LSU Defensive Lineman Travez Moore Opts Out of 2020 Season

Moore becomes second defensive lineman of the week to leave program

LSU lost its second defensive lineman of the day Thursday afternoon when senior outside linebacker Travez Moore announced his decision to opt out of the 2020 season. Moore joined sophomore nose tackle Siaki Ika, who elected to enter the transfer portal after falling out of the rotation in LSU's switch to the 4-3 defense. 

"I want to thank (LSU) for all that it has done for me and I am thankful for my teammates and the relationship I built here at the university," Moore wrote on Twitter Thursday. "I will be opting out (of) the 2020 season."

Moore appeared in three games during the 2020 season for LSU, recording three tackles, a sack, and a tackle for a loss. He was also one of the few players in the offseason to publicly announce his positive COVID-19 test and his experience with the virus. 

"Bro coronavirus is real 👎🏿.. i was 256 now I’m 229 because i lost my appetite and it’s hard to eat plus you can barely breath. You can’t smell food you can’t taste food or taste any liquids.. stay y’all ass in the house," Moore wrote on Twitter in early August. 

With the loss of Moore and Ika, LSU's defensive line has taken a hit from a depth perspective. Moore at one time this offseason was expected to be a starter before Andre Anthony and BJ Ojulari asserted themselves as the Tigers' clear best pass rushers. 

Of course the Tigers also lost Tyler Shelvin, Nelson Jenkins, TK McLendon and Justin Thomas all for various reasons before the season, further hindering their defensive line depth. Even with the loss of Ika and now Moore, LSU's front four has been among the best in the SEC getting after the quarterback. 

"Very pleased. It's the 4-3, man. You're not playing four techniques. You got ends rushing wide. We have more athletic people on the field. It's LSU football. It's what I grew up watching," Ed Orgeron said Monday. "We did that in Miami, we did that at USC. It was time to go back to it. I'm happy all those categories being plus six, leading the SEC all that stuff. But we still 2-2.