The way Ed Orgeron tells it, LSU is a family and it will always welcome back players that have earned the right to suit up and play for the Tigers.

That’s definitely the case for senior defensive lineman Neil Farrell Jr., who was the first Tiger to opt-out this offseason.

However, after some family issues cleared up during his time away from the Tigers, Farrell had some second thoughts and wanted to be there for his teammates this fall.

On Monday, the senior defensive lineman made the decision to return to LSU.

How did Orgeron react to that news? He shared his feelings on Farrell’s return during his most recent appearance on ESPN Baton Rouge 104.5 FM radio show “Off The Bench” on Tuesday.

“Obviously, Neil is part of our family, he’s a great young man. He had made a decision, a family decision, to go home – which we honored,” Orgeron said on the show. “But he called us, told us everything was taken care of (back home), (wanted to) come back, we welcomed him back.

“He’ll have to do some work to get into better shape than he is right now but I think he can add some depth to our interior defensive line, which we need.”

With Farrell returning in Baton Rouge, what does that do to LSU’s depth on the defensive line?

The LSU coach also touched on that topic.

“Glen Logan has been stellar. Glen’s a senior for us, been here for a while, knows what to do, has played very well,” Orgeron added. “Apu Ika has made tremendous improvements, he’s in good shape. Apu’s down to about 340 right now but Joe (Evans) is coming along, Joe’s electric. He’s coming out of his hips, making some plays. Jaquelin Roy making some progress for us. I think Jaquelin is going to be an outstanding defensive lineman for us.”

Heading into a 10-game SEC schedule, LSU is going to need all the linemen they can get.