After dominating the transfer portal, high school recruiting is back in the forefront at LSU. The Tigers are coming off a busy weekend that included its Boys from the Boot and Junior Day recruiting events. During the event, Defensive Backs coach Corey Raymond extended an offer to the latest LSU cornerback prospect for the 2026 class, Dezyrian Ellis of Franklin Parish High School in Winnsboro, Louisiana. Ellis played quarterback in 2023 and 2024, but Raymond and the Tigers are betting on his athletic skills making him an elite cornerback in Baton Rouge.
Ellis was recently named a class 4A first-team All-State selection at quarterback, passing for over 2000 yards. At 6′-3″ and 175 pounds, he ran for over 800 yards while accounting for 41 total touchdowns. The twitchy athlete is currently underrated, but he has the ideal skill set that Raymond looks for in a cornerback – height, speed, and fluid hips.
In his second year as a starter at quarterback, Ellis led Franklin Parish to its first quarterfinal appearance in school history. Now, he’s the first athlete from the Winnsboro campus to receive an LSU offer since Booger McFarland in the mid-90s.
Last Word had an exclusive one-on-one interview with Ellis and we talked about the recruiting process and his experience at Junior Day.
LSU’s Cornerback Prospect
Last Word: How did the process of receiving the offer play out? Which coach offered you?
Ellis: “Coach Corey came to our school. We talked and chopped it up, but I thought it was my friend that was going to get the offer. Then we came to the campus for Junior Day. Me, Coach Corey, and the defensive coordinator talked, and they gave me the offer.”
Last Word: How’d you react?
Ellis: “I just started smiling!”
Last Word: I know you’re used to playing offense. Given the chance to play defense, do you embrace the opportunity to deliver the blow instead of taking the hit?
Ellis: “I mean, I don’t have a choice.”
Last Word: What’s your relationship with Corey Raymond like?
Ellis: “That was my first time talking to him when he came to my school. But once we talked at my school I kind of felt that he was my guy.”
Last Word: Other than getting the offer, what did you enjoy most about Junior Day at LSU?
Ellis: “Man, the food was so good! I loved the food. And when I was walking the campus and looking around it seemed like the athletes looked happy. The students looked happy. It seemed like a great place to be.”
Last Word: Are there any schools that haven’t offered from which you’re expecting an offer?
Ellis: “Not really. The last few offers that I got kind of came out of nowhere. So I don’t always know; they just come.”
Last Word: I want to talk about your coach. I respect how you and your teammates represent yourselves and your school on social media. Your family gets credit for that, but it also speaks to the program. Does Coach Burnette stress excellence off the field as much as on the field?
Ellis: “He stresses it way more off the field than on the field. He’s more of an “off-the-field” guy when it comes to what he preaches the most.”
Main Image: Maria Lysaker-Imagn Images
