The LSU Tigers are on the college football offseason's second biggest recruiting heater right now with their 2027 class. LSU started the week strong by landing 4-star Lansdale Catholic IOL Terrance Smith, continued it with 4-star Byrnes (SC) RB Tre Segarra's commitment on Tuesday night, then double-dipped on the trail Wednesday by keeping 4-star Winnsboro RB Trey Martin in-state and adding 5-star LC Bird (VA) EDGE Chris Whitehead. The only other hotter stretch was the program's January transfer portal window haul. That portal performance should empower the team to be nationally competitive during Lane Kiffin's debut season in Death Valley this fall.
It's hard not to notice what the Tigers are accomplishing right now. Kiffin's recruiting tear had perfect timing to coincide with my discussion with legendary LSU offensive tackle Andrew Whitworth on Thursday in promotion of NBC's 2026 American Century Championship. Whitworth will be one of over 90 celebrities taking part in the annual golf tournament at the Edgewood Tahoe Resort in Stateline, Nevada, from July 8-12.
I asked Whitworth if what Kiffin was doing was sustainable in the coming years. There was very little doubt from the West Monroe High School graduate that the feeling is back in Baton Rouge. Most importantly, Whitworth sees Nick Saban's idea of what the Tigers could be coming to fruition under his protege at the University of Alabama, Kiffin.
"It has brought some electricity to Baton Rouge and in Southern Louisiana, with Lane Kiffin being there. I think that a lot of people are excited. When I got there in 2001, I'll never forget: Nick Saban, his big mantra was if he could just keep the Louisiana kids in Louisiana, and then go recruit outside of it, he didn't see any reason why they weren't gonna compete for a national championship every year. I think that's what the enticing part of that job was for Lane Kiffin. Yes, we live in a world with the portal and the NIL and all this. But there's still a lot of pride in that state; that Southern Louisiana is a very unique place. Louisiana in general is, and kids, the pride that they would take to have the opportunity to run out in Death Valley and win for the LSU Tigers...it still exists even in this portal world," Whitworth said.
"So I think when you see, 'Hey man, I could go here.' Maybe I can't offer everything to every kid, but some of these kids, would it send them over to that decision a little bit to be able to stay in their home state and play for the LSU Tigers? I think that's something that Lane has leaned on, and then also they've been able to go out and spend some money and keep other guys...
"So I think that, really, the excitement, the momentum they have going, it feels like some of these good runs that we've seen LSU have... I think that they inevitably will have some of the best talent in the country. I think that they will be competing for national championships. I think Lane's shown that he can coach that level of ball, and he's been successful where he's been the guy...
"I think right now the talent they're loading up on, man...I'm excited about it. It's everywhere. It's not just in skill positions. You know, it's upfront with the big fellas. I'm pretty excited to see where this LSU Tiger group goes. I think it'll be a good story to see him kind of bring it back to where it's been."
"We can keep that pride of playing at LSU..."
I asked Whitworth amid LSU's recruiting heater whether the spending could keep up. After all, big spenders like the Ohio State Buckeyes, a national power that now has eyes on Louisiana, and oil-rich Lone Star State schools like the Texas Longhorns and Texas Tech Red Raiders could keep their spending up for a long time and will inevitably come for the Pelican State's talent.
Whitworth believes that as long as Kiffin leans on those Saban principles of keeping the Louisiana talent in-house, the Tigers will be able to compete. He also referenced the Brian Kelly firing and subsequent $54 million buyout, which hasn't slowed spending down this offseason as much as one would've thought.
"At this point, they spent a lot of money on hiring and getting rid of coaches over the last few years. It's been pretty crazy, so I think they're willing to spend it. That's for sure. It's wild, man. I mean, you know, I don't even try to act like I can understand because it's so different from when I was there. But I think that LSU will compete. I think that they have a lot of people that take a ton of pride in that school, you know, financially backing that place, and it's always been one of the most special places in the country to play college football," Whitworth said.
"So I think they will continue to keep themselves in that picture. And like I said, I think that truly there is some pride that exists in that state to be able to play for that school that makes you unique. You know, when you're the top university, and it's not even close in your state, I think that's really something that, you know, LSU needs to lean on and understand that if they can really hone in, maybe we can't always match every offer a kid gets, but we can keep that pride of playing in LSU, in Louisiana for LSU as a part of what we're trying to do...
"I think that they will see that it will inevitably be successful for them. Not that you don't go outside the state, you know, obviously, when I was there, even when Nick Saban was, it was Texas and Florida, and other parts of the country that we went after. But you keep that as the focus, and I think that that's something they've really shown. I know they just got a kid up from my area in North Louisiana to commit this past week as well, from Winnsboro. I know that Lane Kiffin has that as his mindset, so I'm excited to see where this will go."
Kiffin has momentum. More importantly, he has belief from the right people. We'll see if Kiffin's recent championship guarantee turns out to be empty words or if Saban's championship prophecy will be fulfilled by one of his most ambitious coaching tree branches.
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