Four-star tight end JC Anderson, No. 165 in the 2026 ESPN 300, flipped his commitment from Ole Miss to LSU on Tuesday, landing as the first pledge of Lane Kiffin’s tenure with the Tigers.

Anderson, a 6-foot-6, 235-pound tight end from Mount Zion, Illinois, is ESPN’s No. 8 overall tight end. He initially committed to Kiffin and the Rebels in June and remained as the second-ranked member of Ole Miss’ incoming class prior to Tuesday.

Anderson joined LSU’s 2026 class less than 24 hours after Kiffin’s introductory news conference with the Tigers Monday afternoon, during which the former Ole Miss coach said closing the program’s latest recruiting class would be his first task in the new job. ESPN sources expect LSU to remain active during this week’s early signing period with wide receivers Corey Barber (Ole Miss decommit) and Brayden Allen (Oklahoma decommit) among the program’s leading targets. Anderson is now the second top 300 skill position prospect set to sign with LSU this week, joining wide receiver Jabari Mack (No. 64).

Four-star wide receiver Kenny Darby (No. 272) announced his decommitment from the Tigers shortly after Anderson’s pledge on Tuesday.

Anderson arrives as the 11th ESPN pledge in the Tigers’ incoming class, which entered Tuesday at No. 15 in ESPN’s latest class rankings for the cycle. That group is anchored by No. 1 overall recruit Lamar Brown and fellow defensive tackle Deuce Geralds (No. 37 overall).

Ole Miss has lost three 2026 pledges since Kiffin officially left the program Sunday. The Rebels enter the three-day signing period Wednesday with the nation’s No. 21 class.

Ryan Day said he “had an inkling” Ohio State‘s headsets might go down during Saturday’s game at Michigan — so the Buckeyes coach had a backup communication plan already in place.

Ohio State lost the ability to communicate over the headsets during the second half of its 27-9 win over the Wolverines.

The Buckeyes had quarterback Julian Sayin come to the sideline between plays and get the calls directly from Day before going back to the huddle, until the problem was fixed later in the half.

“I was just getting us through it until we got the headsets up and running, which took a little while to get done,” Day said Tuesday. “But yeah, just by chance we had planned for it, and so we were ready to go.”

Day was then asked why he had the inkling.

“You just got to be ready for anything,” Day said. “When you go into any big game, you’re always trying to put contingency plans in place for anything that could possibly happen.”

Sayin said, after the game, that running to the sideline before each play reminded him of playing in high school. Day said he met with his assistant coaches Friday to go through the contingency plan.

“I think some of the guys on the staff were looking at me sideways,” Day said, “like, ‘Why would you think that would happen?’ I said, ‘I just don’t know. We just got to be ready for anything.’ It’s funny how your mind works.”

Day then winked, drawing several laughs.

Michigan, however, did not find Day’s implication humorous, denying any involvement in the Buckeyes’ communication issue in a statement Tuesday afternoon.

“We do not manage their communication system. Each athletic department provides electrical power and fiber lines that are equal on both sidelines. Ohio State has staff within its athletic department that handles coach-to-player communication and the coach-to-coach headset system. The coach-to-player communication system is run by a third party chosen by the Big Ten. A neutral technician is on the sidelines to assist both teams at every game across the conference,” the statement read.

“With any cellular-based communication system, there are technical issues that happen from time to time in stadiums across the country. We don’t want the opponent to have issues because our team would have to take our communication system down as well. No one benefits from a system failure.

“In this instance, our game event manager, stadium supervisor, an electrician and staff immediately jumped in to assist with the issue on Saturday. The issue was resolved before anything needed to be taken offline.”

In August, the NCAA Division I Committee on Infractions penalized Michigan after investigating the school for stealing signs through advance scouting. The NCAA fined the Wolverines at least $30 million, imposed recruiting restrictions and suspended coach Sherrone Moore three games, including next season’s opener, noting it had “overwhelming” and concerning evidence of a cover-up by Michigan staff. The NCAA committee also levied an eight-year show-cause penalty for former Michigan staffer Connor Stalions and a 10-year show-cause for former coach Jim Harbaugh, now coach of the Los Angeles Chargers.

The top-ranked Buckeyes will face No. 2 Indiana in Indianapolis on Saturday, with the College Football Playoff’s top overall seed on the line.

Day said his team had already put the Michigan win in the past and is “locked in” on winning the Big Ten title.

“This is going to be an electric atmosphere,” he said. “It’s a great opponent. This is a very important game for us. We got to go play our best.”

Amid a historic season at Texas Tech, the school announced on Tuesday that it has agreed on a new seven-year contract with coach Joey McGuire.

Sources confirmed to ESPN’s Pete Thamel that the new deal averages nearly $7 million per year. The school said it also includes incentives for future Big 12 and postseason success.

Under McGuire, the Red Raiders are No. 5 in the College Football Playoff ranking, having completed an 11-1 regular season with each win coming by at least 20 points. Texas Tech is making its first Big 12 championship appearance against BYU on Saturday in Arlington, Texas.

“We believe the future of Texas Tech Football has never been brighter under Coach McGuire’s leadership,” athletic director Kirby Hocutt said in a statement. “Our success this season is not a one-year plan. We fully intend to be an annual contender in the Big 12 Conference with our eyes on the College Football Playoff each and every season. We have the right leader in Coach McGuire to keep elevating this program, and this contract extension is a reflection of our investment in sustaining this success for years to come.”

McGuire is 34-17 in four years in Lubbock, tied for the most wins by a Texas Tech coach through that span since Jim Carlen from 1970 to 1973.

“I couldn’t be more thankful for Kirby Hocutt and our administration for the belief in this football program,” McGuire said in a statement. “I’ve said it countless times but my family and I love Lubbock, this university and this fan base. We expect to continue to elevate this program where appearances in the Big 12 title game, like this Saturday, and the College Football Playoff are expected on an annual basis.”

Yahoo Sports first reported terms of McGuire’s extension.