One pre-planned visit has Lane Kiffin’s work cut out for him in keeping this five-star TE in Baton Rouge. Ahmad Hudson committed to LSU in May 2026. But a recent visit to Nebraska this weekend reminded Hudson why he shouldn’t have.

“You never know when a five-star kid’s committed to the in-state school if he’ll actually make it, right?” recruiting analyst Greg Smith said on Rivals’ June 9, 2026, podcast. “He had great talks with Matt Rule and the offensive staff on campus about how they would change the offense to fit his skill set. But the other sneaky thing about this recruitment is that he also met with basketball [head coach] Fred Hoiberg’s staff about what they could potentially do for him as well.”

The Ruston, Louisiana native—No. 1 TE in 2027—stands 6-foot-6, 245 pounds, per On3, and is a standout basketball player. As of now, though, he has deep ties with the LSU staff.

Hudson grew up in Louisiana, where his father played basketball at LSU from 2002 to 2005, giving the family deep ties to the school. LSU leveraged that tie to beat Texas A&M, Alabama, Ole Miss, and Nebraska for Hudson’s commitment. So, Hudson’s recruitment wasn’t less than a coup for Lane Kiffin’s staff when the 2027 TE announced his decision on May 3. But now, Nebraska has gradually started to close in.

This weekend in Lincoln, Rhule’s pitch landed harder than expected. According to Smith, Hudson had planned the Nebraska visit before committing to LSU and kept the Tigers informed. Once he arrived in Lincoln, the coaches made their pitch once again.

“I think that LSU is right to feel confident that they’re going to hang on to him,” Smith added. “But at the same time, I think that LSU is going to have to fight to hang on to him through, and it’s going to continue to be a theme throughout the cycle as we get to December to be able to hold on to Ahmad Hudson, the five-star tight end out of Louisiana.”

Nebraska has made that a major selling point, and the recent visit showed the Huskers are still willing to explore every avenue available. Last year, the Cornhuskers men’s basketball team made history on the court, finishing with an impressive 28-7 record and claiming their first-ever NCAA tournament wins, advancing to the Sweet Sixteen. And that recent dominance might sway Hudson away from LSU. 

What did Ahmad Hudson say about Nebraska?

The TE from Ruston, Louisiana, is as good as it gets. In 2024, he led his high school team to an impressive 11-3 record, earning a place in the Louisiana Division 1 Non-Select title game. In doing so, he caught 41 passes for 718 yards along with six touchdowns. As for his basketball background, he was the Ruston Daily Leader MVP as a sophomore, averaging 21.0 points per game, and scored 30+ points in two games. Any school roping him in will have an athlete capable of dominating both on the court and on the field.

“The visit went great,” Hudson said to Rivals of his Nebraska visit this weekend. “They’re a pretty strong contender. Just being able to get up here, you know, seeing everything. They would change the whole offense for me. They are close. And they have been texting me, and they’ve been there for me, before I committed, and they never turned me when I did commit. They laid out a plan they have for me, and it sounds great.”

The All-American tight end will finally appear on an official visit to Baton Rouge from June 19 to 21 and might announce his final decision. But analysts like Greg Smith don’t expect him to do it just yet, and we will likely see an aggressive push and pull from both LSU and Nebraska to get Hudson’s commitment.