Recruiting: LSU And Quarterback James Foster

LSU offered Alabama QB and Missouri commit James Foster on Tuesday. On the following day, the 6-3, 210-pound Foster made the announcement he was de-committing from Missouri.

Coincidence? I think not.

Foster, who will now be visiting Baton Rouge for the Arkansas game on November 11 and was a fan of the good Tigers (not you, Missouri) in his early childhood, could very well be a member of this class in a little over two weeks when he comes into town. So, what could the Tigers possibly be getting? Well, come on in:

Foster, who was one of the 24 finalists at the Elite 11 camp in the summer and has been the starter for the Lanier Poets (man, they really need a new mascot badly) since his freshman year, definitely out-plays his three-star composite ranking, and picked up offers from the likes of Alabama, Georgia and Mississippi State in recent weeks.

While listed as a dual-threat quarterback, he does a great job of staying in the pocket to make the throw instead of always evading at the first sign of it collapsing. A lot of quarterbacks that have even decent speed have the propensity to tuck it and run at the first sign of trouble. I think that shows some of his maturity and experience that has come from being a three-year starter. When he does uncork a pass, he has solid arm strength and a quick release. The one throw that I appreciate the most in the above video that shows he is more than just a thrower is at the 2:40 mark. He throws it a bit behind his receiver not because it’s a bad throw but he noticed the lurking safety that would’ve made a play had he led his receiver. Any highly-ranked quarterback can sling the deep ball, but showing the wherewithal to see things like that is what can separate great from good.

So is Foster the Best We Can Do?

When you look at the quarterback targets in this class, it comes down to three now: Foster, Gerry Bohanon and Justin Rogers, all three Elite 11 QBs and very similar players. You could really make a conversation for all three, but I truly think Foster will be the best of three. On an even plane, I would give the advantage to Rogers with Bohanon coming in third, but unfortunately things aren’t measured evenly and his knee injury is a cause of concern for the Tigers, who already have a backup QB that has dealt with torn ACLs in both knees in Lowell Narcisse. So, having two with a history of knee injury concerns isn’t the best of things when a backup is going to have to step up behind likely starter Myles Brennan next year.

LSU could be well on their way to finally securing the QB they need in this class, and it’s a talented one with a lot of experience under his belt already.