Recruiting Round Up

It's been a while since we've talked recruiting...and for good reason.  With 22 commitments before September, the fact of the matter is that LSU only has a small handful of spots remaining in the Class of 2010.  Therefore, it becomes tricky for LSU juggle the scholarship offers that are still out on the table. 

With so much of the Class of 2010 taken care of, LSU has been able to get a head start on the Class of 2011.  LSU has issued at least a dozen official offers to juniors earlier in September, and they were able to land their first two commitments...and they were both big ones from Redemptorist high school in Baton Rouge.

Offensive tackle La'El Collins will be one of the state's Top 5 players next year and could be a 5-star prospect.  Collins is 6'4" 275 pounds and has really excelled at camps this summer, often outperforming some of the top prospects in the nation from the Class of 2010.  He's big time.  And along with Chris Faulk and Evan Washington, LSU is putting together a nice collection of young talent at the offensive tackle position. 

Running back Jeremy Hill also decided to become a Tiger on Monday.  Hill is a bigger running back who looks to have some special skills for such a big guy.  He's currently at 6"1" 215 pounds.  Right now, Hill looks like one of the Top 10 players in the state and could be the state's top running back prospect. 

Getting back to the Class of 2010, here is a position by position breakdown of the players still on LSU's board:

QB
Commitments: 
Zach Lee - McKinney, TX

Pursuing: 
None - LSU is done at QB for this class

RB
Commitments: 
Spencer Ware - Cincinnati, OH
Brandon Worle - Duluth, GA (fullback)

Pursuing:
Lache Seastrunk - Temple, TX -  Lache is at the top of LSU's board and is key to this class.  He's rated a 5-star by every scouting service out there.  The Texas speedster would compliment bigger backs such as Spencer Ware and Mike Ford.  Auburn is LSU's biggest competition for Seastrunk although USC remains in the picture as well. 

Alfred Blue - Hahnville, LA - Blue is likely LSU's "backup plan" in case things with Seastrunk don't go as planned.  Seastrunk is currently planning on enrolling in school in January while Blue is planning on announcing his decision on signing day.  So LSU should know just how badly they want Blue before he makes his decision.  I really like Blue as a prospect and wish LSU somehow had room for both players.  Blue currently has 454 yards and seven touchdowns on just 49 carries.  Blue is also considering Ole Miss, Arkansas, and Texas A&M but I think if LSU puts on the full court press, then he'll be in purple and gold. 

Nick Parker - Batesville, MS - Parker is a big back that LSU has shown a lot of interest in.  But we haven't heard a lot of noise recently with him, and I suspect it's because LSU has set their sights on Seastrunk and Blue. 

WR
Commitments:
Mike Davis - Dallas, TX
Justin Hunter - Virginia Beach, VA
Tharold Simon - Eunice, LA (may play defense)

Pursuing:
Trovon Reed - Thibodaux, LA - Reed is the state's top player and the perfect guy to be a deadly slot receiver and return man at the next level.  Several things are in LSU's favor with Reed.  First and foremost, he is from Thibodaux which is big-time LSU country.  Second is that LSU has a real need for wide receivers in this class and Reed should see an opportunity for early playing time.  However, it seems that Reed is very serious about Auburn right now.  He's made multiple visits to the Plains and even brought family along with him.  Going by Reed's latest actions, it's hard to say that LSU leads for him right now.  The longer Reed's recruitment drags on, the more likely that he'll stay close to home, but Auburn has to be considered the favorite right now. 

Jarrett Fobbs - Shreveport, LA - Fobbs is currently a Texas A&M commitment even though recent signs have things looking good for LSU.  Originally, LSU offered Fobbs as a defensive back only.  However, LSU is now recruiting him as a wide receiver (where Fobbs wants to play) and after a strong visit to LSU over the summer, the Tigers are very much back in the picture.  I love Fobbs as a prospect and think he'll be an impact player in college as a smaller, slot-type receiver.  I think LSU would take Fobbs regardless of what Trovon Reed does, but they'll really go after him hard if Reed chooses Auburn. 

James Wright - Belle Chasse, LA - Wright is an outstanding prospect and in my opinion, very underrated.  Unlike Fobbs and Reed who are smaller, shiftier receivers, Wright fits the mold of the big strong receiver that we've been accustomed to at LSU this decade.  Wright is very tough to get a read on when it comes to recruiting and nobody seems to know where he's leaning.  He's also seriously considering Alabama and Texas Tech.  The big question is whether LSU would take Reed, Fobbs, AND Wright.  Most think not.  But after Tim Molton left LSU's program, perhaps LSU would consider taking all three guys.  I personally think they should because all three are outstanding prospects.

Right now, it's tough for me to see LSU taking anyone other than these guys.  A few other guys, such as BJ Chitty (Dothan, AL), are still in the background. 

TE
Commitments:
Travis Dickson - Ocean Springs, MS
Nick Jacobs - Many, LA

Pursuing:
None - LSU is done at tight-end for this class

OL
Commitments:
Evan Washington - DeSoto, TX
Elliott Porter - New Orleans, LA
Cameron Fordham - Duluth, GA
Jamarcus Hardrick - Fort Scott, KS (JUCO)

Pursuing:
Damien Robinson - Olive Branch, MS - Robinson may be the most likely guy left on the board to ultimately decide on LSU.  But having said that, I don't think LSU lands him.  Robinson projects as a tackle, is very talented and appears on most Top 100 lists.  He doesn't do many interviews and is therefore tough to get a read on regarding his recruitment.  But from what I can gather, he's looking to go out of state and Alabama and Tennessee seem to be the most likely destinations. 

James Stone  - Nashville, TN - Stone, like Robinson, is being pursued by LSU but is a long shot to decide on the Tigers.  Stone visited LSU a couple of weeks ago and had nice things to say about the visit.  But he didn't appear to be blown away to the point where LSU is now a serious contender for his services.  He also appears to be seriously considering Alabama and Tennessee, along with Notre Dame. 

In all likelihood, LSU is done recruiting offensive linemen for this class.  However, if they can manage to land a player as good as Robinson or Stone, they'll gladly do so.   I don't expect it to happen though. 

DE
Commitments:
Jordan Allen - West Monroe, LA
Justin Maclin - Memphis, TN
Houston Bates - Covington, LA (could play LB)

Pursuing:
David Perry - Fort Lauderdale, FL - LSU has picked up their recruitment of Perry recently and could find themselves squarely in the mix for his services.  Perry is a solid looking prospect at 6'6" 230 pounds with offers from several big schools such as Alabama, Florida, Florida State, Tennessee, Miami and others.  Florida is the favorite for Perry; however, the Gators may be full at defensive end real soon and that would give LSU a real shot to sign him. 

Lynden Trail - Miami, FL - Trail has a great frame for a defensive end at 6'7" 220 pounds.  Like Perry, Trail has plenty of big time offers.  And also like Perry, Trail is very high on the Florida Gators.  But again, it's a question of whether Florida is going to have room for Trail, Perry, or both.  The chances are that they can't take both guys and LSU could be the beneficiary of that.  We shall see. 

JR Ferguson - Chatham, VA - Ferguson is a serious prospect and ranked a 5-star by many recruiting services.  He's a bit of a long shot for LSU, but he maintains that the Tigers are a player for his services.  Ferguson was supposed to visit LSU for the Florida game, but now may be visiting at a later date.  at 6'3" 270 pounds, Ferguson will probably end up playing defensive tackle later in his career. 

DT
Commitments:
Dexter Blackmon - Selma, AL

Pursuing:
Richard Ash - Pahokee, FL - Ash is an interesting prospect.  He is rated highly by the recruiting services but schools like Florida and USC, who had previously offered, have stopped recruiting him.  He continues to name LSU as a leader and is also interested in West Virginia.   It's unclear just how high LSU's interest level is. 

Byran Jones - Junction City, AR - Jones is another interesting prospect.  He's highly rated by most and looks good on film.  He has also shown a very strong interest in LSU, but LSU has not reciprocated that interest to this point.  Unfortunately, Jones wasn't able to make it down for one of LSU's camps.  But with a big need for defensive tackles, LSU will likely be taking a close look at Jones during his senior season.  He has offers from Arkansas, Auburn, Ole Miss, Oklahoma, and Mississippi State . 

LSU really needs to build on their youth at defensive tackle because the roster is currently short at the position.  However, Blackmon is LSU's only commitment right now and he is a bit of a project.  Signing another quality DT in this class looks like a priority, but the options aren't too plentiful at this point.  Junior college player Benay Pryer is an outside possibility as well. 

LB
Commitments:
Luke Muncie - Klein, TX
DJ Welter - Crowley, LA

Pursuing:
Travis Williams - Norfolk, VA - Williams is a smaller, speedy linebacker that would fit the scheme of John Chavis very well.  He's 6'2" and right around 200 pounds with great speed.  Williams is very high on Miami but also looking at Tennessee, Virginia Tech, and North Carolina.  It would be a tough pull for LSU, but the Tigers remain in the picture. 

With only a few spots left in this class, it's unlikely that one of them will be used on a linebacker...unless the Tigers can get Williams.  I don't think LSU would turn him away, and there doesn't seem to be too many other possibilities out there. 

CB
Commitments:
Tyrann Mathieu - New Orleans, LA
Ronnie Vinson - New Orleans, LA

Pursuing:
None - LSU is done at CB for this class

S
Commitments:
Eric Reid - Dutchtown, LA  (may end up at LB)
Sam Gibson - Prattville, AL

Pursuing:
None - LSU is done at S for this class