LEAD STORY: Burrow Addresses LSU's No. 5 Situation
LSU's jersey-number debate picked up its most notable voice Friday. Former Tigers quarterback and Heisman winner Joe Burrow was asked what LSU told him about the future of his No. 9, and his answer was measured: "They told me they wouldn't use it again, but you never know what happens."
The question landed because of what's happening with No. 5. Former LSU quarterback and Heisman winner Jayden Daniels wore the number in Baton Rouge, and Tigers cornerback DJ Pickett has been issued it this offseason after being promised the number during his recruitment. Daniels grew frustrated with the decision, and the resulting back-and-forth has pulled other former LSU stars into the conversation — Burrow among them, as the other recent Heisman winner from the program.
Burrow's framing is the useful one here: promises made about a jersey number are made by people, and, as he noted, LSU has been through multiple coaching changes since he left. Pickett, meanwhile, gets to wear the number he was told he'd wear. Expect the topic to resurface every time LSU hands out a number with recent history attached.
QUICK HITS
- Chadwick makes Ray Guy watch list. LSU punter Grant Chadwick earned a spot on the 2026 Ray Guy Award Preseason Watch List, announced Friday by the Augusta Sports Council. He's the first LSU punter included since 2023, and no Tiger has ever won the award, which was established in 2000 — one of four positional awards that has eluded LSU, along with the Lou Groza, John Mackey and Doak Walker. The 21-man list includes five other SEC legs: Oscar Bird (Ole Miss), Alec Clark (Florida), Ethan Pulliam (Mississippi State), Jackson Ross (Tennessee) and Tyler White (Texas A&M).
- Biles explains his Texas decision. Linebacker Rasheem Biles, who ranked sixth at his position in the transfer portal per 247Sports after three seasons at Pitt, said Ohio State never got him on campus despite his Pickerington Central roots roughly 30 miles from Columbus. "They ain't want me out of high school, and I was right there, so ain't no point in trying to get me now," Biles said Thursday. The 6-foot-1, 222-pounder — a 2023 recruit rated just inside the national top 1,000 with three Power Four offers among 13 total — committed to the Longhorns on Jan. 10 over Colorado and Michigan, both of which hosted visits. His reasoning was blunt: "I'm tired of just having to sit home in December and January and watch big games on TV. I want to win the national championship." He'll get a crack at the Buckeyes when Ohio State visits Austin in September: "That's circled on my calendar, for sure."
- Lady Vols back in action Sunday. No. 24 Tennessee hosts South Alabama at 2 p.m. ET at Regal Soccer Stadium in the second match of the Vols' 2026 campaign.
- Heat pushes Vanderbilt back. Vanderbilt's Sunday match against ETSU has been moved to 7 p.m. because of extreme heat in Nashville.
- Mississippi State tracks its pros. The Bulldogs published their latest #StateToTheShow update Friday, the program's running look at former players in professional baseball — a pipeline that continues in 2026.
- Brito lands at UNC Wilmington. Alyssa Brito has been hired as an assistant coach on the UNC Wilmington softball staff, per D1Softball.
PORTAL WATCH
Quiet day. No new SEC entries or commitments were reported in the last 12 hours. The most relevant portal news was retrospective — Biles detailing how Texas won a recruitment that drew interest from Colorado, Michigan and a canceled Miami visit, with Ohio State never getting a look despite reaching out.
RECRUITING BUZZ
No new commitments across the SEC in this reporting window. Worth filing away from the Biles interview: he was an athlete prospect who played running back, receiver, Wildcat quarterback and safety at Pickerington Central, and a senior-year injury limited him to five games and muddied his evaluation. He's now a top-10 portal linebacker. Late bloomers are real.
GAMES TO WATCH
Nothing on the SEC schedule today. Sunday brings two soccer matches worth your time: No. 24 Tennessee vs. South Alabama at 2 p.m. ET in Knoxville, and Vanderbilt vs. ETSU in Nashville, now bumped to a 7 p.m. start to get out of the heat. Football's marquee date on the horizon from tonight's news: Ohio State at Texas in September, a game one Longhorns linebacker has already circled.
