Lane Kiffin and Ole Miss hit Brian Kelly where it hurts by flipping 4-star OT commit

The Ole Miss Rebels and Lane Kiffin just poached a big-time commit from the LSU Tigers, hurting Brian Kelly's recruiting efforts.
Brian Kelly, Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss v LSU
Brian Kelly, Lane Kiffin, Ole Miss v LSU | Jonathan Bachman/GettyImages

It hurt when four-star offensive tackle Emanuel Tucker committed to the LSU Tigers, leaving his home state of Mississippi for Louisiana.

However, it sure did feel that much better when he flipped his commitment from the Tigers to the Ole Miss Rebels and head coach Lane Kiffin. Sweet, sweet vengeance.

On Friday, Tucker announced he had committed to the Rebels, with a simple message that pointed toward the fact that he was staying home by playing for Ole Miss.

"The best in the Sip, stay in the Sip!” Tucker said.

Listed at 6-foot-6 and 290295pounds, Tucker is the No. 25 offensive tackle in the class of 2026 and the No. 13 overall prospect out of the state of Mississippi.

The young offensive tackle grew up less than an hour from Oxford, the home of the Rebels, and took four visits to Ole Miss, including an official visit in May. He also took an OV to the Tigers before originally committing to them in June.

With Tucker's commitment, the Rebels' upcoming recruiting class sits at No. 21 in the nation and No. 10 in the SEC, two steps better than Kiffin's class of 2025 recruits compared to his conference rivals.

Beyond Tucker, Ole Miss' class of 2026 is headlined by four-star running back Damarius Yates, four-star EDGE Landon Barnes, four-star tight end JC Anderson, four-star safety Craig Tutt, and four-star wide receiver Corey Barber.

When he committed to the Rebels, Tucker became the 16th overall commit and the seventh four-star prospect. Three-star interior offensive lineman Ryan Miret is the only other O-Line athlete from the class of 2026 to commit to Ole Miss so far.