Wednesday, September 4, 2013

Recruiting Roundup: The LSU meltdown edition

If you come across an LSU fan today who happens to follow recruiting – even just in passing – give him/her a hug. They're going to need it.


Cameron Robinson, a 6-foot-5, 330-pound offensive lineman out of West Monroe, La. is heading to Alabama, and this is a decision that most certainly moves the needle in recruiting circles.

A picture of Les Miles in his office
from earlier this afternoon.

Ranked by numerous recruiting services/lists as the top offensive line prospect in the country, and by 247Sports as the top overall prospect in the country, Robinson was a must-get prospect for Les Miles and LSU.

Ever since Nick Saban arrived as the new sheriff in Baton Rouge back in 2000, the Tigers have been able to close off the borders in talent-rich Louisiana to outside poachers. Florida, Miami, Michigan and Tennessee, among others, were able to come in and win big-time recruiting battles throughout the 90's, but Saban put an end to that. And for the most part, Les Miles has been able to accomplish the same since taking over for Saban after the 2005 season.

But Saban's ties in Louisiana run deep, and he was able to pull off a huge coup in Robinson. Louisiana is traditionally strong in terms of talent, but this year is simply on another level. 10 in-state prospects are considered to be among the nation's top 100 seniors. An additional five more are slotted to be among the nation's top 250. If the Bayou Bengals could just hold serve at home, they would reel in the nation's top class going away, and arguably one of the best of all-time.

That's not happening at the moment, however.

The first defection came from wide receiver Cameron Sims of Ouachita Parish. The 6-foot-3, 200-pounder was the only prospect among the state's top 15 who didn't claim an offer from LSU. He announced for Alabama on Aug. 24 and may prove to be the first domino to fall that leads a talented group out of the Pelican State and to Tuscaloosa instead. Robinson, a friend and former teammate of Sims, was not far behind.

Who's next? LSU fans certainly hope it isn't this guy.


Leonard Fournette (6-1, 225, New Orleans, La./St. Augustine) is the top-ranked running back in the country, and a player almost universally thought of as the best to come out of the high school ranks at his position since Adrian Peterson. Wouldn't a top-rated running back want to follow the top-ranked offensive lineman to the same school? It makes sense. LSU didn't take a running back at all in 2013 in an effort to secure Fournette. Alabama, meanwhile, is loaded to the gills with Rivals 100 prospects at the position. (This all goes back to the notion it's better to go ahead and use every scholarship in every class instead of worrying what juniors another year down the line are thinking, but that's another post for another day.)

Despite LSU's best efforts, Alabama is now a serious contender for Fournette, who is either ranked as the No. 1 or No. 2 prospect in the country by each of the four major recruiting services (ESPN, Rivals, Scout and 247.)

It should also be added that Laurence "Hootie" Jones (6-2, 210, Monroe, La./Neville) was also at the commitment ceremony for Robinson. Ranked as a consensus top-25 player in the country, he too could follow Robinson to Alabama, as the big fella has made it clear he's going to actively work to recruit his fellow Louisianans to the Crimson Tide.

Then, if all that weren't enough, two other in-state prospects decided to fire off a couple of tweets to really send LSU fans over the edge:



Top-100 teammates Gerald Willis (DT, 6-3, 275) and Speedy Noil (WR, 5-11, 180) of Edna Karr in New Orleans now claim a "top three" of Florida, Texas A&M and USC. We'll see how much legitimacy there is to those tweets in the coming weeks. However, the Gators will have a crack at these guys on Sept. 21 when Florida plays host to Tennessee in the SEC opener for both squads. The two also plan to officially visit College Station for the big showdown Alabama contest on Sept. 14. The door appears to be at least cracked in terms of a pair of fellow SEC powers getting in the mix for two prospects long thought to be headed to LSU.

None of these verbal commitments are binding and there is still five months to go until National Signing Day. Is it time for Les Miles to hit the panic button? Well, maybe not quite yet, but that moment is fast approaching. The Tigers have to regroup and find a way to get back in it with Robinson, and stem the momentum from heading the other way with Fournette, Jones and others. Otherwise, the most talented in-state crop of Louisiana players in at least a generation will be finding ways to beat the Tigers for the next few seasons, instead of suiting up to win championships for them in Baton Rouge.

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