False alarm.
LSU quarterback Garrett Nussmeier was rumored online to have suffered a serious knee injury at a closed practice that was going to put his season in jeopardy — but it was all a sham.
“Just for the record, [Nussmeier] had tendinitis, patella tendinitis,” Tigers head coach Brian Kelly told reporters Friday. “He does not have a torn ACL.”
The rumors were so outlandish that Kelly couldn’t help but joke about it all.
“We have not amputated his leg,” he added.
The internet claims weren’t entirely untrue, as Nussmeier is nursing an injury in his knee, but it is nowhere near the catastrophe that many were led to believe.
“On the scale of 1 to 10, this is like a 1.5, on the scale of 1 to 10,” Kelly said. “And that’s just being honest with you, so we get the right information out there. … It’s like guys dealing with tendinitis virtually every day, in life. Take two aspirins and I’ll call you in the morning, right? This is more precautionary.
“He was out there today throwing. Tomorrow, he’ll be back out, most likely in a practice situation, so I thought we’d calm everybody down.”
Nussmeier is coming off his first full season as LSU’s starter in a pass-heavy offense in which he led the SEC in completions and attempts.
He threw for 4,052 yards, 29 touchdowns and 12 interceptions to help lead the Tigers to a 9-4 record.
While Nussmeier and the team avoided a full-blown nightmare, the tendinitis could pose an issue down the line and will be worth monitoring this season.
“When you have something that is a pre-existing condition, you can piss it off real easy and that’s kind of what happened,” Kelly said. “It’s not torn. There’s no fraying. There’s none of that. This is pre-existing. And he probably just planted the wrong way. There’s nothing really to see on film with it. But it’s just pissed it off. Aggravated it would be the better way to put it for me.”
