LSU head coach Lane Kiffin continues to add.
On Monday, former Ole Miss defensive tackle Zxavien Harris committed to LSU. He spent the spring and early summer with the New Orleans Saints, and that has been the focus. As a Class of 2022 high schooler, he is now entitled to a fifth season of eligibility for the time being. That’s thanks to the injunction he won along with more than a dozen athletes in Louisiana last week. Kiffin said Monday that LSU would recruit those players.
Three of them have committed.
Harris took to social media on Monday, calling his commitment to LSU a “Business decision”.
WHAT WE KNOW
Harris played four years at Ole Miss. He’s as imposing a presence as there was in the SEC at 6-foot-8 and 330 pounds.
In 2024, he started three games and increased that number of starts to 15 in 2025. When the dust settled on Ole Miss’s College Football Playoff run, Harris had amassed 58 tackles, nine for loss and three sacks from his interior defensive line position.
Over four seasons, Harris played in 52 college games, made 123 tackles, 17.5 for loss and sacked the quarterback 5.5 times. He also blocked six kicks in his career.
Harris had foot surgery between the NFL Scouting Combine and the NFL Draft. He was undrafted and signed with New Orleans before the Saints waived him earlier this month.
THE FIT
I’ve been vocal about my concerns starting a pair of true freshmen at defensive tackle. That hasn’t been settled publicly, but there’s at least a chance LSU goes with Deuce Geralds and Richard Anderson in the starting lineup. That probably says something about their readiness to play as well as the performance of veteran options like Dominick McKinley, Stephiylan Green and Malik Blocton.
However, if healthy and in playing shape, Harris is a difference maker. He’s the perfect veteran addition to compliment the young players at the position.
Harris graded a 77.9 against the run last season according to Pro Football Focus. He’s just a massive space eater who can often time demand double teams. If left with one offensive lineman, Harris is a load to move. Anderson plays much the same, and the duo could be used to keep the other fresh opposite Geralds and the other veterans.
If it’s Harris and Geralds to start with Anderson, Green and Blocton coming in off the bench for a series here and there, all of a sudden, the depth at the position starts to look strong.
That’s massively important.
HUNT PROJECTION
I don’t know what kind of shape Harris is in as of Aug. 25.
Foot injuries for huge men can create some problems in terms of staying fit. Some have suggested Harris could have been a second or third round pick were it not for the foot surgery. He went undrafted, and the Saints signed him to a three-year deal worth over $3 million. They quickly cut him and that means something.
Is it possible he could be ready to play in 11 days? Sure. Is it possible he needs more time? Absolutely. Perhaps a Week 3 return is more likely…at Ole Miss.
On paper, this move makes all the sense in the world. Harris projects as a starter at one of the soft spots on the Tiger roster. He fortifies it as a potential strength if he’s in game shape.
I think Harris becomes a starter at some point. I think it’s fair to suggest that it might take him time to ramp up. That probably means his statistics aren’t as strong as they were a season ago in 15 games for a College Football Playoff semifinalist team.
If he’s the player he was 11 months ago, though, this is a difference-making addition for Kiffin, defensive coordinator Blake Baker and LSU.
Of the three additions LSU has made since the injunction was granted, Harris feels very much like the most impactful of the bunch.
