They say no good news is released on Fridays. That certainly seems to be the case in Baton Rouge this afternoon.
LSU defensive back Tyrann Mathieu, nicknamed The Honey Badger and one of the top defensive players heading in to the upcoming season, has been removed from the roster of the defending champions and preseason BCS contender.
Tyrann Mathieu is no longer on our football team," Les Miles said despondently during a very brief press conference. "We'll miss him but we'll have to go on."
Privacy laws did not allow Miles to go in to further detail on the reason behind the dismissal from the team, but he did confirm it was a violation of team and school rules. For now it is termed as a violation of team policy. If and when more information is discovered about the facts leading to this decision, we will relay it to you.
Mathieu, a Heisman finalist last season, leaves the Tigers in search of finding another defensive back, as well as a special teams player to return punts. Yesterday Mathieu tweeted what can now be looked upon as a possible sign of foreshadowing…
The realist hearts have been through the most pain!! I'm out!!
— Tyrann Mathieu (@TM7_Era) August 9, 2012
Perhaps it was related to today's news, although that is pure speculation right now.
According to some folks, Mathieu is already looking to find a place to play this season. His choices would likely be restricted to FCS competition, which would allow him to continue to play right away and if that is the case he should be dominant on the FCS playing field. We'll see where he lands and how this all plays out for him moving forward. Mathieu does have two years of eligibility remaining.
Kevin McGuire is the national college football writer for Examiner.com, host of the No 2-Minute Warning podcast and managing editor of Nittany Lions Den. Follow him on Twitter and Facebook.
