National Signing Day: Winners and losers – USC, Ole Miss knock early signing period out of park

Early National Signing Day Winner No. 1: LSU Tigers

The LSU Tigers have not enjoyed the season that they’d hoped after winning the National Championship last year. But if there’s one thing that we know head coach Ed Orgeron and his staff are more than capable of in Baton Rouge, it’s recruiting. And that was on full display as the early signing period wrapped up on Wednesday.

Perhaps the biggest get, though not the most surprising, of the day came late in the afternoon when 5-star defensive tackle Maason Smith, the No. 2 player at his position and the No. 18 overall recruit in the 2021 class, committed to play for the Tigers. Not only does Coach O get a stud in his own right, but that could possibly open the door for a late push to try and sign the No. 1 recruit in the country, Korey Foreman.

Beyond landing Smith, though, the Tigers also added another top-200 prospect in cornerback Damarius McGhee while flipping 4-star wide receiver Malik Nabers from Mississippi State, as mentioned. Yes, they saw Keanu Koht get flipped by Bama, but it was still a big day for the Tigers on the trail.

Throughout Wednesday and this early signing period, LSU and Georgia have been duking it out for the No. 3 and 4 spots in the 247 Sports Composite team rankings. With the Tigers’ big day, they’ve pulled out ahead, which is a big move within the SEC.