As another National Signing Day comes and goes, LSU football coach Les Miles can celebrate. The Tigers have once again locked up one of the top recruiting classes in the nation, rated as the No. 2 class by Rivals.com and No. 3 by Scout.com.”Coach Miles and his staff have done a great job of going out and getting the best players in the country,” said LSU athletic director Joe Alleva.Fans didn’t have to wait long for some Signing Day surprises, as LSU lost two long-time wide receiver commits in Kenny Bell and DeAngelo Benton. Benton was a member of the 2007 LSU recruiting class but has been academically ineligible the last two years. He signed with Auburn early Wednesday morning.Miles said Benton did not have a scholarship offer.”I thought about DeAngelo and made some hard-pressed decisions with him, and I wish him the very best for him to go on and get his degree and have a great career,” Miles said.While the decision caught LSU fans off guard, it may have helped secure the top player on the Tigers’ board, wide receiver Rueben Randle.Just days before signing day, rumors began to spread that Bell was thinking of switching his commitment from the Tigers to the Crimson Tide. Those rumors came to fruition when Bell decided to sign his letter of intent with Alabama early Wednesday afternoon.Bell’s switch to Alabama, along with the signing of five-star running back Trent Richardson, was enough to make the Crimson Tide pass LSU in the overall class rankings.—-Contact Tyler Harvey at [email protected]
LSU grabs one of nation’s top recruiting classes
February 4, 2009