The Orange Bowl was a huge win for that program. The fact that they made it all this way — against Penn State, no less — speaks to the job Freeman has done. To go from losing to Northern Illinois at the beginning of the season to playing for a national championship is unheard of.

Brian Kelly and the LSU football staff remain focused on building up the program for the long haul with their recruiting efforts beginning to ramp up in the 2026 Recruiting Class. Kelly and Co. hold six commitments in next year's cycle to this point with an emphasis on Louisiana,

"Brian Kelly left Notre Dame because he didn’t think he could win a national title there in the current CFB landscape. He thought LSU would be a better path. His replacement has Notre Dame just 60 minutes away from a title, and Kelly enters next season on a hot seat," said another.