Jerrard Randall will put on an LSU uniform for the first time when LSU faces Oregon to open the 2011 season.
Had things worked out differently for the four-star quarterback from Hollywood, Fla., he may have been donning a Ducks uniform instead.
Randall, who signed with LSU on Saturday, originally committed to Oregon in June 2010, but low ACT scores made him ineligible to sign on National Signing Day.
A month later, Randall earned the score necessary to sign with Oregon but was faced with a harsh realization  — there wasn’t a spot for him.
The 6-foot-2-inch, 189-pound Randall said he was mostly left in the dark by Oregon coach Chip Kelly.
“He never called me to tell me that [I didn’t have a spot],” Randall said. “I’ve only talked to [Oregon quarterbacks coach Mark Helfrich], and he didn’t really say too much. He just told me not to play too hard against them.”
After discovering his situation, Randall took the advice of Tim Tyrrell, his coach at Chaminade-Madonna College Preparatory, and began looking at other schools. Shea Dixon, managing editor for TigerSportsDigest.com, said LSU quickly became one of the frontrunners after he reopened his recruitment.
“They were going after him [before he committed to Oregon],” Dixon said. “Out of the handful of guys they had picked out to offer, he was one of them. He just fell off LSU fans’ radars because he was committed.”
Randall eventually signed with the Tigers and said he’s relieved to have the recruiting process behind him. He also understands the nature of college football and has no bitter feelings against the Ducks.
“I know that college programs are businesses,” Randall said. “I just want to play ball and be a part of a family.”
Randall said he has found a great family at LSU based on the relationship he has built with LSU coach Les Miles.
“It’s a great program,” said Randall, who will visit Baton Rouge this weekend for the first time. “Les Miles always called me while the Oregon thing was going on, and he was behind me all the way.”
The addition of Randall to the 2011 class leaves LSU in an unsettled scholarship position. Because of self-imposed restrictions, LSU can only enroll 23 scholarship players in this class for a total of 83 scholarships on the roster.
LSU signed 22 players in February, and most expect Cameron Fordham, who grayshirted last season, to also receive a scholarship and count toward this class. Randall would count as the 24th scholarship, which Dixon said makes it likely someone will have to grayshirt. But he added that Miles likely won’t receive the same national backlash as he did when he gave Elliott Porter a grayshirt before last season.
“They know now, and it’s not going to be a situation like last summer where it just got brought up at the last second,” Dixon said.
Rivals.com ranks Randall as the 10th best dual-threat quarterback in the country and his sub-4.5 40-yard-dash time has earned comparisons to junior wide receiver Russell Shepard, who played quarterback in high school. But Dixon said Randall will likely stay at quarterback in college.
“It’s not going to be one of those things where he comes in with an athlete label and then gets tried at a bunch of positions,” Dixon said. “His mechanics are a lot finer than a guy like Shepard.”
LSU now has five quarterbacks on scholarship for 2011, but Randall said he wants to stay at that position and will battle for playing time.
“[Miles] told me he wants athleticism in his quarterbacks,” Randall said. “That’s what I’m bringing to the table.”
 
 
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Contact Hunter Paniagua at [email protected]