The LSU Tigers have been wagging their proverbial tails this offseason. Although Signing Day was a bit of a let down, Brian Kelly and co. have been getting active around the transfer portal. They’ve retooled with 13 new players walking through the door, and aren’t done just yet. The gaps that LSU need to fill stretch across the field, quite literally. They’ve been trying to add to their O-line as well as all the way back in their secondary, at safety. Their most recent attempts at luring recruits, however, have been thwarted.

Former USF safety Tawfiq Byard, younger sibling of Chicago Bears’ safety Kevin, was one name Brian Kelly was courting. He’s instead gone ahead and joined the revolution up in Boulder under Deion Sanders. Byard was on campus at Baton Rouge for an official visit last week but seemingly left unconvinced. The inability to land the sophomore is not an indictment on the Tigers. It’s merely a blemish on their portal recruitment, for now. However, the safety position has been proven challenging for coach Kelly to clinch. An LSU insider with his finger on the pulse of matters echoed this sentiment.

Matt Moscona, leveraging his insight on the Locked on LSU podcast, said, “I was told by someone within the LSU portal search process that safety has been more difficult than they anticipated.” Moscona outwardly mentioned the Tigers were indeed in for Byard. “This has certainly been one where LSU has thrown their hat in the ring on some players that they want, and they’ve just been unable so far to lock down players that they want. And the latest is Tawfiq Byard.”

During his official visit, Byard explicitly stated how coming to LSU was a “big deal” for him. He even claimed that alum Grant Delpit was his favorite safety of all time. Despite this facet, Brian Kelly just couldn’t steer his one home. Colorado has got themselves a really versatile talent. Byard put up 54 total tackles and 8.5 TFLs to go with a forced fumble, a pick and two sacks this season.

Not just Byard, LSU have concurrently missed out on OT Josh Thompson as well. Thompson was the first tackle to hit the portal and ranked no.3 overall. After a long, drawn traversal through it, he jumped out of the portal and landed at Rocky Top. SEC counterparts Tennessee have piled onto Brian Kelly and LSU’s misery. That said, Matt Moscona believes there’s more than what meets the eye to this one.

LSU’s NIL treasury, aided by Brian Kelly, not a factor in this failure

Josh Thompson played a multitude of positions across the O-line during his time at Northwestern. Initially, he began over at left tackle. The 2024 season saw him primarily deployed at right guard. This created a conundrum for LSU.

With star Will Campbell enroute to the NFL, the left tackle spot is what needs fulfilling most. Moscona stated how this perceived lack of reps at tackle and switch to guard could be what deterred the Tigers from going all-out on Thompson.

“The bottom line is…I think the evidence suggests if LSU wants a player in the portal, they can afford that player in the portal. The Tigers have added 13 players. They’ve got one of the top two or three portal classes in the country,” said Moscona.

In terms of spending power, it’s all hands on deck for LSU. Brian Kelly has himself foregone $1 million from his $95 million contract to aid their NIL arsenal. Moscona reiterated this, claiming that his sources within the program are reassuring him money isn’t an issue.

“I had a conversation a week ago after LSU was going after Patrick Payton… I [asked], ‘Do you have enough money?’ They said, ‘We have money to burn.’ So yes, this wasn’t a thing where you didn’t get Josh Thompson because you didn’t have enough money to spend in the portal. I think this is a situation where you’re looking at a different position.” he said. The addition of Patrick Payton, 1 of 3 D-linemen coach Kelly has added through the roster, has stirred a potential controversy.

Although money may not be an issue for LSU, there’s more to recruitment than just that. The two programs they lost out to aren’t as “big” historically. However, their trajectory is upward. Meanwhile, the Tigers had a pretty perilous 2024. Alas, there’s still enough time and enough talent traversing the portal. LSU shall get there eventually, or so you’d think.