Brian Kelly lists Mason Taylor, Omar Speights as 'probable' for Mississippi State game

For the second time this season, LSU will be playing away from home. A road trip to Starkville will be the Tigers’ SEC opener, facing off against Mississippi State. Head coach Brian Kelly is hoping to have a fully healthy squad on the trip and as of Monday, things are off to a positive start.

Kelly revealed both tight end Mason Taylor and linebacker Omar Speights are listed as “probable” for Saturday’s matchup. He did not dive into too much detail, just giving their status on the injury report. Either way, a good sign from LSU a few days out from kickoff.

“We have two probables,” Kelly said. “Probable is Mason Taylor and probable is Omar Speights.”

Taylor has played in both games this season but suffered an ankle injury against Grambling State. Based on Kelly’s report, he should be good to go against Mississippi State. In two games, Taylor has caught five passes for 39 yards but the tight end has not found the end zone quite yet.

As for Speights, his exact injury of Speights is not known. Kelly decided to just list his status during his Monday press conference. However, he did not play in the second half of Grambling State.

Speights was somebody LSU brought in via the NCAA transfer portal. He had a successful career out West with Oregon State — his hometown school. He decided to transfer to the SEC in order to win a national championship with the Tigers.

“When I was in the portal, my big decision maker was I wanted to go somewhere that had the opportunity to win a national championship,” Speights said during spring practice. “I felt like Coach Kelly was on the verge of doing that here. Ultimately my decision to come here was, it just felt like home. When I took my visit, they made it feel like home and they made feel like it was a place where I was wanted.”

Speights is now in his fifth season of playing college football. He has been a heavy contributor in the past and is off to a decent start with LSU. Nine tackles have been recorded by the linebacker in his first two games in the purple and gold.

Hopefully, LSU will be able to confirm both Taylor and Speights are playing against Mississippi State in the near future. Starting the 2023 SEC campaign with a win will be critical toward getting back to Atlanta this season.