Poor choices on a throw-away play cost LSU OL first half against Ole Miss

Heading into 2025, the LSU offensive line had to replace four starters from a year ago. The group has had some ups-and-downs so far, with starting center Braelin Moore missing some time with a lower body injury. Now, the group will be without a key player in next week's massive game at No. 13 Ole Miss.

In one of the most bizarre plays you'll see, LSU offensive lineman DJ Chester was ejected from LSU's Week 4 game against Southeastern Louisiana on Saturday night. The call is debatable, but the play that set up the situation was the result of a poor decision.

DJ Chester ejected for targeting against Southestern Louisiana

Leading 42-7 in the third quarter against FCS Southeastern Louisiana, LSU was facing a 4th-and-9 from the SELU 42-yard line. Instead of merely punting the ball away, LSU lined up for a 59-yard field goal from Damian Ramos. The kick was well short, barely making it to the goal line. SELU's Da'shun Hugley brought the kick back for a 47-yard return. Hugley evaded some tackles and took a hit from LSU center DJ Chester before ultimately getting brought down by Givanni Peterson.

The play was then reviewed, and after several minutes of discussion between the officiating crew, Chester was ejected from the game for targeting. That's right - a center ejected for targeting. That's not something you see every day.

To make make matters worse, the play ended up not even counting due to a defensive penalty on the Lions on the field goal attempt. As WAFB TV's Jacques Doucet said, it was a very significant event that occurred at a very insignificant time.

With such a big lead, the outcome of the game wasn't in question. It was at the point where LSU just needed to finish out the game with a win and without anything crazy happening. Well, after deciding to attempt a risky long-range field goal, the Tigers got burned.

DJ Chester to miss first half against Ole Miss

Not only was Chester forced to miss the rest of the game against Southeastern Louisiana, but he also has to sit out the first half of next week's game against Ole Miss. Starting center Braelin Moore is back, but Chester is still a valuable piece of LSU's offensive line. He can play multiple positions, and despite being just a redshirt sophomore, has the most experience in an LSU uniform among all of the Tiger offensive lineman. Furthermore, Moore could still be dealing with a lingering ankle injury, and not having Chester as the backup center for the first 30 minutes against Ole Miss is significant.

As a center, Chester obviously isn't a part of tackling drills very often. The call is definitely debatable, as there wasn't an ounce of malicious intent behind Chester's tackle. It was a bizarre play that burned LSU at an insignificant time. Moving forward, it will be interesting to see how Brian Kelly organizes his offensive line depth for the first half against the Rebels without Chester available.