One of the great mysteries of LSU’s 2017 offseason has apparently been solved.
In mid-February, LSU announced that Arden Key had “decided to take some time away from football... for personal reasons.” Those personal reasons were never detailed, although, amidst speculation that the starter might not be back at all, the player on Twitter and his coaches publicly indicated a return was in the offing.
This weekend, that return became official as the football program announced that, as of Monday, Key has rejoined the Tigers football program. In announcing his return, the team revealed that Key recently underwent shoulder surgery.
Whether the injury issue had anything to do with the sabbatical wasn’t detailed.
“We are looking forward to having Arden rejoin the team,” head coach Ed Orgeron said in a portion of a statement.
A four-star 2015 signee, Key was a consensus Freshman All-American his first season with the Tigers after starting nine games. Last season as a true sophomore, he led the team with 14.5 tackles for loss and 12 sacks. The latter total set a school record.
Following that breakout campaign, he was named second-team All-SEC.