Pair of LSU Commits Headline Woodlawn-Zachary Game on ESPNU

The Tigers will be well-represented on ESPNU Thursday evening when Woodlawn hosts Zachary to get district play started. The game will kick off at 7 p.m. CT with a number of SEC commitments looking to showcase their talent on a national stage.

For LSU, they’ll have a pair of 2023 pledges on the field, namely 4-star Woodlawn quarterback Rickie Collins. He’ll be facing off against 4-star Zachary safety Kylin Jackson, who announced his pledge to LSU late in the summer as well.

Woodlawn HS in Baton Rouge is coached by former LSU QB & the arm behind the Bluegrass Miracle - Marcus Randall - talking w/ his ESPN300 QB & #GeauxTigers commit Rickie Collins & the team at practice today as they finish prep to host Zachary on ESPNU Thursday at 7CT @SCNext pic.twitter.com/aazFdxFp5W
— Craig Haubert (@CraigHaubert) October 5, 2022

It’s been an efficient first five games of the season for Collins. The athletic signal-caller has completed 61-of-102 attempts (60%) for 729 yards and nine touchdowns with four interceptions. On the ground, he’s added 43 rushes for 273 yards and three touchdowns.

The 6-foot-3, 190-pounder recently competed at the Elite 11 Finals, putting his talent on display surrounded by the top signal-callers in the country. Holding his own, it became clear Collins is special and deserves to be ranked among the top quarterbacks in this 2023 class.

He’ll be facing his future teammate in Kylin Jackson for the battle of Baton Rouge. The 6-foot-1, 195-pounder became a high-priority target for the Tigers over the last couple of months, with the Tigers looking to keep him close to home and eventually succeeding.

The storyline ahead of tonight’s matchup was supposed to be Rickie Collins vs. Alabama commit, and Zachary signal-caller, Eli Holstein. Holstein, a 4-star quarterback in the class of 2023, suffered a shoulder injury in the middle of September in a loss to St. Augustine.

Update on Holstein: After initially being ruled out for tonight's matchup, Holstein is expected to get the start.

Future SEC rivals but current HS teammates - #ESPN300 CB Jordan Matthews - committed to Tennessee #Vols - & QB Rickie Collins - LSU commit - lead Woodlawn against a talented Zachary (La.) squad w/ several FBS prospects as well - tonight @ 7CT on ESPNU @SCNext @ConnorOnion pic.twitter.com/ZbcWZGsLBJ
— Craig Haubert (@CraigHaubert) October 6, 2022

The fourth SEC commit of the game comes in Woodlawn defensive back Jordan Matthews. Announcing his pledge to Tennessee last month, Matthews was a high-priority target for LSU, but elected to take his talent to Knoxville.

With kick off set for 7 p.m. on ESPNU, it’ll be quite the showcase between two of Louisiana's top high school programs headlined by a pair of 2023 LSU commitments.