Brian Kelly’s LSU Receives Disappointing Recruiting News as 4-star Target Affirms Loyalty to SEC Rivals

LSU gets disappointed by a blue-chip prospect already committed to an SEC rival they were trying to recruit.

The 2025 season has started strong for the LSU Tigers. After opening with a win over Clemson, they handled Louisiana Tech on Saturday to move to 2-0 and are ranked at No. 3 in the latest AP poll.

The Tigers are looking to be successful not just on the field but also on the recruiting trail. LSU hosted a four-star quarterback on campus for the game against Louisiana Tech. However, the visit may not have shifted his recruitment, as he recently reaffirmed his commitment to one of the Tigers’ SEC rivals.

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Four-Star Quarterback Affirms Commitment to LSU’s SEC Rival Following Visit to Baton Rouge

Most of the 2026 recruiting class has already made their commitments, but with early national signing day approaching in December, flip season has arrived. Programs across the country will spend the coming months trying to sway top recruits away from their current commitments.

LSU and head coach Brian Kelly are wasting no time getting a head start on flip season. The Tigers hosted Landon Duckworth, a four-star South Carolina commit ranked by Rivals as the No. 8 quarterback and No. 85 overall player in the 2026 class, for an unofficial visit during their game against Louisiana Tech.

Rivals’ recruiting insider Steve Wiltfong reported that following Duckworth’s visit on Saturday, LSU extended an offer. The young quarterback spent both Saturday and Sunday in Baton Rouge, getting a firsthand look at life on LSU’s campus.

“Duckworth left Baton Rouge with an offer from LSU,” Wiltfong wrote. “Leading up to the game he spent a lot of time with the staff, soaked in the game-day atmosphere and on Sunday he remained on campus meeting with various people about what his experience at LSU would look like.”

Wiltfong noted that LSU believes the visit helped the Tigers gain some momentum in Duckworth’s recruitment. However, he also reported that Duckworth plans to attend South Carolina’s game against Vanderbilt on Saturday, September 13, and has been telling people he remains committed to the Gamecocks.

“Duckworth will be back on the Gamecocks campus for the game against Vanderbilt on Saturday night and he is telling folks in Columbia he’s locked in and good to go,” Witfong wrote.

It may seem like bad news for LSU, but the reality is that no recruitment is final until a prospect signs on the dotted line. With the Tigers now having extended an offer, there’s a real chance LSU could make a push to flip Duckworth as the season progresses.

While he may ultimately remain a Gamecock, it’s not out of the question that Kelly and his staff could pull off the flip.

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