Scott Wachter-USA TODAY Sports
By Hunt Palmer
Some portal pieces feel like depth. Some feel like difference makers.
Jayce Brown fits the latter mold.
LSU’s passing game broke in 2025, and that was part of the reason the Tigers limped to 7-6. Aaron Anderson battled injuries. Nic Anderson never made the impact he was forecasted to. Chris Hilton was a non-factor. The list goes on.
It wasn’t a talent issue. LSU’s offensive line, scheme and quarterback health also contributed to poor production.
There was an exodus after the season. Only Nic Anderson and Phillip Wright remained. To date, LSU has taken seven transfers at wide receiver to bring that total to nine with three coming in from the high school ranks.
Twelve is plenty. Winnie Watkins will probably make it 13. Now to figure out where to put them all.
WHAT WE KNOW
Kansas State was sorry to see Jayce Brown go. He set the school’s sophomore receiving record in 2024 en route to becoming the fastest player in school history to 1,000 receiving yards. In 2025, he led the team with 712 receiving yards and scored five touchdowns.
What stands out about Brown is his yards per catch consistency. As a freshman, he averaged 16.2 yards per catch. That total grew to 17.5 as a sophomore and 17.4 as a junior. He’s made his catches count and has proven himself as an explosive playmaker.
Brown made a 30-plus yard catch in seven of his 10 games.
He’s not an imposing physical presence at 6-foot and 180 lbs., but he can really run. Lane Kiffin loves speed. Brown brings it.
THE FIT
Few dial up explosive plays better than Kiffin. Ole Miss led the country in passing plays of 20-plus yards this year. They were second in 2024 and third in 2023. It’s a hallmark of the offense, and Brown fits it like a glove.
I’m obviously a huge Baylor guy but I really think this should be deemed a palpably unfair touchdown.
The player was not stopped, the defense committed a penalty that resulted in the play being dead. For all extensive purposes, Jayce Brown scored a TD here.
Just my take and I’m… pic.twitter.com/DtyviOSiR5
— Bryson Stricker (@BryBryStrick) October 4, 2025
He wins at the line of scrimmage and has great speed to run after the catch.
Jackson Harris and Nic Anderson profile as the bigger bodied targets. The rest of the bunch hovers around 6-feet tall. It’ll be up to Kiffin to sort through the skill sets and produce points.
HUNT’S PROJECTION
If you made me bet a crisp $5 on LSU’s leading receiver in 2026, I’d bet it on Brown. I think his combination of route running and speed is just what Kiffin is looking for.
They’ll get him involved in the screen game around the line of scrimmage, but where Brown really excels is the intermediate passing game in the middle of the field. He made 27 catches between the numbers a season ago and turned six of those into scores.
He lined up in the slot 70% of the time last season. That’s where LSU will use him. I think Brown has a great chance to be an All-SEC player. Since there hasn’t been a quarterback inked to this point, I think Brown is the best and most impactful offensive addition to date.
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