| New coach Brian Kelly has his first signing class at LSU ... or at least the down payment on one. Kelly's Tigers landed 13 players Wednesday, the first day of the early signing period for college football. The second or more traditional signing period begins Feb. 2. LSU will be able to bring in as many as 19 more signees and transfers as the NCAA is allowing schools an expanded 32-man class for 2021-22. Headlining the class were the two best prospects in the state of Louisiana for this cycle: offensive tackle Will Campbell of Monroe Neville and quarterback Walker Howard of Lafayette St. Thomas More. Both five-star blue-chippers play huge positions of need for the Tigers, as does Catholic High offensive lineman Emery Jones, who I wrote about in my column Wednesday. Howard and three other LSU signees — safety Jordan Allen and defensive lineman Fitzgerald West from Lafayette Christian and cornerback Laterrance Welch from Acadiana — continue a strong pipeline of players from the Acadiana area to LSU. Despite the positive signs, there were reminders of how LSU football recruiting sometimes seems like the Tigers are rolling a rock uphill. One of the biggest: ex-LSU cornerback Eli Ricks, himself a former five-star prospect, announcing that he's heading to archrival Alabama after leaving LSU for the transfer portal. It wasn't all football on Wednesday. The LSU women's basketball team rolled to its seventh straight victory, as the No. 22-ranked Tigers crushed Alcorn State 100-36. It was LSU's first time breaking the 100-point mark in a regulation game since November 2006. LSU also announced a game with Bradley on Saturday to replace a game with UNO that was canceled because of COVID-19 issues with that program. If you’re not a subscriber, come join us. We’re running a great deal for you. We’ll keep you up to date on the latest news at LSU (and elsewhere). So please support our work and stay on top of everything, like who Kelly hires as offensive and defensive coordinator. Happy holidays to all, Scott Rabalais | 
