LSU will begin its 2022 campaign without its top running back.
According to a report from The Athletic’s Brody Miller, [autotag]John Emery Jr.[/autotag] is expected to be suspended for the first two games of the season — contests against Florida State in New Orleans and Southern in the home opener. Per Miller, the suspension has to do with the academic issues that held him out last season.
The Athletic also reports that cornerback Raydarious Jones has been suspended for the entire 2022 season due to academic issues.
Emery is reportedly in the process of appealing the suspension, arguing that he has been meeting academic standards since coach [autotag]Brian Kelly[/autotag] and his support staff took over in November. LSU expects to know more within the next week, per Miller.
He apparently attempted to appeal the suspension that kept him from playing last season, as well, on the grounds of a number of hardships he faced during the COVID-19 pandemic. Emery dealt with the death of his grandmother and two separate COVID infections. His stepfather also suffered from COVID complications and was hospitalized on a ventilator, per Miller.
Emery is a former five-star recruit who was expected to play a major role in 2021 prior to his suspension. In 19 appearances from 2019-20, Emery took 114 carries for 566 yards and seven touchdowns.
With the departure of [autotag]Ty Davis-Price[/autotag] to the NFL, Emery was expected to return to the field this fall and take over the starting role. However, cryptic comments from Kelly a few days ago cast doubt on his availability in 2022.
“There’s obviously things that I can’t talk about,” Kelly said. “He’s in good standing in football. So everything that he’s done, he’s done a great job with us in football.
“Everything that he’s done for us has been outstanding in football. Anything else that arises would not be anything that I can comment on because of privacy rights, so I think you guys can put the rest together.”
With Emery unavailable in the first two contests, LSU will likely rely on Penn State transfer [autotag]Noah Cain[/autotag] and [autotag]Armoni Goodwin[/autotag], as well as a former walk-on in [autotag]Josh Williams[/autotag] who has worked his way up the depth chart.
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