LSU off to strong start on 2012 recruiting trail

There are still six months to go until National Signing Day.

The LSU football team has gotten busy on the road trying to secure another top recruiting class.

With the high school season not yet underway, LSU has already received 18 verbal commitments from some of the top high school players in the country, a list that includes local products like Thibodaux High School linebacker Trey Granier and West St. Mary High School defensive end Jerald Hawkins.

“I think when you look at the class overall, I think LSU is really doing well in some key areas,” Scout.com and Elite Scouting Services recruiting analyst Sonny Shipp said. “Things are off to a pretty good start overall on the road for the Tigers without a doubt.”

Recruiting analysts tout that LSU’s biggest needs coming into this class were mostly the back line of the defense, cornerback and linebacker.

To address the defensive backfield, the Tigers have gotten verbals from four-star product Dwayne Thomas (O.P. Walker), as well as three-star prospects Jalen Mills (DeSoto High School, Texas), Derrick Raymond (East Jefferson) and Jerquinick Sandolph (Hahnville).

“LSU always likes to play three and sometimes even four cornerbacks at a time,” Shipp said. “So I think you can easily see they’ve gone out and really gotten some good cornerbacks. … That was very important in this class.”

At linebacker, LSU has just been active with Granier, Lamar Louis (Breaux Bridge) and the guy Shipp thinks is the stud of the class so far, Torshiro Davis (Woodlawn).

Standing 6-foot-3 and weighing 222 pounds, Shipp said Davis could be an immediate impact player if he continues to blossom.

“When you look at him on tape, he’s so fast and so explosive,” Shipp said. “In high school, he’s always played defensive end, but when he was at LSU’s camp in July, they put him at linebacker and he just looked natural. I think he’s going to be a fantastic linebacker if he gets to play there. I think he’s the gem of the class so far without a doubt.”

With the recruiting process still nowhere near its climax, the Tigers still have some big prospects on their radar that could turn this already good class into a great one.

Shipp said LSU would like to add a quarterback to their roster with Jordan Jefferson and Jarrett Lee’s upcoming graduations.

The guy LSU is currently targeting the hardest is Jeremy Liggins from Oxford, Miss.

Standing 6-foot-3 and weighing a massive 270 pounds, Shipp said Liggins has caught the eye of LSU’s coaches and the interest appears mutual.

“He’s probably the guy to keep an eye on,” Shipp said. “But there’s still a lot of time for other guys to emerge that the Tigers may make a push for.”

The recruiting analyst said after picking a quarterback, the Tigers want to keep its fence around Louisiana intact with its remaining scholarships.

Dutchtown High School defensive back Landon Collins is widely regarded as a five-star prospect and the No. 1 player in Louisiana.

He remains uncommitted with LSU and Alabama as the two schools holding the lead for his services.

“It’s definitely looking like it’ll come down to those two,” Shipp said. “He’s been to LSU several times. He’s been to Alabama several times. One thing LSU has working in its favor right now is that one of Landon’s closest childhood friends is Dwayne Thomas from O. Perry Walker and he’s already committed to LSU, so you start to kind of wonder whether or not that kind of shifts the pendulum a little toward LSU’s way.”

Like Collins, the state’s No. 3-ranked player, Bastrop defensive end Denzel Devall is also uncommitted with LSU, TCU, Texas A&M and Alabama atop his list.

Getting Collins and Devall in this class are key, according to Shipp.

He added LSU is difficult to bet against when it comes to keeping Louisiana talent at home.

“History says the Tigers are pretty hard to beat with the local guys they really push to get,” Shipp said. “So there’s still puzzle pieces on the table, but it’s hard to pick against them.”

Down the road in Patterson, the state’s No. 4-ranked player, Lumberjacks’ linebacker Lorenzo Phillips is another player LSU will be targeting.

Phillips started his recruiting process by committing to Texas A&M, before decommitting a day later.

He has since committed to Florida, but recruiting analysts believe his recruitment is far from over.

“I think a lot of it is going to play out over the course of his senior season,” Shipp said. “It gets to the point with so many of these kids where they think they want to leave the state and play football somewhere else. … But when it gets closer to Signing Day and the prospect and their family get to talking about things, like how often their family will be able to see them play and things like that, you start to see the momentum shift a little bit to the home state school. … I don’t know how it will play out, but I do think LSU will be in it with Lorenzo until the end, assuming they have an open spot at that position.”

Whether Phillips changes his mind or not, it looks like LSU could be in line for another elite-class.

As of now, all appears relatively smooth in Baton Rouge in terms of recruiting.

“There are still things they need to address,” Shipp said. “But there’s still six months to go. … A lot of it’s going to depend on how they close, but assuming they finish strong and keep the guys they currently have committed, I think you’ll be looking at a successful class that will be one of the best six or seven classes in the country.”