Opening week was not a good one for the defending national champion LSU Tigers. Not only did LSU suffer a 44-34 loss to Mississippi State in Baton Rouge, but LSU’s defense allowed an SEC-record 623 passing yards to Mississippi State quarterback K.J. Costello.
It wasn’t quite the debut new defensive coordinator Bo Pelini envisioned for his second stint with the Tigers.
Fortunately for Pelini, good news could be on the horizon as All-American cornerback Derek Stingley Jr. is expected to return to the field for this weekend’s game at Vanderbilt.
Head coach Ed Orgeron spoke with the media via teleconference on Wednesday and said the Tigers ‘should’ have Stingley on the field this weekend.
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WATCH: #LSU ‘should’ have Derek Stingley Jr. against Vanderbilt, as preps continue https://t.co/ntHV30jKtK
— Nicole Hutchison (@nhutchisontv) October 1, 2020
Stingley’s father, Derek Stingley Sr., also spoke about his son when he joined ESPN 104.5’s Off the Bench with Jordy Culotta and T-Bob Hebert on Wednesday.
“It was a rough night, but the bottom line is that Derek had a reaction to something that caused him to have to go to the hospital,” Stingley Sr. said. “We got there and they were running tests on him to make sure we can rule out everything. And then he was fine. Right before the game, they started doing discharge papers.”
Stingley Jr. was hospitalized on Friday night with what was described as an acute illness and missed LSU’s season opener.
Stingley Sr. then spoke about his son’s likely availability this weekend.
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“He’s good to go. I am sure they will probably take it easy with him this week, but I am pretty sure he may wind up playing, as well,” he said. “It is one of those moments where, me personally, I would hate to relive and go through it again. But he’s good.”
The return of Stingley Jr. will be a major boost for LSU’s defense.
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