“That’s the man right there” - HC Brian Kelly hypes up 4-star OT Mario Nash Jr. during his LSU visit

By Aman Sharma

Modified Jun 16, 2024 14:35 GMT

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LSU Tigers head coach Brian Kelly recently expressed his admiration for four-star offensive tackle Mario Nash Jr. during Nash's visit to the university. In a video on Instagram, Nash said (via Rivalsdotcom):

"Checking in, LSU official business with Brian Kelly."

Kelly was glad to have Nash there and said:

"That's the man right there."

Nash Jr., a top prospect for the 2024 recruiting class, shared his positive impressions from his April visit to LSU during the Spring Game (via told Geaux247):

"It was a great visit overall and I had a great time. We got a chance to see the game. The offensive line looked very physical for the most part and I really love the way in which they play. I feel like it could be a great fit for me because of the physicality and just the overall style of play."

He also praised Coach Davis:

"Coach Davis is the type of coach who will push me to be great. He's a straightforward guy that tells you exactly how it is."

In Brian Kelly's first year at LSU in 2022, players like Will Campbell, Emery Jones, Harold Perkins, and Mason Taylor became foundational members of the team. The 2023 season continued this trend, with Ashton Stamps, Javien Toviano, Whit Weeks, DJ Chester, and Kaleb Jackson all stepping up. These players are expected to play crucial roles in the 2024 season as well.

Brian Kelly’s blueprint: Building LSU’s roster through homegrown talent

Head coach Brian Kelly emphasized the importance of building LSU’s roster with high school players who have a genuine desire to represent the university. Reflecting on last year's roster challenges, Kelly explained to Rivals.com:

"We had a huge need last year... There were issues with numbers within our program where we had to go into the transfer portal just to field a roster from a defensive perspective. That's not sustainable. What's sustainable is player development and retention, and you do that through building relationships with your players."

Kelly’s strategy focuses heavily on recruiting within Louisiana and its surrounding states, though he acknowledges exceptions:

“We really focused going into this year of recruiting that we wanted to be in these particular states to do our base recruiting... We'll go anywhere for a quarterback, and quite frankly we'll go anywhere for a difference maker. But our base recruiting is going to be in the border states.”

This approach has proven effective. For the 2024 class, LSU secured nine of Rivals' top-10 recruits from Louisiana. Kelly attributes this success to the diligent efforts of his coaching staff.

"Locking down is a great word to use, but what has to happen is each coach needs to have a geographical area within the state of Louisiana... I think it's just a commitment to getting out there and working hard and I think our staff did a good job of getting out there and working hard and doing the due diligence necessary to represent a really strong brand."

For 2024, Brian Kelly signed 29 players, with the standout being four-star safety Dashawn McBryde from Denham Springs, Louisiana. Ranked as the 54th overall player and the second-best safety in the class, McBryde's commitment was a significant win for LSU.