NEW ORLEANS — You often hear athletes say their teammates are like brothers and sisters and their coaches are like their parents.
Following the sudden death of Carley McCord, the LSU tigers are showing family-like qualities in how they're supporting one of their own. McCord was the daughter-in-law of LSU offensive coordinator, Steve Ensminger.
Like families sometimes do, the parents, in this situation, the coaches, decided to hold off in sharing devastating news.
"I didn't want it to affect the team, the energy of the football team, neither did Steve,” said head coach Ed Orgeron.
Quarterback Joe Burrow learned of the passing on television during a post-game interview. It made for an awkward moment, but we could see the emotion on Burrow's face. His thoughts were not on getting to the national championship. They were with Ensminger.
As other players found out about McCord's death, they embraced Ensminger, as family would.
"I continue to send out my prayers. I mean Carley did an interview with me after the Texas A&M game. I'll never forget that, and so I think everybody was kind of affected by it personally because coach Ensminger is like a father figure, especially to the offensive guys," said LSU defensive tackle Breiden Fehoko.
Due to the nature of her career, her ties to the team and the stage in which the Tigers are on, McCord's death made headlines across the country.
But let's not forget the loss of the other passengers and how one is still fighting for his life.
In the sporting world where winning dominates, the Tigers are demonstrating with dignity how to handle a true loss.
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