LSU Tigers and Brian Kelly boast a solid 2026 class already. Sure, they have lost the top spot to USC, standing second in the crazy recruitment race. But still, Kelly has enough to lean on for his fourth year at Baton Rouge. With a 90 percent blue-chipper commits like WR Tristen Keys, DL Richard Anderson, OT Brysten Martinez, and more, the Tigers can smooth-sail the ship. But occasional blows amidst the tumultuous NIL dynamic are inevitable. Kelly received a heartbreak just a day ago when four-star cornerback Hayward Howard officially moved on from his trending suitor to commit to the Texas Longhorns. Within just 24 hours, another big blow unsettled the momentum for Kelly and Co. This time, it’s not a target, but a gun from their squad. Four-star wide receiver Jakai Anderson turned his back. Will Lamar Brown think twice before a final call?

New Orleans (La.) McDonogh 35 four-star wide receiver Jakai Anderson has flipped his commitment from LSU to SMU. He had been a part of the Tigers squad on pen and paper since June 2024. Anderson snubbed a handful of offers, including Georgia Tech, Memphis, Tulane, Troy, and UTSA, to choose the Tigers. The Mustangs, nonetheless, didn’t give up. They keep putting in a relentless effort to snag him into their 2026 class. They finally succeeded, embracing Jakai Anderson as their third four-star in the cycle.

But the concern for the Tigers seems to be wide-ranging. They are currently going after Lamar Brown, a five-star prospect out of Erwinville, LA, to make up his mind. They are fighting with Texas A&M for the spot. But as soon as Anderson dropped the bombshell, it seemingly left a deep impact on the potential Tiger commit, either for good or bad. He dropped a shocking face emoji on the news.

Watch out for the consequence on July 10, when the 2026 lineman is said to clear his stance. LSU’s recruitment streak has been a pure cinema. Bryce Underwood’s costly departure wreaked havoc on their momentum last year. Although Kelly reloaded his position groups decently, Brown, with a 30-plus scholarship offer under his belt, would mean a massive win for the Tigers. The elite WR has equal prowess on the defensive side, and he chose to explore that down the road.

While selecting his top four (LSU, Texas A&M, Miami, Florida State Seminoles), the 5-star prospect revealed that the main factor in his recruiting choice is which school is down to pursue him as a DL. LSU’s decision to replace Bo Davis as its defensive line coach with Jimmy Lindsey might influence his head late in the stretch. The addition to the equation is Anderson’s shell-shocking move.

Longhorns turned out to be their threat, poaching Howard days back. For Brown, the Aggies can gain an edge moving forward. Will Kelly’s spring game protection turn futile? A long-standing debate.

Brian Kelly doesn’t seem to be losing talent to his rivals

Matt Rhule has postponed the spring game amidst the wake of the tampering trend in the NIL era. He held back from hosting the traditional spring game, as it may serve as a haven for outsider coaches to lurk behind his roster. He didn’t sugarcoat while revealing his underlying fear.

Kelly followed suit, dropping his decision to withhold the spring game amidst the poaching terror. However, the LSU head coach denied the claim that he was worried about the rest of the programs sneaking into his roster.

“I wasn’t worried about that. I mean, I think if you’re going to lose a player, it’s not because of what they put on film in the spring ball; it’s because of what’s happened,  you know,” Kelly divulged, “throughout the entire semester or year. I think that was just an easy sound bite to, you know, get out from under having the spring game. That’s just my opinion.”

So, no matter what Kelly has lost, he has the mojo to rebuild that with a proactive strategy. Tampering and poaching are a growing reality of college football. Kelly isn’t backing down, he’s gearing up to fight the odds.