Real first-year quarterback T. J. Finley will begin in the position of injured Myles Brennan for LSU’s home game against South Carolina on Saturday, Tigers head coach Ed Orgeron said Thursday.
Finley beat fellow freshman Max Johnson for initial honors after the two separate first-team reps after Brennan’s injury on October 10, via Shea Dixon of Geaux 247.
Brennan played three-quarters in the team’s last game, against Missouri, with a torn abdominal muscle, through Brody Miller of The Athletic, who won the news of Brennan’s father, Owen.
That didn’t stop Brennan from completing 60. 4% of his passes for 4 touchdowns, 430 aerial yards and no interception in a 45-41 loss on the road. For the season, Brennan completed 60. 3% of his passes for 11 touchdowns, 3 interceptions and 1,112 yards.
Brennan is classified as questionable for Saturday, according to Dixon. The game was reportedly lost in Florida on October 17, but that game was postponed due to an outbreak of COVID-19 on the Gators football program.
Finley, who played at Ponchatoula High School in Louisiana, pitched 58 touchdowns and ran 14 more while there, pitched 21 touchdowns and ran for 8 more in his senior year in 2019.
The 6’6 “and 242 pounds rated 3 stars through 247Sports, which also ranked it 19th as the nation’s most productive pro-style signal communicator in the 2020 class.
LSU, which won the national championship last season, started 1-2. The power offensive, however, defense fought in a 44-34 loss in the first week to Mississippi State and Missouri. Between the two, LSU beat Vanderbilt 41-7.
Saturday’s start is at 6pm ET at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge. South Carolina is 2-2 on a two-win streak in a row than a 30-22 win over No. 15 Auburn last Saturday.