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Jay Johnson and the LSU Tigers are in the midst of a critical stretch this offseason with the program looking to reload the roster in Baton Rouge.

After capturing a National Championship in 2025, all focus has shifted towards attacking the NCAA Transfer Portal in order to stack talent moving forward.

Johnson and Co. have seen success in the free agent market as of late with the program once again looking to make a splash this offseason.

Once the LSU Tigers took down Coastal Carolina in the College World Series Finals, Johnson immediately put his recruiting cap on begin hitting the portal.

“If you’re a pitcher out there, high school or portal, you should want to come here largely because of Nate [Yeskie]. And Jamie Tutko is our director of pitching development and analytics and has helped take this thing to a new level as well,” Johnson said after winning the title.

“We’ve got it all. We’ve got it all. I’m just really proud of that side of the ball. We had to elevate the talent in the LSU baseball program on the mound when I took over here. And we have and we’ve executed it at developing them as good as I ever would have dreamed of or imagined.”

Now, two left-handed pitchers have revealed commitments to the purple and gold along with a pair of infielders to round out the current pledges.

Who’s in for Johnson and Co. as it stands?

No. 1: Brayden Simpson – Infielder

The LSU Tigers landed a commitment from High Point infielder Brayden Simpson in June as the program’s first portal addition.

Simpson, one of the top prospects in the NCAA Transfer Portal, is coming off of a career season in North Carolina.

The coveted infielder primarily handled business as a third baseman for High Point this past season where he shined for his Panthers squad.

Simpson had a dominant two-year stretch at High Point with his 2025 campaign quickly putting his name on the map.

He rounded out the season batting .389 with 22 home runs, 77 RBI and a .477 on base percentage this past season.

Simpson is a Swiss Army Knife in the infield and has also spent some time at first base in 2024 and second base in 2023. 

In 2024, the talented High Point transfer started in all 62 games where he batted .300 with 12 home runs and 45 RBI. He started in 58 games this year.

No. 2: Seth Dardar – Infielder

Dardar, a Louisiana native, began his career at Columbia prior to making the move to join the Kansas State Wildcats.

During the 2025 season, he logged a team best .326 batting average with 18 doubles and a 1.065 OPS.

A consistent hitter, Dardar tallied 60 hits, 45 RBI and 13 home runs last season for his Wildcats squad.

The New Orleans (La.) Holy Cross standout started in 50 games for Kansas State on his way to becoming a coveted transfer in the portal.

Now, he’s made his move. Dardar will head home to suit up for the Bayou Bengals in his final season of eligibility.

No. 3: Danny Lachenmayer – Pitcher [NDSU]

Lachenmayer, a coveted freshman in the NCAA Transfer Portal, selected the National Champion LSU Tigers over the Arkansas Razorbacks after visiting Fayetteville this week.

The talented southpaw was used as a relief option in 2025 for the Bison where he made 24 appearances and recorded nine saves for North Dakota State.

Lachenmayer pitched 38 innings with a 2.37 ERA, 56 strikeouts, 18 walks and a .192 batting average against him during his freshman campaign.

Johnson and Co. have their recruiting caps on this week with the program intensifying its pursuit for multiple top targets in the NCAA Transfer Portal.

No. 4: Ryler Smart – Pitcher [Tennessee]

Smart, a Top-25 rated left-hander in the 2024 Recruiting Cycle, signed with the Volunteers after prepping at Pearland (Tex.).

The 6-foot-4, 236-pounder redshirted during his lone season in Knoxville after recovering from injury.

Smart was rated as the No. 183 overall prospect in the 2024 Recruiting Cycle and the No. 25 left-handed pitcher prior to signing with the Volunteers.

Now, he heads to Baton Rouge after committing to Johnson and Co. following a visit with the program this week.

LSU Football Wide Receiver Donating NIL Money Back to High School for Title Rings

LSU Football Holds Commitments From a Pair of Top-10 Wide Receivers in America

Brian Kelly’s Take: LSU Football Searching for Ideal Starting Offensive Line Rotation

Follow Zack Nagy on Twitter: @znagy20 and LSU Tigers On SI: @LSUTigersSI for all coverage surrounding the LSU Tigers.

Cade Klubnik Turns $3.4M NIL Payday Into Community Giveback With Unique Deal originally appeared on Athlon Sports.

Clemson quarterback Cade Klubnik is making headlines off the field as well as on it, thanks to a groundbreaking new NIL deal that includes a highly detailed, lifelike action figure.

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Valued at $3.4 million by On3’s NIL rankings, Klubnik has solidified his place not just as a top college quarterback but also as a marketable star attracting unique endorsements.

Klubnik recently partnered with Collegiate Legends, a company known for creating collectible action figures of prominent college football players. This deal marks the company’s first collaboration with an ACC athlete and comes as part of their final NIL campaign of the year.

Previous Collegiate Legends clients include standout athletes like South Carolina’s LaNorris Sellers and Alabama’s Jaylen Mbakwe.

“Cade embodies the leadership and character that make him a role model on and off the field,” said Holly Tanory, President of Collegiate Legends. “We are proud to feature him as our first ACC athlete, and we look forward to an exciting season ahead.”

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Klubnik has also committed to giving back, pledging a portion of the proceeds from the action figure sales to charity. He will make a special appearance to distribute these toys to children in the local community, while also donating some figures to Clemson Athletics to enhance fan and player engagement programs.

The timing of this NIL deal aligns perfectly with Klubnik’s rising profile. After a breakout 2024 season where he threw for 3,649 yards and 36 touchdowns, the Clemson star quarterback has been generating buzz as a Heisman Trophy candidate and NFL Draft prospect.

Ranked No. 7 on On3’s NIL valuation list and No. 8 on the NIL 100 — a ranking of the top college and high school athletes by NIL value — Klubnik is a major presence in the college football landscape.

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Heading into his senior season, Klubnik remains focused on growth and team success. “Quarterback is a developmental position, and building chemistry with my offensive coordinator has been key,” he recently told On3.

Related: Clemson Facing NIL Test as New Threat Emerges for 5-Star LB Tyler Atkinson

Related: Cade Klubnik Takes Shot at Transfer Culture, Praises Arch Manning but Snubs Rival

Related: EA Sports Misses Big With Dabo Swinney Look in College Football 26

This story was originally reported by Athlon Sports on Jun 28, 2025, where it first appeared.

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The game of football is changing, but not because of flag pulling or the absence of tackling. The rise of flag football is bringing opportunities to young women to play a sport that wasn’t always accessible to them.

Within the past five to seven years, women’s flag football has seen growth across the country at the high school level. For college athletics, the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA) announced women’s flag football as an official varsity sport in 2021, after partnering with the National Football League (NFL) and Reigning Champs Experiences (RCX).

Not to mention, at least 65 NCAA schools are sponsoring women’s flag football at either a club or varsity level, with more expected in 2026, according to the NCAA.

Despite seeing such progress at a youth level, the ultimate goal for these athletes will take place in Los Angeles, as flag football was officially added to the 2028 Summer Olympics.

With all the recent hype, local girls’ flag football coaches called for a combine where young athletes could showcase their skills and compete against one another. On June 21, girls, ages 13 to 17, arrived at San Diego State’s practice field to show the coaches and SDSU players what they had.

The coaches began with dynamic warmups to get the athletes loose for their first drills. The group was then split into their desired positions, such as quarterback, receiver, and defensive back, where they worked on offensive or defensive drills that were unique to their position.

After spending some time with individual skills training, they moved into one-on-one scrimmages—one receiver trying to get open with a specific route and one defender trying to deny the receiver of catching the ball. Next, they moved into two-on-two, then finished the combine with a full seven-on-seven scrimmage. The coaches had everyone huddle up after and thanked all the athletes for coming and giving their all.

“It was amazing, personally, being from San Diego since 1986,” coach Derek Ferrell said. “Being a part of bringing a new generation of girls’ flag football to San Diego…inspiring the next generation to continue in their skill of playing flag football.”

With high energy and excitement from those involved, the girls were eager to play their hardest and learn from their peers.

“When you give someone energy, they give it back to you,” said Ferrell. “You have to inspire for people to follow.”

As a dad, it isn’t hard for Ferrell to bring the energy and joy. But he can’t make the difference on his own. The assistance from other coaches is one thing, but having some of the SDSU football players to help lead the way meant everything to him.

“It’s very great to have them out here because all of us being in San Diego, it’s Aztecs,” Ferrell said. “That’s our football team and that’s our leadership.”

With the guidance of collegiate athletes, the young competitors have the opportunity to learn valuable lessons that can impact their athletic journey.

“They’re really athletic for their age,” SDSU football redshirt freshman safety Prince Williams said. “These people are going to be more developed. They’re going to be faster, they’re going to be stronger, and with them being mentally introduced to the game, they’re going to be able to adapt.”

With some of the kids already playing the game at an elite level, the coaching from SDSU’s players can take their game to the next level.

“There are some kids that definitely stand out…doing the drills pretty fast, and it looks like they know what they’re doing already,” freshman linebacker Jeremiah Tuiileila said. “It wouldn’t be surprising if we see some of these kids in the Olympics in the future.”

The kids were also lucky enough to learn from someone who finished in second place in the 2025 NAIA National Championship. Keisier sophomore wide receiver Hanna Lencioni finished her freshman season just short of a national title. The Seahawks finished their season 20-2, marking their best year since women’s flag football officially became a varsity sport in 2021.

“It’s awesome to see all the girls playing and everything,” Lencioni said. “I just want to put my cleats on and work with them, but it’s great to be on the other side and see what the coaches see.”

Having a similar dream of her own, she can display her work ethic and passion that will potentially lead her to a spot on an Olympic roster. With such a strong athletic ability, she’s able to pass her knowledge down to the younger generation.

“I never thought that I was going to be here, honestly,” Lencioni said. “I just want to inspire them and give them all the tips and tricks they can do so they can be better.”

After three hours of drills, conditioning, and scrimmages, the girls left everything on the field and proved to be passionate about flag football. But none of this would be possible without the help of the community.

“San Diego is really starting to represent,” Ferrell said. “We’re getting a lot of support and backing from the community, which is helping to back our families and parents to go to these opportunities for USA football.”

The girls had a lot of knowledge to take away from the event, but this is just the beginning. What they learned at the combine will potentially help them on their journey to a destination that nobody has reached—playing flag football in the Olympics.

“Trust the process,” Williams said. “During the process, you’re going to work, you’re going to keep on getting better. And if you really love it…you’re going to inspire yourself even more every day.”