Junior offensive tackle La’el Collins announced Tuesday afternoon he will return to LSU for the 2014 season, passing on an opportunity to enter the NFL draft.
“I came here to compete and build a great relationship with a group of guys I call my teammates … and also to earn a degree,” Collins said. “The 2014 LSU team has a lot to look forward to and a lot of things to accomplish, and I look forward to being a part of that.”
Collins is one of the few underclassmen who shunned the NFL draft to return to school instead. Six Tigers have declared for the draft, including guard Trai Turner, running back Jeremy Hill, defensive linemen Ego Ferguson and Anthony Johnson, and wide receivers Jarvis Landry and Odell Beckham Jr.
Collins was highly recruited coming out of Redemptorist High School in 2010. He was ranked No. 6 in the nation and No. 1 in the state by Rivals.com, and he was also named a First Team Parade All-American.
Collins started all but one game in the last two seasons, emerging as one of LSU’s best offensive linemen. He was named honorable mention All-Southeastern Conference by the Associated Press in 2012 and Second-Team All-SEC from the SEC coaches in 2013.
Collins will enter 2014 with a new coach, after the departure of former offensive line coach Greg Studrawa. Former LSU center Ben Wilkerson and McNeese State offensive line coach Rob Sale have interviewed for the job, according to reports by NOLA.com | The Times-Picayune and The Advocate.
Collins was joined by head coach Les Miles and teammates Kenny Hilliard, Jordan Allen, Jermauria Rasco and Elliott Porter, who will also be returning for the 2014 seasons.
Miles said the players exhibited quality decision-making and that the decision they made gave them a long-term view of who they are.
“I’d like to say a couple things about these guys: This will be the leadership of our team,” Miles said. “This will be the guys that point us in the right direction.”
Video courtesy of TigerTV

The original publication of this article omitted that the related video was provided by TigerTV Sports Showtime Reporter Patrick Clay.