The 2026 transfer-portal window opened Friday, but LSU’s first good news of the big recruiting weekend came from the high school ranks.
Highly touted 2027 edge rusher Jaiden “Boog” Bryant out of Irmo, S.C., announced his commitment to the Tigers on Saturday during the Under Armour Next All-America Game.
“Yes, ma’am, I’m so ready,” he smiled during the ESPN broadcast, pulling an LSU hat and towel from his bag to reveal his choice and flashing “L” symbols with both hands: “Geaux LSU, Geaux LSU…. Geaux Tigers. Lane Train.”
The 6-foot-4, 240-pound consensus four-star prospect became the first 2027 commitment to the program since new coach Lane Kiffin arrived from Ole Miss just over a month ago.
He is the second pledge to the Tigers’ class for next recruiting cycle, joining Evangel Christian quarterback Peyton “Pop” Houston.
“(Kiffin is) the type of coach that stands on business,” Bryant said on the broadcast. “He’s the type of coach that’s gonna make me a better player on and off the field, and that’s a coach I would want to be coached under.”
One of Kiffin’s newest staff additions, new defensive line coach Sterling Lucas, helped solidify Bryant’s choice of LSU over home-state South Carolina and Clemson and a slew of other SEC programs such as Alabama and Florida.
“The connection I have with coach Sterling Lucas,” Bryant said. “Him leaving South Carolina and going to LSU, it just made my recruiting process very easy. Me and him and this good connection, so it was just a good fit for me.”
The ESPN broadcast moved from Bryant and his family to Houston and a trio of 2026 LSU signees in defensive linemen Richard Anderson and Lamar Brown and wide receiver Jabari Mack to gauge their immediate reaction.
“It’s gonna be great,” Anderson said of Bryant’s addition to the Tigers’ pipeline of incoming talent. “More rotation, more dogs, so I’m just happy for that.”