Hits & Misses
Hit: Barkevious Mingo (EDGE) — Originally ranked 189. Outcome: NFL Starter. Mingo significantly exceeded expectations as a low-ranked recruit, establishing himself as a starter in the NFL.
Miss: Russell Shepard (WR) — Originally ranked 2. Outcome: Undrafted NFL Roster. Shepard, despite his high ranking, did not meet expectations at the professional level.
Development Story
The LSU 2009 recruiting class, originally ranked 2nd, showcased a diverse talent pool that yielded mixed results. The class included a total of 24 recruits, with a notable blue chip percentage of 58%. However, the S2S rerank dropping to 6 indicates a reassessment of how these players performed relative to their initial expectations.
Within this class, several players outperformed their rankings, particularly Barkevious Mingo, who overcame his low initial ranking to become an NFL starter. Other recruits, such as Rueben Randle, Josh Downs, and Kevin Minter, also achieved high outcomes with their NFL Starter designation, highlighting the program's ability to develop talent effectively, even among those who were not highly ranked.
Conversely, some highly ranked recruits did not achieve the expected success. Russell Shepard, despite being the second-ranked wide receiver, ended up on an undrafted NFL roster, indicating a failure to capitalize on his initial potential. This dichotomy illustrates a broader trend where LSU was able to harness the potential of lower-ranked prospects while grappling with the underperformance of some of its higher-ranked recruits.
Outcome Summary
Overall, the LSU 2009 recruiting class met expectations in some areas while underperforming in others. The class demonstrated a strong ability to develop talent, particularly among lower-ranked recruits who achieved high outcomes. The shift in S2S rerank from 2 to 6 reflects a more tempered view of the class's overall impact, suggesting that while there were standout performances, the overall yield from the highly ranked recruits was less favorable than anticipated.
In conclusion, while the class had its hits, particularly with the emergence of NFL starters, the notable misses among high-ranking players tempered the overall performance assessment.