Woo-hoo! Head coach Brian Kelly has LSU hitting so many big hits. So much so it deserves a shout-out. The Rivals.com has acknowledged the power of the 62-year-old coach on July 18th by dedicating an Instagram post in honor of the LSU Tigers triumph era. The Fighting Tigers are on their quest to lasso the SEC title. With Kelly steering the ship, LSU is living in a mission-possible mindset. The coach is counting on three players to make their SEC dream come true. But is it going to be the healing balm for the big loss? Maybe losing five-star OL Lance Heard to Tennessee still nudges him a little.  

Big news for LSU! The Tigers’ 2025 recruiting class has now found themselves a spot at No.4 in the cycle right behind the big shots- Ohio State, Alabama, and Georgia. For this rev-up, the Rivals.com shared a post having multiple slides with the caption, “LSU has been landing some STUDS”. Why wouldn’t they? After all, it’s Kelly and his big moves that are sprucing up the mojo in the Tigers’ camp. 

The Tigers secured the commitment from the No.1 overall player for the 2025 recruiting class, five-star QB Bryce Underwood. And guess what? With Underwood joining the LSU tribe, it gives a legitimate superstar future for the team. After all, the QB carries with himself the star status of being compared with the Jacksonville Jaguars QB Trevor Lawrence.  

A major win came on Wednesday, July 17, as Kelly landed five-star CB and the No.9 ranked player of the 2025 cycle, D.J. Pickett. The CB stands out from the crowd with his tremendous size at 6-foot-4 with a reported 6-foot-8 wingspan. It was at the eleventh hour, that Pickett picked LSU over Oregon and Miami, propelling the Tigers to jump into the top 5. Wondering why the CB will be a big hit? “Has what it takes to emerge as a true game-breaker on offense with his size and foot speed,” highlighted the 247Sports Director of Scouting, Andrew Ivins.

Another shocker pulled off by team Kelly is landing the five-star RB Harlem Berry. On3 ranked the St. Martin’s senior the No. 1 RB in the country. His rankings are topped with his records of showing at a 7-on-7 event. Will they be able to overturn the Lance Heard narrative?   

Kelly pins his hope on three recruits to fill Heard’s place

While Kelly gained some, he has lost one of the most important players on the Tigers’ roster, OT Heard to the Tennessee Vols. Heard had been the best for a reason. He carries a record of landing on the Freshman All-SEC team after wooing them by playing 195 snaps in five games at right tackle a season ago. But what pushed Heard to opt out of LSU?

Reports say that the returning starters posed a block for Heard from being the starter in Baton Rouge, which led him to hit the transfer portal back in December. But Kelly seems to have no hard feelings for the ex-player. As he spilled the beans after so long about Heard months after his departure, the coach decided to walk on a positive path. 

Kelly shared his thoughts, “Sometimes it just doesn’t work out. It doesn’t mean anybody is at fault as much as we hope that he has great success where he is.” While Heard hollowed out LSU, it strengthened the Vols with two solid offensive tackles, joining hands with right tackle John Campbell Jr. It’s now to be seen how the top-notch newbies flip the script in favor of Kelly’s LSU.