Key Points:
- LSU lost four-star EDGE DeAnthony Lafayette shortly after its 20-9 road loss to Alabama.
- Lafayette, a top 2026 recruit, is the No. 41-ranked EDGE in the nation.
- His decommitment drops LSU’s 2026 recruiting class to 16 commits and to a No. 11 national ranking.
The LSU Tigers fell to 5-4 on Saturday, losing to the Alabama Crimson Tide 20-9 on the road. The Tigers are on a three-game losing streak, also falling to the Texas A&M Aggies and the Vanderbilt Commodores. After entering the season with SEC title and College Football Playoff hopes, it has been an incredibly disappointing year.
Of course, this was also LSU’s first game since firing head coach Brian Kelly. While trying to control the damage with interim head coach Frank Wilson, other parts of the program are taking big hits. That includes recruiting, which is a common problem area after a head coaching change.
The day after losing to Alabama, the Tigers took a huge hit, with Rivals’ Hayes Fawcett reporting that class of 2026 EDGE DeAnthony Lafayette had decommitted.
“BREAKING: Four-Star EDGE DeAnthony Lafayette has Decommitted from LSU, he tells me for @rivals. The 6’1 230 EDGE from Orlando, FL had been Committed to the Tigers since July. He currently holds a total of 30 Offers,” Fawcett wrote.
Rivals Industry Rankings place him as a four-star recruit, the No. 41 EDGE and the No. 367 player in the nation. In 11 games this season for Lake Nona High School, he’s racked up 73 tackles, six tackles for loss, 17.5 sacks, 40 hurries, one interception and three pass deflections.
He has several other prominent college football programs to choose from, holding scholarship offers from the Miami Hurricanes, Oklahoma Sooners, Vanderbilt Commodores, Florida Gators and Penn State Nittany Lions.
LSU’s 2026 Cycle Without DeAnthony Lafayette
LSU’s 2026 recruiting class has dropped to 16 commitments, ranking No. 6 in the SEC and No. 11 in the nation. Pass rushers are extremely important, and losing one as talented as Lafayette is a hard pill to swallow.
Following his decommitment, the Tigers are left with just one EDGE in the cycle, in the form of four-star Trenton Henderson. Lafayette also becomes the fifth player to back out on the Tigers. The most prominent of that group is five-star wide receiver Tristen Keys, who is now pledged to the Tennessee Volunteers.
With many of the top players in the 2026 recruiting class, LSU’s best chance of replacing Lafayette is through a flip, but combining its poor on-field performance and a lack of a long-term head coach, the Tigers aren’t an extremely desirable destination right now.