first true road test of the season.
Dellinger underwent his procedure on Tuesday with hopes that he could see the field this weekend, but Kelly said on Wednesday’s SEC teleconference call that he is doubtful to suit up on Saturday.
“It appears as though it’s going to be tight for him to make the game,” Kelly said. “At first, we thought we could get him ready. But there was a screw and a plate that needed to go in there. Right now as we’re talking, I’d say he’s doubtful for Saturday.”
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Dellinger went through all of fall camp learning the center position. With a few bumps along the process, learning curves were expected, but after a challenging season opener, the Tigers decided to move him to left guard to give this offensive line some stability.
With the sophomore lineman expected to be out on Saturday, it leaves LSU with no other option than to start their fourth different offensive line rotation in five games.
The Tigers saw success in their protections after giving true freshman Emery Jones the start at tackle against Mississippi State. With this coaching staff running the same group again last weekend, this unit was on an upward trajectory, but now they’ll be left with the challenge of another new group.
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On Wednesday, Kelly stated LSU will look to move Miles Frazier in to fill Dellinger’s spot at guard. At right guard, they’ll have a few options, namely Anthony Bradford, but as practice winds down this week we’ll get a better understanding of where this group stands.
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If offensive line coach Brad Davis elects to move Frazier from right guard to left guard, the Tigers could add in Bradford to the rotation with it looking like:
LT Will Campbell
LG Miles Frazier
C Charles Turner
RG Anthony Bradford
RT Emery Jones
But time will tell where things are trending with this group. Despite having a variation of starting rotations, this offensive line unit has the depth to compete, it’s just a matter of gaining continuity before this schedule ramps up.
