Home2024December1No. 2 RB in Louisiana, LSU Football Commit JT Lindsey Shuts Down Recruitment LSU will get the coveted running back to campus, set to put pen to paper during next week’s Early Signing Period. Alexandria High (La.) four-star running back JT Lindsey revealed a commitment to the LSU Tigers on April 13 with Brian Kelly and Co. locking down his services. Lindsey, the No. 2 rated running back in Louisiana and a Top 10 back in America, received an offer from the Tigers and wasted no time in pledging to the program. It was clear the intentions of
position coach Frank Wilson. LSU had already had a commitment from the No. 1 running back in America, Harlem Berry, but taking two backs was the goal the entire time. Now, after a dominant senior campaign, Lindsey has the entire country after blossoming into a Top 10 running back in the 2025 Recruiting Class and skyrocketing to the No. 2 back in Louisiana. Lindsey bypassed Texas commit James Simon after becoming the No. 2 ranked running back in the Bayou State. Now, LSU is loaded for the future at the position with both Berry and Lindsey on board. After the news of five-star quarterback Bryce Underwood backing off of his LSU commitment last week, it left the program in a “vulnerable” spot with programs pursuing LSU’s other pledges. That included Lindsey who quickly received phone calls from other top schools. Lindsey confirmed to LSU Tigers On SI that he will not be taking any visits elsewhere and will be signing with LSU on Dec. 4 during the Early Signing Period. It’s a massive get for the program with Lindsey barely scratching the surface. A player many believe plays above his ranking, he’s dominated the prep scene in Louisiana. Lindsey has accumulated 1,950 yards this season with 27 total touchdowns. Now, he’s cruising through the Louisiana playoffs with a state championship on his mind. Lindsey isn’t the only prospect committed to the purple and gold that has shut down his recruitment leading up to the Early Signing Period. Kade Phillips Bypasses Texas Visit, Locked in with the Tigers Missouri City (Tex.) Hightower cornerback Kade Phillips flipped his commitment from the Texas Longhorns to Brian Kelly’s LSU Tigers in August after the program turned up the heat down the stretch. Phillips, the No. 4 ranked cornerback in America, reached five-star status in the latest recruiting rankings after a dominant senior campaign. Now, the coveted prospect has shut down his recruitment and will sign with the LSU Tigers during the Early Signing Period, he tells LSU Tigers On SI. “I’m just ready to get to Baton Rouge,” Phillips said. With the recent news of five-star quarterback Bryce Underwood flipping his commitment from the LSU Tigers to the Michigan Wolverines, it’s no secret the LSU program is in a vulnerable place. Since the news broke, programs have been looking to flip other prospects committed to the Bayou Bengals. That included five-star cornerback Kade Phillips. There were recent reports circulating that Phillips was set to travel to the Texas Longhorns on Saturday with Steve Sarkisian and Co. pushing for him to flip back to the program. Phillips confirmed with LSU Tigers On SI that he was not visiting Texas this weekend and remained home on Saturday. The five-star will be back in Baton Rouge next weekend for an unofficial visit with LSU to round out his recruitment process. The Longhorns saw the program in a vulnerable spot, upped the ante for Phillips and ultimately saw the No. 4 cornerback in America remain loyal to the LSU program. Phillips will now be back in Baton Rouge for the Oklahoma game next weekend in Tiger Stadium. “Kade has some of the best physical traits we’ve seen at the corner position in the 2025 cycle. This is a guy who has elite length and a big frame. At that size, he can really move. He was a state finalist in the long jump in Texas, and you see that athleticism on the field,” On3 Director of Scouting Charles Power said. … I really like him as a corner. He has position versatility with the ability to play corner or safety at the next level, but we feel like the length and speed and ball skills he shows as a two-way player at the high school level really translates well to corner.” Now, LSU locks in Phillips’ services after a rigorous push from the Texas Longhorns down the stretch. He will sign with the Tigers during the Early Signing Period on Dec. 4.
Texas Longhorns Star Quinn Ewers Lands Another Major NIL Deal Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers added to his NIL earnings, appearing in a commercial for a major streaming service College football fans know Texas Longhorns quarterback Quinn Ewers very well. As one of the top players in the nation playing for a huge program, the football world has known about him for a very long time. Even people who aren’t huge college football fans have almost certainly heard the name because of NIL deals. It is hard to turn on the television or scroll through social media without seeing the Texas star somewhere. Ewers has capitalized big time on college athletes now being allowed to profit off of their name, image and likeness. Being on the cover of EA Sports College Football 25 was reportedly worth north of $200,000. According to On3’s NIL Valuation, the Longhorns star is fifth in college football with $1.7 million. The only players who earn more are Shedeur Sanders, his teammate Arch Manning, Travis Hunter and Jalen Milroe. However, Ewers will be closing in on the players ahead of him as he has inked another NIL deal. He will be starring in a commercial with the streaming company Hulu that has already aired on Instagram and will be shown on television throughout the season. Full terms of the deal were not disclosed, per On3, but Ewers will certainly be compensated well for his appearance in the ad. He also has an endorsement deal with Nicholas Air and a partnership with Metabillia worth around seven figures. All of these opportunities have been presented to him in part because of how well he performs on the field. Last season, he completed 69 percent of his passes for 3,479 yards with 22 touchdowns and only six interceptions. Heading into 2024, Ewers is considered one of the favorites to take home the Heisman Trophy. He is surrounded by elite weapons that will help him produce some gaudy numbers, led by former Alabama wide receiver Isaiah Bond, who recently received a nice NIL deal of his own. With Texas moving to the SEC in 2024, the spotlight on Ewers and the program will grow even more. It would not be surprising to see more NIL opportunities pop up during the season, especially if he and the Longhorns play up to their capabilities.The LSU Tigers enter their final week of the regular season with a 7-4 record. Head coach Brian Kelly has amassed a 27-12 record (15-6 in SEC play) in his three seasons at Baton Rouge. The Tigers’ disappointing record mixed with news that the No. 1 recruit in the country, quarterback Bryce Underwood, flipped his commitment from LSU to Michigan last week has a lot of fans fed up with Kelly. After all, LSU had College Football Playoff expectations when they signed him to a 10-year deal worth $95 million before the 2022 season. Get Athlon Sports’ daily newsletter SUBSCRIBE  HOMECOLLEGE Brian Kelly Under Fire From Former LSU Staffer For Reportedly ‘Creating A Culture Problem’ JORDAN SIGLER NOV 25, 2024 10:46 AM EST In this story:  LSU TIGERS The LSU Tigers enter their final week of the regular season with a 7-4 record. Head coach Brian Kelly has amassed a 27-12 record (15-6 in SEC play) in his three seasons at Baton Rouge. The Tigers’ disappointing record mixed with news that the No. 1 recruit in the country, quarterback Bryce Underwood, flipped his commitment from LSU to Michigan last week has a lot of fans fed up with Kelly. After all, LSU had College Football Playoff expectations when they signed him to a 10-year deal worth $95 million before the 2022 season. Ralph D. Russo and Bruce Feldman of The Athletic did a deep dive into Kelly’s issues at LSU, talking to more than six sources with ties to the Tigers about problems with the program. An anonymous former staffer thinks the way Kelly has installed his accountability system has caused deficiencies within the culture, as players can lose playing time for things such as not being on time to meetings or failing to pass the dress code. “You can’t be late for meetings,” a former LSU staffer told The Athletic. “You’ve got to take your vitamins every day. You have to do a wellness check-in app on your phone every day, and for (some of) these guys it’s a foreign language to them. Installing culture is a great idea, but now the way you’re installing culture is actually creating a culture problem.” Former LSU center Charles Turner suggested the culture problem wasn’t just about the rules, but the way Kelly handles his business with the players in the locker room. Kelly doesn’t communicate much with his players during the week. “For Coach Kelly, I think this is a different dynamic for him, Turner said. “When I was playing for Kelly the last two years, I didn’t talk to him. I started every game for him. Just, ‘Hey, hi. How you doing?’ And that was really it. We never talked Xs and Os. I never sat in his office and got personal with him. He really never got to know me.” The Tigers aren’t expected to fire Kelly following the 2024 season, as his buyout is nearly $60 million, but he could be on the hot seat in 2025. The 63-year-old coach has had his back against the wall before when Notre Dame went 4-8 in the 2016 season. After 2016, Kelly led the Fighting Irish to five 10+ win seasons and two CFP appearances in his last five years with the program.
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