No. 5 LSU's Star DT Maason Smith To Miss Opener Vs. No. 8 Florida State Because He Signed Autographs Pre-NIL

BATON ROUGE, La. - No. 5 LSU was counting on behemoth defensive tackle Maason Smith for the top college football opener of the 2023 season on Sept. 3 against No. 8 Florida State (7:30 p.m., ABC) in Orlando.

LSU-Florida State Is Only Top 10 Matchup Early This Season

The LSU-FSU winner will have cleared the first hurdle toward national championship contention in the last year of the four-team College Football Playoff. Florida State beat LSU, 24-23, last season in the Superdome in New Orleans. The Tigers rebounded to win the Southeastern Conference West and finish 10-4. The Seminoles enjoyed a 10-3 season.

But the Tigers will not have the freshman All-American Smith (6-foot-5, 300) because of an improper benefit he received before new Name, Image & Likeness legislation went into effect in July of 2021. The Baton Rouge Advocate reported the story first. The sophomore will be suspended for the opening game only, according to the NCAA. Smith was lost for the 2022 season when he injured his knee against FSU last season.

Smith's improper benefit? He signed autographs at an event in the summer of 2021 just before the new NIL rules became real that allow players to receive money, an LSU source confirmed to OutKick on Thursday morning.

LSU Recruited Maason Smith Pre-NIL

Smith committed to LSU in December of 2020 out of Terrebonne High School and signed for the 2021 class.

Ed Orgeron was the head coach at the time before being fired during the 2021 season when Smith played as a true freshman. Smith was the 1 No. defensive tackle in the nation and No. 2 overall prospect in the country in 2020-21 by Rivals.com. He visited Alabama in March of 2019. Among the other schools recruiting him were Georgia, Florida, Michigan State, Ole Miss and Oklahoma State.

Former LSU wide receiver Kayshon Boutte and Smith participated in the autograph event just before the NIL era began. The NCAA suspended Boutte for the New Mexico game on Sept. 24 in the 2022 season. At the time, LSU coach Brian Kelly said he was ill. The NCAA would have suspended Smith for that game, but he was already injured and lost for the season. The NCAA let Kelly know Smith would be suspended for FSU earlier this summer.

Smith has been hobbled by a recent ankle injury, but he likely would have been healthy enough to play against the Seminoles. And even with a bad ankle, he can take up multiple blockers to let his teammates rush the passer more. It's not like he plays wide receiver.

Smith Played A Lot For LSU In 2021

As a true freshman, Smith played in nine games with four starts in the 2021 season. He collected four sacks amid 19 tackles overall, including 13 solos for the Tigers. He showed little sign of his knee injury and surgery during practices this month.

"There hasn't been hesitation, and he hasn't been feeling his way through it," Kelly said recently. "A lot of that hesitation has diminished because of what he did throughout the summer."

Wonder how much those Maason Smith "rookie" autographs will sell for now - particularly to Florida State fans?

LSU has been a 2.5-point favorite to beat the Seminoles.