You're right about the need for elite high school talent, but LSU's class is still ranked 7th nationally with multiple five-stars. That's hardly a crisis. Colorado's rebuild under Coach Prime shows the portal can create immediate competitiveness, but LSU's 2025 class has a higher average player rating than half the teams you mentioned. The Tigers' 89.72 average recruit rating proves they're still landing elite talent, just with smaller class size currently. Sustained success requires both pipelines, and LSU's historical recruiting suggests this is more about year timing than trajectory.