Saw this post on TOS. Although I cannot verify it's accuracy, it's very interesting & a great read. Wide Receivers - The top item in this category has to do with DeAndre Brown (6-6/220, 4.5, Ocean Springs, MS), who is all but a done deal to LSU but for one problem - academics. Brown's situation involves core grades which need some beefing up - and evidently a core grade issue is not something that can be remedied in a prep school like Hargrave Military Academy per the new NCAA rules seeking to regulate some of these other diploma mills out there. So if Brown signs with LSU but can't get his core grades up to qualify, he then would probably have to go the junior-college route in all likelihood. His other option, which he will be exploring on an official visit this weekend, is Southern Miss - where his recruiter Tony Hughes, who caused so much trouble for LSU when the latter was an assistant at Ole Miss before being turned out with Ed Orgeron's staff, is on the case - and per the more lax Conference USA academic standards Brown could conceivably sign and enroll as a partial qualifier and thus lose only one year of eligibility, as opposed to two he'd lose going to junior college. Problem is, then Brown would be at Southern Miss and not LSU, and how much he'd develop there is something of a question; as is whether USM could find a quarterback who could get him the ball with any regularity. LSU could probably cut this Gordian knot by telling Brown that if he turns out a partial qualifier rather than making the grade to get eligible by the end of summer school, say, they'd release him so he could sign with Southern Miss. At that point everybody would probably be happy - USM could hardly hope to get a guy like Brown over LSU under regular circumstances, and Brown would then preserve all his options. If in fact LSU doesn't get Brown because of his academic situation, it's not the end of the world. The LSU coaching staff is absolutely in love with current commitment and three-star-rated Tim Molton (6-3/185, 4.4, Destrehan); they think he's the most underrated wide receiver in the country. Molton, back in the summer at the LSU camp, showed off something Les Miles and Gary Crowton highly value in wideouts - the ability to stick a foot in the ground and make sharp cuts. They think he's better than anybody they've seen this year at that, and coupled with outstanding hands, very good speed and excellent overall athletic ability (Molton was the punter and holder for Destrehan this year as well as a wide receiver), he probably just needs a little work in the weight room to become a very dangerous weapon. Molton's not quite qualified either, but the word is he's close enough that it shouldn't be an issue by the fall. Quarterbacks - LSU is very much in the thick of things with Terrell Pryor (6-6/225, 4.5, Jeannette, PA), the nation's top recruit, and Pryor is expected to make an official visit to Baton Rouge some time in the next two weeks. But Pryor's status is creating something of a dicey situation, because the Tigers don't want to scare off current commitment Jordan Jefferson (6-5/210, 4.6, Destrehan), who they think is another player with gigantic upside. Apparently when the Pryor thing started sprouting legs a week or so ago, the coaches got a call from Destrehan asking if all this meant Jefferson wasn't good enough to play at LSU, and some tender-loving care had to be applied. At this point the Tigers are almost duty-bound to recruit a kid of Pryor's stature who wants to be recruited by LSU, but given Jefferson as a bird in the hand and also the fact that LSU seems to be in very good shape with 2009 blue-chip recruit A.J. McCarron (6-4/200, 4.7, Mobile, AL/St. Paul's), who might get scared off at the prospect of Pryor and Jefferson both in this recruiting class, Pryor going someplace else is hardly the worst thing that could happen. Running Backs - LSU would like to sign a tailback in this class, but like with Pryor it won't kill them if they don't. There are three in-state prospects for 2009 - Mike Ford (5-10/195, 4.5, Leesville), Eddie Lacy (5-11/205, 4.4, Dutchtown) and Montrell Connor (6-2/210, 4.4, Monroe/Ouachita) who already show up in some early-bird national top 100 lists, and Miles and his staff want to sign all three of them. So if they can't convince one of three targets they're still looking at to sign here, it's OK. That said, the staff absolutely loves Jermaine Thomas (6-1/190, 4.4, Jacksonville, FL/First Coast). They think he's the best back in the country. Thomas, rated only a three-star player by Rivals, is currently committed to Florida State, and the Seminoles are fighting tooth and nail to keep Thomas from taking a visit to LSU this weekend. Thomas says he's coming, and once he gets here anything can happen. The issue for Thomas is playing time; he's a back very similar to Richard Murphy and one wonders if the Tigers can get him on the field enough early in his career to satisfy him given that Murphy will be only a sophomore next fall. Otherwise, he seems a lot better fit at LSU than Florida State, which given their paucity of offensive line play really needs a big back who can break tackles at the line more than an open-field jackrabbit like Thomas. LSU is also recruiting Darrell Scott (6-0/205, 4.4, Ventura, CA/St. Bonaventure), the nation's top-rated running back, and despite a lot of talk about Colorado and Texas from Scott the thinking is that if he makes a visit to LSU next weekend (which is a possibility) he might end up a Tiger. The issue with Scott apparently is that he's terrified of flying. He drove to his official visit to Colorado, and apparently when he made his visit to Texas the flight freaked him out. That's one reason why Scott apparently dropped Florida - a coast-to-coast plan trip was out of the question. Problem there is that Scott's going to have to overcome his fear of flying to play road games for any major college he might choose, and he has to know this, so how this thing will shake out is anybody's guess. I would venture to say Thomas is more likely than Scott where LSU is concerned. The other back on the radar is Derrick Hall (5-10/201, 4.35, Beaumont, TX/Central), an all-purpose player who could play wide receiver or defensive back rather than tailback if necessary. Hall is currently a Texas A&M commitment, but he's got a visit to Baton Rouge scheduled for next weekend. He gave a great quote about the Tigers to Rivals yesterday - "LSU, they're just ballers, man" - but the bet here is local pressure could be tough to overcome. Les Miles was reportedly in Hall's home yesterday. Offensive Line/Tight Ends - The only player left on LSU's recruiting board on the offensive line at this point is Antoine McClain (6-6/317, 5.3, Anniston, AL), who looks to be between LSU, Alabama, Tennessee and Clemson. Word here is that LSU's coaches think they're in the lead for McClain, and that they can sew him up as a commitment when he makes his visit next weekend. McClain started off as an Alabama lean, but the Tide essentially botched his recruitment by slow-playing him and focusing on other linemen. Shorthanded, they've now jumped back in the game but the word is it's too late. McClain visited Tennessee last weekend and he'll be at Auburn this weekend, but right now the LSU coaches like where they are with him. Other news which could affect the line for this recruiting class is that while Tiger commitment and Louisiana's top player as rated by the Baton Rouge Advocate Chase Clement (6-5/270, 4.8, Thibodaux/E.D. White) will get an opportunity to start off as a defensive end in the fall, the coaches really think his future lies as an offensive lineman. Clement's lateral speed as a defensive end is something they're not completely sure about, plus he's apparently in a major growth spurt which has taken him from the 250-pound hybrid linebacker/defensive end he played in high school and could mean he eventually is a lot closer to 300 pounds, especially once he gets into LSU's strength program. Couple that with his natural aggressiveness and strength, which the coaches absolutely love, and Clement might end up being a lot closer player to his uncle Eric Andolsek than people think - he might end up playing Andolsek's position at the end of the day.
Defensive Line - The latest news on Corey Liuget (6-3/260, 4.8, Hialeah, FL), reported here yesterday, has been picked up around the South (as evidenced by its inclusion in today's Mobile Register recruiting roundup), so we don't need to get too heavily into that. As it turns out, though, Liuget may end up a replacement for Lavar Edwards (6-4/275, 4.8, Baton Rouge/Desire Street Academy). Edwards visited LSU last weekend and was pushed to commit by the LSU coaching staff. He said he'd have an answer on Monday. Yesterday he still didn't have one. LSU might be moving on. This weekend the Tigers have an official visit scheduled for Glenn Harbin (6-6/250, 4.8, Mobile, AL/McGill-Toolen), a four-star player whose other favorites include South Carolina (his current leader), North Carolina and Florida. Harbin, whose father Bien played briefly for LSU under Mike Archer, is a lanky, long-armed defensive end who could benefit greatly in LSU's strength program much like Tyson Jackson did; he could be an interesting player to watch early next week. Linebackers - It sounds as though Alabama is turning up some major heat on top commitment Mark Barron (6-2/210, 4.4, Mobile, AL/St. Paul's), who has a visit scheduled to LSU this weekend and who we discussed on this page yesterday. There is some word floating around surrounding Barron's mother and a job at a local hospital in Mobile which evidently is contingent on his fulfilling his Alabama commitment; it's going to be interesting to see if Barron actually makes the visit to LSU after all. His St. Paul's teammate, wide receiver Destin Hood, is rumored to be coming with him on the visit, though Hood told the Birmingham Paper Monday he wasn't taking that trip. Another option still out there at linebacker for the Tigers is Patrick Trahan (6-2/225, 4.5, Northwest Mississippi JC), who currently favors Ole Miss but might be moved by a late charge and committable offer from the Tigers. LSU is also engaged in a battle with Florida State to hold on to top linebacker commitment Ryan Baker (6-0/210, 4.4, Blountstown, FL), who has been fighting Seminole coaches off all week long. FSU botched Baker's recruitment early on, allowing LSU to get in the door and secure his commitment, but after losing out on a couple of other linebackers this year and facing an absolute chasm at the position due to all the academic and disciplinary attrition in that program they are practically begging Baker to reconsider. Reading between the lines on the updates from the recruiting services it sounds like Baker agreed to make a visit to Tallahassee this weekend either as a courtesy or to get Bobby Bowden out of his house; we'll see if Baker doesn't cancel the visit before it happens. It does NOT sound like he has any intention of backing off his LSU pledge. Defensive backs - Score one for Scumbag Of The Year Urban Meyer, whose gambit to challenge Patrick Johnson's ACT score apparently has worked. Johnson (6-1/190, 4.4, Pompano Beach, FL/Ely) was slated to enroll at LSU at midterm and take part in spring drills, but apparently his paperwork couldn't be processed fast enough to beat today's deadline for late enrollment at LSU for the spring semester. So he'll be here in June instead, and he'll be waiting for a chance to haunt Meyer like the Ghost Of Christmas Future for the next four years. One imagines that Meyer's low-rent stunt in attempting to interfere with an 18-year-old's educational opportunities will resonate among high school coaches in the Sunshine State and begin to hang around his neck like an albatross. For now, though, Meyer is riding high with respect to his own recruiting class; Rivals has bumped Florida to No. 1 in its current rankings. I personally think Meyer's group this year is thoroughly overrated, though, and I'll get into that in a future update. The LSU staff does think they're in the lead for T.J. Bryant (6-1/180, 4.3, Tallahassee, FL/Lincoln) ahead of Miami and Florida State, though, so even if they have to wait for the fall to haul in their class of DB's they'll have two of the top eight cornerbacks in the country coming in if things turn out well. And as it happens, Bryant and Johnson are good friends and apparently have talked about coming as a pair of bookends in college. With Johnson on board, Bryant could follow if that pans out.
On Brown from DandyD: Is Don right about this? Could he stay in HS for another semester and still have 5 years to play 4?
It seems like with the number of people the LSU coaches feel they have a lock on we would end up with way more recruits than we have schlorships. Who, then would we take if all swung our way.
We'll probably end up in the 27 to 28 range but it'll cancel itself out because a couple of guys wont qualify.
