Lane Kiffin didn’t waste any time making a splash with his first high school signing class at LSU-and the headliners are as big as they come. Five-star recruits Richard Anderson and Lamar Brown, both early signees in December, are already turning heads not just for their talent, but for the message their commitments send: LSU still carries serious weight, even in the middle of a coaching transition.
Kiffin, speaking with reporters on Wednesday, was quick to deflect the credit. According to him, the real closer in these recruitments wasn’t a coach-it was the LSU brand itself.
“I get some credit for that, but LSU signed them,” Kiffin said. “We didn’t have a DL coach solidified at the time.
They still signed with LSU. That’s not because of Lane Kiffin or Frank Wilson.
That’s the power of this place.”
Let’s unpack that for a second. Anderson and Brown committed during a period when LSU’s coaching staff was still taking shape.
Defensive line coach? Not officially in place yet.
And yet, these two top-tier prospects didn’t hesitate. That’s not typical in today’s recruiting climate, where uncertainty on staff can often lead to decommitments or delays.
But LSU’s pull-especially in a talent-rich state like Louisiana-remains strong. Kiffin knows it, and he’s leaning into it.
“It’s a big reason why we are here,” he added. “When you have a place that can do things like that, especially for Louisiana kids, and nationally...
It’s a place you want to align with. To have that brand with you, it makes a big difference with them.”
That’s a telling quote. Kiffin understands the power of alignment-between program, coach, and recruit.
And in this case, LSU’s identity did a lot of the heavy lifting. That’s not to say Kiffin and his staff didn’t play a role-they absolutely did-but it’s clear he’s embracing the idea that LSU sells itself in ways few programs can.
For Anderson and Brown, both high-profile names in the 2026 class, the decision to sign early speaks volumes. They weren’t waiting to see who would be coaching their position.
They weren’t hedging their bets. They were all in on LSU.
That kind of early buy-in gives Kiffin a strong foundation to build on-and sends a message to future recruits that LSU’s brand is still one of the most powerful in college football.
In a recruiting era dominated by NIL deals, transfer portal chaos, and coaching turnover, having a program that can still command that kind of loyalty? That’s no small thing. And Kiffin, ever the strategist, knows exactly how valuable that is.