Injured LSU sophomore running back Corey Kiner enters transfer portal
Corey Kiner has left the building.
Kiner, a sophomore LSU running back, announced via his Twitter account Monday morning that he is entering the NCAA transfer portal.
“My time as a Tiger has come to an end, I would like to start a new chapter in my life and explore my options to continue my career as a student-athlete elsewhere,” Kiner stated in his Tweet.
As a true freshman last season, Kiner ran for 324 yards on 79 carries and two TDs in 11 games as a backup behind starter Ty Davis-Price.
This spring, Kiner was running second team behind John Emery. Kiner has been sidelined lately with a high ankle sprain.
Kiner shouldn’t last long in the transfer portal. When he signed with LSU a year ago, he had been named Mr. Football for the state of Ohio in December of 2020 after rushing for 1,866 yards and 35 touchdowns for Cincinnati’s Roger Bacon High School.
Ranked as the nation’s No. 7 running back by 247 Sports Composite, he finished his prep career ranked No. 10 in Ohio High School Athletic Association history in rushing yards (7,130) and No. 3 all-time in scoring (772), rushing touchdowns (116) and total touchdowns (125).
He signed with LSU over Cincinnati, Florida, Michigan, Ohio State, Texas A&M, and USC. Three months ago, Kiner signed a Name, Image and Likeness (NIL) deal with Jay-Z’s Roc Nation Sports,
Even without Kiner, the Tigers still have an abundance of running backs.
Besides Emery, there’s sophomore Armoni Goodwin and juniors Tre Bradford and Josh Williams. Incoming Penn State transfer Noah Cain joins the team in the summer.
Cain played in 12 games last season rushing for 350 yards on 106 carries and four touchdowns, he also caught 19 passes for 114 yards. He missed the 2020 season after suffering a season-ending injury against Indiana. He has played in 23 career games for Penn State rushing for 778 yards with 12 touchdowns and also has caught 24 passes for 154 yards.
New LSU head coach Brian Kelly talked about the Tigers’ running back corps after last Saturday’s practice in which Goodwin ran for a 59-yard touchdown.
“You saw Armoni (Goodwin) hit a downhill direct snap inside zone play,” Kelly said. “He's got the low pads obviously just by his stature, but he's explosive.
“Williams has done a nice job. I think Tre's (Bradford) has done a really nice job. He's improved from day one. He didn't know how to practice, he's starting to understand how to practice.
“They've all got different skill sets, and they all can contribute in some fashion. We're going to add another back – obviously (Noah) Cain (Penn State transfer) – he’s going to come in as well.
“I just think that you're going to see a lot of guys play at that position. I think, you know, we're gonna play to each one of their traits as well.
“So, I'm really pleased with each one of them has shown different traits that they have and we will play to those. I don't know that you'll see one guy on the field for first, second and third down per se. I think each one of them will contribute.”