LSU Coach Ed Orgeron Wishes Receiver Ja'Marr Chase, Defensive Tackle Tyler Shelvin the Best

Orgeron, Tigers adopting 'next man up' mentality with departure of key veterans

The last 48 hours have been a shock to the system as two of LSU's premier players have elected to sit out the 2020 season. With receiver Ja'Marr Chase and defensive tackle Tyler Shelvin now out of the fold, the purple and gold are put in a difficult situation with just under a month to figure out how the team will move forward without two key pieces.

That doesn't bother coach Ed Orgeron any as he said during his weekly appearance on Off the Bench that the team will continue to adopt the "next man up" mentality.

"We don't blink, next man up," Orgeron said. "Are we gonna miss those guys? Sure we are, but we got some guys that can play some football."

A few young receivers have been the talk of fall camp over the last two weeks and Orgeron reveled at the performance of Kayshon Boutte during Monday's practice. Rummel's Koy Moore has also been a standout but Orgeron says he's currently nursing a minor injury.

Orgeron of course wished Chase and Shelvin the best as the two start to prepare for life in the NFL. Chase is a sure fire top-10 pick in next spring's draft as he accomplished everything you can as a receiver, winning the Biletnikoff and national championship after setting SEC records for yardage (1,780) and touchdowns.

Shelvin's NFL future is a bit more up in the air as he will likely be a fringe first-round pick come next spring. Had he elected to play the 2020 season, there's a good chance he would've improved his draft stock immensely, had he gotten his weight under control.

"Those things are gonna happen, it's the times we're living in and we wish Ja'Marr and Tyler the best," Orgeron said. "They helped us win a national championship, they're two great young men, great families and we wish them the best."

Stay tuned for more updates as Orgeron is expected to meet with the media at 11 a.m. Tuesday on his weekly zoom call.