LSU CB Duce Chestnut not currently with the team
LSU head coach Brian Kelly revealed some notable news on Thursday ahead of LSU’s Top 25 matchup with Missouri as Syracuse transfer cornerback Duce Chestnut, who has appeared in four games for the Tigers this season, is not currently with the team.
Chestnut did not travel to Ole Miss, which Kelly said was a “coach’s decision”.
Kelly didn’t go into detail on Chestnut’s absence, but said he would revisit Chestnut’s status “in the coming weeks”.
LSU down to four main cornerbacks
LSU has leaned on Southeastern transfer Zy Alexander and Texas A&M transfer Denver Harris as starters, though true freshman Ashton Stamps got the starting nod over Harris against the Rebels.
The Tigers also played cornerback Laterrance Welch in his most snaps to date.
On Monday, Kelly said the team would move forward with those four corners.
“We’re working our tails off,” Kelly said. ”We had some injuries there. We lost Zy for a little bit with an ankle (injury). Ashton Stamps was coming off of a groin injury. They were in the game. They gave us everything they had and did the best they could given the circumstances. I’m proud of those guys. They went out and they competed and did the best that they could given the circumstances.
“But, that’s our rotation. Those are the four guys. (Laterrance Welch and Denver Harris), those are the four guys that we’re rolling with right now.”
Chestnut logged six tackles, a tackle for loss and an interception in four games played this season for LSU.
Chestnut was a top transfer coming out of Syracuse
Chestnut played two seasons at Syracuse, and he landed on the On3 Freshman All-America Team following the 2021 season after opening up his debut season on the On3 Preseason All-America Team. As a freshman, Chestnut started in every game for the Orange, finishing the year with three interceptions and eight pass breakups.
After the 2022 season ended, Chestnut put his name into the transfer portal.
In two seasons with the Orange, Chestnut started in all 24 games he appeared in, logging 83 tackles, including 59 solo stops, to go with five tackles for loss and four interceptions.
Chestnut left high school in New Jersey ranked as the No. 459 overall recruit in the 2021 cycle, according to the On3 Consensus. He signed on with Syracuse as a three-star and the No. 39 cornerback prospect in the class, and he stuck with the Orange despite efforts from LSU, Ohio State, Miami and others to flip him late in the cycle.
