LSU’s most recent in-state offers: Khai Prean, Lance Heard

New LSU coach Brian Kelly has shared his recognition early and often of the opportunity provided by Louisiana's recruiting base. The Tigers are the lone Power Five program in one of the country's most talent-rich states. That dynamic intrigues coaches like Kelly, who see three different coaches (Nick Saban, Les Miles and Ed Orgeron) leading national championship runs, and also makes a purple-and-gold scholarship offer a coveted benchmark for elite in-state prospects. LSU extended new offers to a pair of talented Louisiana athletes this past week. Take a closer look at the Tigers' latest in-state 2023 targets, who they join on that list and <strong><a href="https://prepredzone.com/2022/04/which-louisiana-prospects-could-be-next-up-for-lsu-offers/">who could be some of the top candidates to join them next</a></strong>. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="138277" first="Khai" last="Prean"] — 6-1, 190 ATH — St. James</strong> One of Louisiana's most versatile and explosive rising seniors had felt like one of its next athletes due and offer sooner than later since at least last summer when he put on one of the top camp performances at LSU in the NCAA's first weeks of in-person recruiting in more than a year because of the COVID-19 pandemic. Prean enjoyed a breakout sophomore season in 2020 at Ascension Catholic in which big numbers at running back began opening eyes, but his dynamic play on the other side of the ball at safety appeared to show an even higher next-level ceiling. The offseason that followed put his pass-catching prowess at the forefront during the 7-on-7 and camp circuits, and one Power Five after another began piling up. [player_tooltip player_id="138438" first="Shelton" last="Sampson"] Jr. of Catholic (Baton Rouge) and [player_tooltip player_id="138439" first="Omarion" last="Miller"] of North Caddo have led headlined Louisiana's 2023 pass-catching crop, but Prean shouldn't be considered far behind with his combination of size, track speed, explosiveness and sure hands. <strong>[player_tooltip player_id="138389" first="Zalance" last="Heard"] — 6-6, 300 OL — Neville</strong> The Tigers' other recent in-state offer bears some similarities to Prean. Heard began garnering attention as a big, versatile defensive lineman at Bastrop before moving to Neville as a junior and focusing predominantly on the offensive side of the ball and pairing with eventual 2022 LSU signee [player_tooltip player_id="136546" first="Will" last="Campbell"] to make up arguably the top tackle duo in the state. And while Lance isn't winning any footraces with Prean, the big man is remarkably quick, explosive and athletic for his size. Heard's impressive combination of footwork, hands and overall strength, aggressiveness and reflexes make his difficult to beat from his fast first step to his block-finishing mentality and anywhere in between. And much like an attribute for which Campbell came to be known, he has a nastiness to him that helps set and keep a tone for the line, team and game. <strong>Previous LSU offers</strong> Prean and Heard join a list of 19 fellow rising seniors around the state to hold LSU offers. The quarterback trio of [player_tooltip player_id="138484" first="Arch" last="Manning"] of Newman, [player_tooltip player_id="138485" first="Eli" last="Holstein"] of Zachary and [player_tooltip player_id="138486" first="Rickie" last="Collins"] of Woodlawn (Baton Rouge), the aforementioned wide receiver duo of Sampson and Miller and the running back duo of [player_tooltip player_id="138467" first="Trey" last="Holly"] (Union Parish) and [player_tooltip player_id="138466" first="Kaleb" last="Jackson"] (Liberty Magnet) headline the way. [player_tooltip player_id="138412" first="Caden" last="Jones"] of De La Salle and [player_tooltip player_id="188944" first="Tyree" last="Adams"] of St. Augustine are Louisiana's first offensive linemen with offers from the SEC program, and Newman tight end [player_tooltip player_id="138427" first="Will" last="Randle"] is also a long-standing Tigers target. Two of the state's best defensive prospects, linebackers [player_tooltip player_id="138353" first="Tackett" last="Curtis"] (Many) and [player_tooltip player_id="138276" first="Jaiden" last="Ausberry"] (University Lab) are among the most notable in-state offers on the other side of the ball, where defensive linemen [player_tooltip player_id="138386" first="Jameian" last="Buxton"] (Warren Easton) and [player_tooltip player_id="138385" first="Tyler" last="Bailey"] (Ponchatoula) each garnered early attention from the previous staff. But the bulk of the defensive offers belong to defensive backs: [player_tooltip player_id="138303" first="Derek" last="Williams"] Jr. of Westgate, [player_tooltip player_id="138305" first="Kylin" last="Jackson"] of Zachary, [player_tooltip player_id="138304" first="Kam" last="Franklin"] of Oak Grove, [player_tooltip player_id="138306" first="Curley" last="Reed"] of Lake Charles College Prep, [player_tooltip player_id="138307" first="Jordan" last="Matthews"] of Woodlawn (Baton Rouge)