Bad information is flying around Notre Dame 's addition of 5-star offensive lineman Albert Simien. Let's set the record straight.
Notre Dame football and head coach Marcus Freeman pulled off one of the biggest recruiting wins of the 2027 cycle when 5-star Lake Charles (La.) Sam Houston offensive lineman Albert Simien committed to the Fighting Irish . Simien chose Notre Dame over Texas A&M , LSU , Ole Miss , and several other programs in what amounts to a statement victory for the program's recruiting trajectory. The commitment was a massive get for the Fighting Irish offensive line, and it prompted some content from LSU media circles that contained misinformation worth addressing.
A video from Locked On LSU's Matt Moscona titled "LSU just lost a 5-star… and they 'Let Him Walk'" caught my attention on YouTube, and after watching all 23 minutes of it, I had some significant issues with the premise, the information, and the overall framing of how this recruitment played out.
Unfortunately, this wasn't the first time I had heard some of this perspective. This was just the loudest, coming from a media professional who has nearly 100,000 followers on X.
The title alone is misleading. "Letting someone walk" implies that LSU was the assumed frontrunner for Simien and simply chose not to close the deal for whatever reason. That has not been true at any point during this recruitment. About six to eight weeks ago, I spoke to someone on the Simien side who essentially told me not to expect him to end up at LSU.
The reasons were straightforward. Although Simien is from Louisiana , he did not grow up in a pro-LSU household. He did not grow up watching LSU football . There was no allegiance to the program. That's a big reason why he visited Texas A&M roughly 10 times over the last couple of years, far more than he ever visited LSU, the home-state program just a couple hours away.
On top of that, there was no attraction to the new coaching staff under head coach Lane Kiffin . No pro-LSU angle growing up, no connection to the new staff, and two other programs in Texas A&M and Notre Dame that were simply more attractive to him.
He chose to walk. LSU didn't let him do anything.
One of the points made in the video was that financial decisions needed to be made, and Moscona played a clip of Kiffin discussing the importance of finding players who want to be at LSU for the right reasons rather than chasing a quick payday. The implication seemed to be that Simien was motivated by money.
If that's the argument, it falls apart the moment you consider that he chose Notre Dame over Texas A&M. Everyone in recruiting circles knows that Texas A&M is throwing significant financial resources at top prospects. They just recently gave an ungodly amount to 5-star linebacker Kaden Henderson , whom they beat Notre Dame for. If Simien's primary driver was money, he would have gone to College Station. To suggest he went to Notre Dame for a payday over Texas A&M is not grounded in reality.
Is Simien going to make money at Notre Dame? Yes. Will he be in a good spot? Absolutely. But if you think Texas A&M was not willing to offer more than Notre Dame, you're flat out wrong.
The video also suggested that Simien wanted to play early and that Notre Dame presents an easier path to the field than LSU. The reasoning was that LSU took depth pieces who would sit in 2026 and start in 2027, creating a logjam. Meanwhile, according to the video, Notre Dame would be overhauling its offensive line.
That is not accurate. Outside of Ashton Craig , who is exhausting his eligibility after the 2026 season, Notre Dame's projected starting offensive line has significant returning experience.
Joe Otting has another year. Charles Jagusah has another year (health permitting). Sullivan Absher has another year. Will Black has three years of eligibility remaining. Guerby Lambert has two. Anthonie Knapp has another year. One player is cycling off this roster after 2026.
Notre Dame is not overhauling anything on that offensive line. They will return more offensive linemen in 2027 than LSU, comfortably.
The tone of the video suggested the Fighting Irish was promising early playing time to land Simien. For anyone who has followed Notre Dame recruiting, has sourcing around the program, or has spent any time on a message board, you know that is not how this staff operates. Freeman and his coaches do not offer guaranteed starting spots via high school recruiting. That is not how they recruit. Other programs absolutely do that, and some of those arrangements are practically written into contracts at this point.
Notre Dame does not.
Albert Simien didn't like LSU enough. He liked two other schools better. He chose the one that did the best job down the stretch, and that was Notre Dame over Texas A&M. LSU lost a 5-star player from its own state. Those are the facts.
This was one of the most talented interior offensive lineman commitments Notre Dame has landed since Quenton Nelson . Simien has that kind of ceiling. The Fighting Irish went into the Deep South, into Louisiana, and plucked a 5-star prospect they wanted. That is a massive statement for Freeman and this program.
This article was originally published on A to Z Sports. Read the full story here: Excuses are flying after Notre Dame football landed 5-star OL Albert Simien, and the misinformation needs to stop
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