LSU Tigers and Brian Kelly lands another special four star defensive recruit for their potentially elite 2026 recruiting class
Brian Kelly and his recruiting staff continue to rack up the recruiting wins after a bit of a slow start to the summer. The LSU Tigers only landed a couple new high pedigree recruits in June, but now thanks to this week’s latest win have landed over a half dozen star commits in the last […]
Brian Kelly and his recruiting staff continue to rack up the recruiting wins after a bit of a slow start to the summer. The LSU Tigers only landed a couple new high pedigree recruits in June, but now thanks to this week’s latest win have landed over a half dozen star commits in the last 30 days alone. Now LSU finds themselves well within the top ten recruiting classes in the country for 2026.
Darryus McKinley, strong four star DL recruit commits to LSU Tigers
Darryus McKinley, a highly touted fringe four star recruit from the state of Louisiana has committed to the LSU Tigers. That brings the in-state recruiting total to 10 players now for the 2026 Tigers class as Brian Kelly and his staff continue to emphasize the importance of keeping their best players home.
McKinley chose LSU over top SEC programs like Tennessee, Texas, and Florida, ultimately deciding to follow his brother Dominick (already a defensive lineman on the team) to Baton Rouge. This gives LSU three high pedigree defensive line recruits in the 2026 cycle alone as the Tigers continue to stack up the big athletic bodies to dominate the defensive trenches.
The LSU Tigers have sent five defensive line prospects on to be selected in the last two NFL Drafts alone, with several more graduating and departing the program, so the need to replace that talent (and soon) is very real. Yes, Dominick McKinley (Darryus’ older brother) should be able to anchor the defensive interior in 2025, but the depth was certainly looking like it could be an issue here soon if Brian Kelly and company didn’t stack some recruiting wins there.
The good news is that the younger McKinley joins two top 50 defensive line recruits in the nation, Lamar Brown (five star) and Richard Anderson, as LSU is putting together perhaps the best defensive tackle class in the country for next year. Given the newfound depth at the position group McKinley may find it hard to get on the field immediately, but if he’s half as impressive as his older brother there will be a rotational role sooner than later.
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