LSU insider explains predictions for Tigers to land pair of elite 2026 in-state prospects
LSU is cruising on the recruiting trail. The Tigers own the top-ranked 2025 recruiting class in the On3 Industry Team Recruiting Rankings and are currently on pace to finish with one of the best pledge lists in recent memory.
While there’s still work to be done for Brian Kelly and his staff with the current class, the Tigers are also looking ahead to the 2026 cycle. That’s in-part thanks to the elite talent in The Boot.
Three of the top five prospects in the On3 Industry Ranking are currently in Louisiana. LSU has had major success recruiting in-state as of late, and that could once again be the case with the incoming juniors close to Baton Rouge.
Earlier this week, LSU recruiting insiders Shea Dixon and Billy Embody each logged a pair of predictions in the On3 Recruiting Prediction Machine (RPM) for two of the best in 2026, Reserve (La.) St. Augustine defensive lineman Jahkeem Stewart and Baton Rouge University Lab offensive lineman Lamar Brown.
On the latest edition of ‘The Inside Scoop’, Dixon joined On3’s Josh Newberg to detail his picks in favor of the Tigers landing the touted in-state duo. Momentum and relationships look to be in-favor of the close-to-home SEC program.
“Look at what LSU’s done. They have the No. 1 (2025) class. They went up to Michigan and got Bryce Underwood. It isn’t out of the realm of possibility that they can lock in a couple of Louisiana guys — which is what both these guys are,” Dixon said.
The return of Bo Davis could land LSU the No. 1 prospect in 2026
It’s still early, but Stewart currently holds the top spot in the 2026 class. The 6-foot-6, 280-pounder is an impressive athlete who owns offers from just about every high-profile program in the nation.
While there will be plenty of competition, LSU has multiple angles in its favor. The Tigers have had success recruiting Stewart’s area in the past, and now that defensive line coach Bo Davis is back in The Boot after returning from Texas, Stewart is being recruited hard by one of the best position coaches around.
“With Jahkeem Stewart being the No. 1 player in the country, teams have been after him since middle school,” Dixon said. “Coast to coast, he will make visits, I just think when the dust settles, LSU badly needs D-linemen, Bo Davis — as big a name as it gets — is back in Baton Rouge recruiting defensive linemen to LSU, and (Stewart) is a (St. Augustine) kid, that’s Leonard Fournette territory, Tyrann Mathieu and so on.”
Stewart made his first cut of top schools last month, trimming his list down to 15 schools. Alabama, Auburn, Colorado, Florida State, Georgia, Miami, Michigan, Ohio State, Oregon, Penn State, Tennessee, Texas, Texas A&M and USC join the in-state Tigers as teams in the mix for the No. 1 player in 2026.
LSU not looking to let Lamar Brown leave its backyard
LSU is always in the mix for recruits anywhere in The Boot — but especially for those who attend high school on its campus. Many prospects have made the swift transition from University Lab High to LSU — and Brown, the No. 5 overall recruit in the cycle, could follow that path.
Visits are easy to make — and the 6-foot-4, 260-pound interior lineman has made plenty. Like Stewart, plenty of other impressive programs are after Brown, but it’ll be tough to swipe his pledge from the Tigers in the long run.
“Then with Lamar Brown, this is the benefit of having a kid who goes to high school on your campus. Sometimes it doesn’t work out. A lot of U-High kids have gone elsewhere over the years, but not recently,” Dixon said. “They’ve got Keylan Moses committed, a U-High linebacker for this 2025 class. I looked at the 2026 class next year, Lamar Brown is that big guy in Baton Rouge — and because of attending high school on LSU’s campus, he’s visiting almost all the time when it’s an open contact period.”
“He’ll be at a lot of practices coming up, I don’t think he shuts things down soon, he’s only about to be a junior, but I do think when you look at how things could unfold moving forward, he’s one in that 2026 class I don’t think they let leave the city.”