Sunday’s celebrations weren’t exclusive to Baton Rouge.
Power programs across the SEC secured talent on campuses and kept Major League dollars from decimating rosters for 2027. It’s yet another twist in the ever-changing landscape of college athletics. There’s real earning power on college campuses, and job statuses are more secure.
LSU kept high-profile high schoolers like Malachi Washington, Lucas Nawrocki, Kolby Stringer and Cooper Sides in its signing class. In a different era, those professional offers may have won out.
Tennessee got seven top 100 prospects to school. A&M and Georgia skirted the draft with some eligible transfers. Vanderbilt reeled in four top 100 recruits. Those are just a few examples of a league flush with elite level talent.
Joe Doyle from OverSlot.com ran the numbers and suggested the draft was 72 high schoolers under normal average. That’s more than 10% of the draft.
While colleges are never going to compete for $4 million signing bonuses in the first round or even $2 million in second, prep players can cash in on six figure deals in college if they play for a power program. Charter flights and nationally televised games that actually matter are also a nice alternative to high-A contests in Helena, MT., and the bus ride to follow.
Minor league life is a grind, and it doesn’t come with many guarantees. A college ecosystem is more predictable, and now it pays.
LSU enjoyed the high end of a sport-wide shift toward college. Nine of the first 11 overall picks were college players, and 30 of the 40 first round picks from the college ranks.
An influx of 70 more draftable prospects into the college game is going to elevate the level of play which helps everybody involved.
Jay Johnson now has a story to sell. At LSU, he’s helped produce Jacob Berry, Dylan Crews and Derek Curiel as first round hitters. Tommy White, Ethan Frey and Jake Brown have also been paid handsomely. LSU is taking these high-profile recruits and developing multimillionaires in two or three years.
It’s obvious that many of LSU’s signees stuck to their lofty numbers. Only four were chosen in the first 10 rounds. Will Adams and Spencer Evans were pounced on after the slots went away in the 11th, but they clearly had stuck firm until a team had to come use overage money after 10 rounds were gone.
Moving forward, expect college programs to continue to accrue serious talent. LSU will lure in its share.
