LSU cornerback questionable against Mississippi State

LSU cornerback Derek Stingley is questionable for the Tigers conference opener against Mississippi State on Saturday.

Tigers coach Ed Orgeron addressed Stingley’s status in his Thursday night press conference, stating the defensive back is very questionable and tweaked a previous injury from camp.

Stingley missed LSU’s game against Mississippi State in 2020 as well. The Tigers lost to the Bulldogs 44-34 in a shootout to open the season. Mississippi State threw for 623 yards in the win against the Stingley-less Tigers defense. Coming off of a national championship in 2019, the Tigers struggled to a 5-5 record in 2020.

Derek Stingley is regarded as one of the top cornerbacks in college football and is expected to be a high draft pick in the 2022 NFL Draft, should he declare.

As a freshman in 2019, Derek Stingley started all 15 games, helping LSU to a undefeated national championship season. He earned consensus All-American honors after leading the SEC in interceptions and passes deflected, recording six interceptions and 21 passes deflected. Stingley finished the season with 38 total tackles.

As a sophomore, Stingley started seven games for the Tigers and earned first team All-America honors by the American Football Coaches Association. Derek Stingley also earned first team All-SEC honors from both the AP and the league’s coaches. After his dominant freshman season, Stingley was hardly targeted in 2020 but still recorded 27 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss and five passes deflected.

Prior to the 2021 season, Stingley was honored with the No. 7 jersey, which was a tradition started by Patrick Peterson. Over the years, the No. 7 at LSU has been worn by Peterson, Tyrann Mathieu, Leonard Fournette, DJ Chark and Grant Delpit.

Through the first three games of the 2021 season, Derek Stingley has recorded eight tackles, including 3.5 tackles for loss, as well as a forced fumble against Central Michigan on Saturday.

The Tigers will likely look to sophomore Dwight McGlothern if Stingley does not play.

More injury news for the Tigers

LSU will be without defensive end Andre Anthony for the remainder of the season for the LSU Tigers. Anthony is a sixth-year senior who was a key part of LSU’s defense. LSU head coach Ed Orgeron confirmed on Monday that Anthony will miss the rest of the year.

In positive news for LSU, defensive end Ali Gaye and safety Jay Ward are expected to play Saturday against Mississippi State.

A 6-foot-6, 250-pound senior, Gaye was a second-team All-SEC selection last season. He made four tackles in LSU’s loss to UCLA, but he missed the following two games with an undisclosed injury. 

Similar to Gaye, Jay Ward also played in the season opener against the Bruins and finished with two tackles. After missing the last two games with an undisclosed injury, Ward will make his return Saturday.