Brian Kelly confirms Maason Smith injury, details how LSU can offset his loss
LSU head coach Brian Kelly confirmed on Tuesday that defensive lineman Maason Smith tore his ACL on Saturday as he celebrated a great play versus Florida State by jumping up in the air.
“I can confirm our doctors confirmed an ACL tear yesterday after an MRI, which, obviously, we’re crushed for him,” Kelly said. “He was celebrating for a teammate on the play and trying to show his support for a teammate, so anytime you suffer an injury, under those circumstances, it’s extremely disappointing. He’s a great player, you’re going to miss great players, but it’s next man in for us from that standpoint.
“I think our DL rallied, played as hard as they could. After film study, I don’t think you could single that out as a reason for not having success. So, we’ll call on some other players to step up in that role. We’ll have to be, in some instances, creative and putting guys in position where we can succeed defensively.”
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The LSU Football team shared an image of Smith with an uplifting message for him on Twitter.
Maason Smith ‘out’ for season
Versus the Seminoles on Saturday, the Houma, Louisiana native wasn’t able to record a stat before exiting the field. The Tigers lost by one point as the defense racked up 58 total tackles with two sacks on Jordan Travis and four tackles for loss.
Behind Smith on the depth chart is 6-foot-0, 280-pound Mehki Wingo. Wingo transferred from Missouri in the offseason and was a Freshman All-SEC pick last season.
Smith was the highest-rated recruit from LSU’s 2021 recruiting class, according to the On3 Consensus Player Rankings. He was also the highest-rated prospect in the state of Louisiana, and the No. 11 ranked recruit in the nation.
In his freshman year with the Tigers, Smith recorded 19 tackles — including five for a loss and four sacks. Smith appeared in nine games during 2021 and started in four of them, but missed the end of the season with a leg injury.