LSU Lands Its Highest Ranked Portal Player Yet, And Has Nation’s No. 2 Transfer Class

GLENN GUILBEAU, Tiger Rag Editor

And to think, LSU coach Brian Kelly used to not think too much of the NCAA Transfer Portal.

“My philosophy as to how I think the portal can be managed is you can top the tank off with it,” Kelly said after the 2022 season. “But your base (most of the tank) has to be through player development of freshmen. You don’t want the transfer portal to set the culture. Because they don’t know what it is.”

So much for culture at the moment. Kelly needs players after a disappointing 8-4 regular season in 2024. And he is nearing a full tank of fuel via the portal.

On Tuesday night, Kelly and LSU received their ninth new addition from the Transfer Portal and their highest ranked player yet in No. 10 overall portal prospect Nic Anderson, who is the No. 5 wide receiver in the portal. Anderson (6-foot-4, 216 pounds) is leaving Oklahoma for LSU. He chose the Tigers over Texas A&M after visiting both recently.

Anderson will have three years remaining of eligibility. And the expectation is he’ll be doing more than topping off the LSU talent tank.

Anderson is the sixth portal addition by LSU who appears in the top 100 portal players by 247sports.com. LSU had just two such players last year.

BREAKING: Oklahoma transfer WR Nic Anderson has committed to LSU, per @Hayesfawcett3🐯https://t.co/1LDJ6puMp6 pic.twitter.com/0C4vplCV38

— On3 (@On3sports) December 18, 2024

Anderson caught 31 passes for 798 yards and 10 touchdowns as a redshirt freshman in 2023 at Oklahoma. He missed virtually all of the 2024 season with an upper quadriceps injury and entered the portal this month. Just a three-star prospect at Katy High In Katy, Texas, Anderson was the No. 61 prep wide receiver in the nation in 2022 and No. 56 prospect in Texas.

247sports.com has LSU’s portal class ranked No. 2 in the nation behind only Ole Miss.

LSU’s complete Transfer Portal class of 2024-25 so far follows with rankings by 247sports.com.

LSU TRANSFER PORTAL ROSTER

No. 10 Overall and No. 5 WR Nic Anderson, Oklahoma.

No. 18 Overall and No. 8 WR Barion Brown, Kentucky.

No. 36 Overall and No. 2 CB Mansoor Delane, Virginia Tech.

No. 43 Overall and No. 6 DE Jake Pyburn, Florida.

No. 71 Overall and No. 8 CB Ja’Keem Jackson, Florida.

No. 92 Overall and No. 13 QB Michael Van Buren, Mississippi State.

No. 125 Overall and No. 14 DE Jimari Butler, Nebraska.

No. 128 Overall and No. 8 TE Bauer Sharp, Oklahoma.

Unranked WR Destyn Hill, Florida State.