If the Under Armour All-America Game was seen as a nightmare for LSU, then National Signing Day would have to be considered a dream come true.
Losing Speedy Noil, Tony Brown and Gerald Willis III in January left a bad taste in the mouths of the LSU faithful, but the impressive haul LSU coach Les Miles and company secured on Wednesday should be more than enough to wash it out.
In a stretch that lasted about an hour, LSU landed signings from five-star wide receiver Malachi Dupre as well as four-star defensive tackles Travonte Valentine, Davon Godchaux and Trey Lealaimatafao.
After losing Noil, getting Dupre to stay home was the biggest news of the day for LSU, but landing the three defensive tackles will be a huge help in replacing Anthony Johnson and Ego Ferguson. Miles said he expected all three could step in a play right away.
For Miles, the focus in recruiting is filling needs with elite players. After adding that trio to solid commitments like running back Leonard Fournette, safety Jamal Adams, quarterback Brandon Harris and linebacker Clifton Garrett, he’s done exactly that.
The Tigers signed 22 recruits in total, and may grow to 23 with defensive end Deondre Clark set to sign with either LSU or Oklahoma tomorrow, but LSU’s class is elite either way.
On the strength of that early Wednesday push, the Tigers vaulted up the rankings and finished with the No. 2 recruiting class in the country, trailing only Alabama. What the haul lacked in quantity, it more than made up for in quality — 15 of LSU’s 22 commits were ranked among ESPN.com’s Top 300.
It’s hard to imagine how Wednesday could have gone any better for the Tigers. Somewhere deep in the bowels of the Internet there are fans still mad Alabama signed Cameron Robinson and Hootie Jones out of Monroe — those people are delusional.
Miles wouldn’t admit to feeling the heat after the Under Armour All-America Game debacle, but he certainly looked both happy and relieved when he addressed the media Wednesday afternoon. I lost track of the amount of times he used the word “tremendous” to describe members of his class, and that was just from his 20-plus minute opening statement.
Admittedly, I’ve never seen a vast majority of them play a single snap of football, but according to recruiting analysts, the description seems warranted.
Bringing in a highly touted class doesn’t guarantee LSU will beat Wisconsin in the season opener, or anyone else for that matter. But Miles and company’s chances definitely look better today than they did a couple weeks ago.
James Moran is a 21-year-old mass communication senior from Beacon, N.Y.

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Angela Major

LSU head football coach Les Miles speaks to reporters Wednesday, Feb. 5, 2014 at Bayou Bash in L'Auberge Casino.