LSU Tigers WR Travin Dural Blames Popeyes for Offseason Weight Gain

Many college students find themselves battling the infamous "freshman 15" at some point during their first year on campus, and student-athlete Travin Dural is no different.

The LSU Tigers receiver has put on a few pounds this offseason. And it's all because he loves that chicken from Popeyes.

Dural's player profile lists him at 6'2", 207 pounds. That's about what he considers playing weight, but he's coming off hamstring surgery back in November. He explained to Glenn Guilbeau of the USA Today network, via WWLTV.com, what caused him to pack on some pounds.

"Yeah, Popeyes was putting a lot of weight on me," Dural said. "I went home one day, and my mom was like, 'Man, you look stuffed.' So, that's when I knew it was time for change. I was almost 230 pounds in the spring, and I played at 203 last year."

Sometimes, you just get hooked on a restaurant.

Apparently, the ribbing wasn't strictly from Mama Dural.

"And Coach [Cam] Cameron made a couple of jokes about it," Dural said. "I didn't like the [lining him up at] fullback and tight end jokes, so I knew I had to slim down. I had to stay away from Popeyes. Oh man, I tried to do a no-meat diet, but that failed miserably. That failed miserably in like two days."

Ultimately, he changed up his diet to get back in shape.

"I stayed away from the Popeyes and the home cooking and started eating salads and started eating a lot less and drinking a lot more water," the senior receiver said.

It's probably a good thing for Dural that college players aren't allowed to have endorsement deals. A partnership with Popeyes could have serious ramifications on his football career.