Bastrop's Benton commits to LSU
LSU's last weekend of recruiting ended on a high note Sunday.
DeAngelo Benton, one of the top prospects in the nation at any position, committed to LSU on Sunday and brought the Tigers' recruiting class from No. 12 in the nation to No. 9 in Rivals.com. LSU remains at No. 7 in Scout.com.
Benton (6-foot-3, 190) signed with LSU last season out of Bastrop High School after catching 81 passes for nearly 2,000 yards in his junior and senior seasons. He was not academically eligible and spent the 2007 season at Hargrave Military Academy college preparatory school in Chatham, Va.
Rivals.com recently ranked Benton as the No. 3 overall prospect in the nation out of a prep school and the No. 1 wide receiver.
Benton's commitment softens the loss of wide receiver DeAndre Brown, who canceled his visit scheduled for the past weekend to LSU on Friday and committed to Southern Mississippi. Brown, who is 6-6, was the No. 4 receiver in the nation by Rivals and was long expected to be LSU bound. Rivals' No. 13 offensive tackle Antoine McClain of Anniston, Ala., may also no longer be interested in LSU and did visit LSU after scheduling a visit.
Benton's commitment brings LSU's total to 25 with signing day on Wednesday. The Tigers expect to sign more than the 25 limit, however, as they may ask some players to wait until January of 2009 to enroll instead of the customary fall entry. Other signees may be academically ineligible to enroll by the fall.
Among the players LSU is still recruiting are Corey Liuget of Hialeah, Fla., Jermaine Thomas of Jacksonville, Fla., and Greg Shaw of Miami. Liuget is the No. 7 defensive tackle in the nation. Thomas is the No. 15 all-purpose back, and Shaw is the No. 26 offensive tackle.
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