Brandon Beachum, the 6-foot-1, 220-pound four-star linebacker/running back from Cardinal Mooney High School in Youngstown, Ohio, had this to say about LSU, one of his top five choices:
"I don't know a whole lot about the LSU football program, really," Beachum said. "But I do know that I love coach Bo Pelini (defensive coordinator). He's a local guy. I'm pretty sure he grew up around the Youngstown area.
"He's really down-to-earth and understands what kind of talent he really needs for his program," he said. "He's a players' coach and a guy who would always be there for me if I needed him.
"We've spoken a number of times. He's the kind of guy who has a really dry sense of humor. He gets along real well with people but also likes to get down to business and I'm the type of guy who likes to get it done, so we really get along.
"LSU is definitely in my top five, but I couldn't say they are really in my top three," Beachum said. "I still need more time to narrow it down that far. I feel really strong about them. They have tremendous tradition.
"I like that it's in Baton Rouge. I'd prefer to end up in a place like Baton Rouge as opposed to a school that's in the middle of nowhere.
"I think they've offered me for both sides of the ball, as a running back and a linebacker," he said. "I don't have a preference and I'm not really sure which position I'm best at for college.
"Also, I think I miscommunicated to you that I had an offer from Ohio State yesterday," Beachum said. "I do not have an offer from them and I don't know if they will offer me. There hasn't been a lot of communication from them lately and they aren't recruiting me that hard really."
Beachum reports a 3.3 core GPA and a 19 ACT.