The Tigers finally have its head man in place and are left with little time to get prospects acclimated to not only the person leading the charge for the university's storied program, but the idea of playing for a coach that is quite different than the man that first started recruiting them to play at LSU in Ed Orgeron.
The coaches are on the road, birds are chirping and the early signing period will be here in two weeks. Julie and I are here to fill you in on the latest.
Julie: Shazz Preston, who’s picking soon from LSU, Alabama, Georgia and Texas, had an in-home visit Tuesday night from Mickey Joseph, but I was told that other members of the staff plan to visit Preston again next week. It is unclear at this time who those coaches may be. The four-star receiver is one of the key in-state targets that LSU really covets in this class, along with Quency Wiggins, Kendrick Law and Jacoby Mathews.
Jimmy: As for Jacoby Mathews, the Ponchatoula athlete and former LSU commit is still very much in play for the Tigers. The Mathews' appear to be pleased with LSU's new hire and hold Brian Kelly in high regards, despite not bring recruited by him while at Notre Dame. Mathews is in no rush to figure things out as he chases a state championship, so it will be interesting to see how the next few weeks shake out. One option could be to bypass the early signing period, which appears to be on the table. If he does elect to bypass the December signing date, it would give LSU some much needed time for the new staff and prize recruit to get familiar with one another. Texas A&M still remains a strong player, and I expect Billy Napier to give this one a good run, but LSU will be tough to beat down the stretch.
Jimmy: Keep an eye on Miami commit Chris Graves as things wind down. Graves and LSU were in good standing earlier in the process prior to his Miami pledge and there are a lot of signs that things could be heating up again. LSU has its coach in place now and Miami still has some lingering questions as to what route they may go once a new athletic director is named. LSU will look to add a third cornerback in this class and it would not be surprising to see them add a transfer down the road with sophomore Elias Ricks now in the portal and Derek Stingley and Darren Evans moving on to the NFL.
Julie: Trending down ... If forced to pick the in-state 2022 targets I felt were trending in the wrong direction for LSU, there's a few big ones, in my opinion. Kelly and his staff, whomever will be on it, have a lot of work left to do on Kendrick Law, Shazz Preston and Austin Ausberry. But on the flip side, I feel better today about Quency Wiggins, Jacoby Mathews and still feel like the Tigers could potentially get Tre'Vonte Citizen back on board, although, it sounds like Auburn made a big impression on him over the weekend, which is likely the cause of his decommitment.
Jimmy: While unlikely, LSU is still lurking for Arizona defensive lineman Anthony Lucas. Alabama and Texas A&M are the leaders here, but LSU is still buzzing in the shadows ready to sting if there is an opening. I do not think it will happen, but I am not ready to shut the door just yet.
Expanding on what Julie said earlier, the state of Louisiana is going to be a major focus and needs to be down the stretch. There is a lot of work to do and the door may be all but closed with some of the targets if we are being honest. Shazz Preston could surprise the heck out of me and stay home, but this has felt like an Alabama/Georgia battle for some time now and I do not see this hire changing that. It has been a long, slow process for the Preston family and they aren't the type to be swayed easily or often. They are fairly methodical in their approach to everything, especially recruiting. I could be reading things wrong here, but that is the feeling I am getting. I do see Citizen coming back into this class at some point and I also see Jacoby Mathews coming back around as long as some familiar staffers are retained.
The process of filling his staff is going to occupy a lot of Kelly's time in the immediate future, along with getting involved in the recruiting process, so the evaluation process could take a bit of a backseat in the coming days. This will impact how and when they decide what to do on in-state guys like Ponchatoula athlete Braydon Johnson. The two-way athlete has drawn interest from LSU of late and earned a PWO offer, but he's hoping to turn that into a full scholarship. Then there's Miami commit Landon Ibieta, who fits a need and continues to establish himself as a premier prospect. Brian Kelly has a history of filling his roster with tall receivers, which could impact Ibieta and his modest 6-0, 180-pound frame. Evaluating the targets is the aspect that often gets glossed over. LSU needs to do a better job in this area and Kelly has a strong rep in this department.
Julie recently touched on Notre Dame wide receiver commit CJ Williams out of California. It appears that Notre Dame is going to retain both of the coaches that have been recruiting him though (Tommy Rees, DelVaughn Alexander), so one would believe that Kelly will have his hands full trying to pull him late. The rallying cry that is taking place at Notre Dame, led by coaches that appear to be staying in South Bend, will undoubtedly limit Kelly's ability to sway any of his prior commits. But he is expected to try anyway. The most interesting development could be centered around Ponchatoula's Amorion Walker, who is currently a Notre Dame commitment. But then again, Notre Dame has the No. 3 recruiting class and Brian Kelly coaching LSU will turn a lot of heads, so we will have to wait and see how it plays out. We will be here for it all.
Julie: As far as what I'm hearing on the team and Kelly, I quickly just wanted to touch on this even though it's a recruiting notebook. It sounds like plenty of players are intrigued by the new coach while some are still anxious to see which assistant coaches are retained, much like many of the recruits, and which new coaches may be coming in. It's believed that a handful of guys would perhaps consider transferring if their respective position coaches aren't retained, but Scott Woodward and Brian Kelly have to make the best decisions they see fit for the long term success of the Tigers. And if that is the case, it should almost be expected in today's age of college football with the transfer portal and coaching changes that happen so often. One current player that has a previous relationship with Kelly is Jack Bech, who had a Notre Dame offer during his recruitment and liked the Fighting Irish early in his process prior to having an offer from LSU. Bech shared a photo on Twitter of he and Kelly from Tuesday night's meet and greet with the new coach.
The coaches are on the road, birds are chirping and the early signing period will be here in two weeks. Julie and I are here to fill you in on the latest.
Julie: Shazz Preston, who’s picking soon from LSU, Alabama, Georgia and Texas, had an in-home visit Tuesday night from Mickey Joseph, but I was told that other members of the staff plan to visit Preston again next week. It is unclear at this time who those coaches may be. The four-star receiver is one of the key in-state targets that LSU really covets in this class, along with Quency Wiggins, Kendrick Law and Jacoby Mathews.
Jimmy: As for Jacoby Mathews, the Ponchatoula athlete and former LSU commit is still very much in play for the Tigers. The Mathews' appear to be pleased with LSU's new hire and hold Brian Kelly in high regards, despite not bring recruited by him while at Notre Dame. Mathews is in no rush to figure things out as he chases a state championship, so it will be interesting to see how the next few weeks shake out. One option could be to bypass the early signing period, which appears to be on the table. If he does elect to bypass the December signing date, it would give LSU some much needed time for the new staff and prize recruit to get familiar with one another. Texas A&M still remains a strong player, and I expect Billy Napier to give this one a good run, but LSU will be tough to beat down the stretch.
Jimmy: Keep an eye on Miami commit Chris Graves as things wind down. Graves and LSU were in good standing earlier in the process prior to his Miami pledge and there are a lot of signs that things could be heating up again. LSU has its coach in place now and Miami still has some lingering questions as to what route they may go once a new athletic director is named. LSU will look to add a third cornerback in this class and it would not be surprising to see them add a transfer down the road with sophomore Elias Ricks now in the portal and Derek Stingley and Darren Evans moving on to the NFL.
Julie: Trending down ... If forced to pick the in-state 2022 targets I felt were trending in the wrong direction for LSU, there's a few big ones, in my opinion. Kelly and his staff, whomever will be on it, have a lot of work left to do on Kendrick Law, Shazz Preston and Austin Ausberry. But on the flip side, I feel better today about Quency Wiggins, Jacoby Mathews and still feel like the Tigers could potentially get Tre'Vonte Citizen back on board, although, it sounds like Auburn made a big impression on him over the weekend, which is likely the cause of his decommitment.
Jimmy: While unlikely, LSU is still lurking for Arizona defensive lineman Anthony Lucas. Alabama and Texas A&M are the leaders here, but LSU is still buzzing in the shadows ready to sting if there is an opening. I do not think it will happen, but I am not ready to shut the door just yet.
Expanding on what Julie said earlier, the state of Louisiana is going to be a major focus and needs to be down the stretch. There is a lot of work to do and the door may be all but closed with some of the targets if we are being honest. Shazz Preston could surprise the heck out of me and stay home, but this has felt like an Alabama/Georgia battle for some time now and I do not see this hire changing that. It has been a long, slow process for the Preston family and they aren't the type to be swayed easily or often. They are fairly methodical in their approach to everything, especially recruiting. I could be reading things wrong here, but that is the feeling I am getting. I do see Citizen coming back into this class at some point and I also see Jacoby Mathews coming back around as long as some familiar staffers are retained.
The process of filling his staff is going to occupy a lot of Kelly's time in the immediate future, along with getting involved in the recruiting process, so the evaluation process could take a bit of a backseat in the coming days. This will impact how and when they decide what to do on in-state guys like Ponchatoula athlete Braydon Johnson. The two-way athlete has drawn interest from LSU of late and earned a PWO offer, but he's hoping to turn that into a full scholarship. Then there's Miami commit Landon Ibieta, who fits a need and continues to establish himself as a premier prospect. Brian Kelly has a history of filling his roster with tall receivers, which could impact Ibieta and his modest 6-0, 180-pound frame. Evaluating the targets is the aspect that often gets glossed over. LSU needs to do a better job in this area and Kelly has a strong rep in this department.
Julie recently touched on Notre Dame wide receiver commit CJ Williams out of California. It appears that Notre Dame is going to retain both of the coaches that have been recruiting him though (Tommy Rees, DelVaughn Alexander), so one would believe that Kelly will have his hands full trying to pull him late. The rallying cry that is taking place at Notre Dame, led by coaches that appear to be staying in South Bend, will undoubtedly limit Kelly's ability to sway any of his prior commits. But he is expected to try anyway. The most interesting development could be centered around Ponchatoula's Amorion Walker, who is currently a Notre Dame commitment. But then again, Notre Dame has the No. 3 recruiting class and Brian Kelly coaching LSU will turn a lot of heads, so we will have to wait and see how it plays out. We will be here for it all.
Julie: As far as what I'm hearing on the team and Kelly, I quickly just wanted to touch on this even though it's a recruiting notebook. It sounds like plenty of players are intrigued by the new coach while some are still anxious to see which assistant coaches are retained, much like many of the recruits, and which new coaches may be coming in. It's believed that a handful of guys would perhaps consider transferring if their respective position coaches aren't retained, but Scott Woodward and Brian Kelly have to make the best decisions they see fit for the long term success of the Tigers. And if that is the case, it should almost be expected in today's age of college football with the transfer portal and coaching changes that happen so often. One current player that has a previous relationship with Kelly is Jack Bech, who had a Notre Dame offer during his recruitment and liked the Fighting Irish early in his process prior to having an offer from LSU. Bech shared a photo on Twitter of he and Kelly from Tuesday night's meet and greet with the new coach.
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