LSU football and men’s basketball both won games this weekend, and the good news didn’t stop there for either program.
The early signing period opened for basketball, and LSU coach Will Wade made the most of it, signing three recruits in the class of 2020 so far.
The biggest news for Wade came on Monday when five-star guard Cam Thomas signed his National Letter of Intent with LSU. Thomas is the No. 25 overall player in the country and the No. 6-ranked shooting guard in the class of 2020, according to 247sports.com.
Thomas prepped at Oak Hill Academy in Virginia, which is a highly elite boarding school for athletes. Many NBA players attended Oak Hill in recent years, such as Carmelo Anthony, Rajon Rondo and Ty Lawson.
“He’s the best scorer I’ve seen some out of high school or AAU since I’ve been coaching,” Wade said. “He’s as prolific a scorer I’ve ever seen. He’s a tremendous kid, with a tremendous family.
“We’re very excited about Cam. We locked in on him because we needed a prolific scorer, and he’s that in spades.”
It’s a promising sign for Wade, who is still recovering from hits to his reputation during the FBI investigation into college basketball last season. Wade was the subject of multiple Yahoo! Sports articles in the spring, including one report that said Wade made “a strong-ass offer” to a recruit believed to be current LSU sophomore guard Javonte Smart.
Thomas joins Naz Reid and two current LSU players, sophomore forward Emmitt Williams and freshman forward Trendon Watford, as the four five-star players Wade has signed since arriving in March 2017.
Ja’Marr Chase wins SEC Player of the Week, named a Biletnikoff semifinalist along with Justin Jefferson
Sophomore wide receiver Ja’Marr Chase’s outstanding performance against Ole Miss didn’t go unnoticed. Chase hauled in eight receptions for 227 yards and three touchdowns in LSU’s 58-37 win in Oxford.
For his efforts, the Southeastern Conference named him the SEC Offensive Player of the Week.
On the season, Chase leads the SEC in receiving yards (1,116) and touchdowns (13), which is also a LSU single-season record. The totals are fourth and second in nation, respectively.
Junior wide receiver Justin Jefferson isn’t far behind Chase in either category. Jefferson has 1,010 yards and 11 touchdowns on 71 catches. He ranks in the top 10 nationally in all three categories.
The duo joined Odell Beckham Jr. and Jarvis Landry as the only LSU receivers to post 1,000 receiving yards in the same season.
On Monday, Chase and Jefferson were named semifinalists for the Fred Biletnikoff Award, an annual award given to the best wide receiver in college football.
Josh Reed is only LSU player to win the award. Reed set multiple LSU records in 2001 when he caught 94 passes for 1,740 yards and seven touchdowns.