College football fans will need remember linebacker Harold Perkins' name.
Perkins excelled at Cy Park High School in Cypress, Texas, and is considered one of the nation's top outside linebacker in the 2022 recruiting class, according to the 247Sports Composite. He's also the No. 2 player in Texas and the No. 8 player in the country.
The five-star recruit was considering staying home and playing for the Texas A&M Aggies, but he ultimately decided to sign with another SEC West team.
OLB Harold Perkins Recruiting
RELATED: 315-Pound Tackle, Nephew of Super Bowl Champ, Looking at SEC Powerhouses
Harold Perkins received plenty of offers from NCAA programs around the country, including Alabama, Arizona, Arkansas, Auburn, Baylor, Florida, Florida State, Georgia, Georgia Tech, Houston, Kansas, LSU, Miami, Mississippi State, Notre Dame, Oklahoma, Oklahoma State, Ole Miss, Oregon, Penn State, SMU, South Carolina, TCU, Tennessee, Texas, Texas Tech, Tulsa, UCF and USC.
While there were more than 30 scholarship offers in total, Perkins was impressed with the pitches from the Alabama Crimson Tide, Florida Gators, LSU Tigers, Oklahoma Sooners and Texas A&M Aggies. The Texas Longhorns came on strong, too.
Perkins decommitted from Texas A&M in late January. Not too long after, he had another school in mind. After Perkins took a visit to Baton Rouge on Jan. 28, he made his decision official on National Signing Day.
Harold Perkins Commits to LSU
I?m going home ? pic.twitter.com/va16chkPZI
— Harold Perkins ?????????? (@HP113k) February 3, 2022
Harold Perkins officially committed to Brian Kelly's LSU Tigers on Wednesday, Feb. 2.
The top-10 nationally ranked prospect instantly became LSU's top recruit in the 2022 class.
Here's how the 5-star LB, Harold Perkins, committed to #LSU over #GigEm (on CBS HQ) pic.twitter.com/azJwfH7EDB
— Brian Holland (@BHollandSports) February 2, 2022
Kelly was clearly thrilled with Perkins' decision.
"Harold possesses all the traits to develop into a championship student-athlete with our program. His talent speaks for itself, and I know he's ready to work to become the very best he can be. Welcome home," Kelly wrote on Twitter.
Preciate it coach? #GeauxTigers #neighborhoodhero https://t.co/kLxumWUf3g
— Harold Perkins ?????????? (@HP113k) February 3, 2022
Harold Perkins took high school football by storm, and now he's ready to do the same at LSU.
He was one of the leaders of Cypress Park's team, and his stats back up that notion.
In 2020, Perkins totaled 47 tackles and three sacks (and 14.5 tackles for loss) and was a First-Team All-District selection.
Interestingly, Perkins served as a fantastic running back as well and scored 32 touchdowns on the ground over the last two seasons. He put up more than 1,000 rushing yards in 2021 alone.
Two-way players are not uncommon in high school, but it is rare to see one so dominant at both ends.
Scouts believe Perkins could be a Power 5-caliber rusher if he wanted to, but he will likely stick on the defensive side of the ball as an outside linebacker in college.
Harold Perkins is still young, but that doesn't mean LSU fans can't get excited about his potential. His upside is on par with players who have reached the NFL.
