Unpacking Louisiana football's 2023 early signees – how much they can win

Staying on top can be harder than making the climb.

From 2018 to 2021, Louisiana sat atop the mountain of the Sun Belt Conference, winning divisional championships and consistently in the running for league championships.

After a topsy-turvy 2022 season under first-year head coach Michael Desormeaux, the team needed a win in the final week of the season to finish 6-6 and reach bowl eligibility. That put a premium on how the Ragin' Cajuns have started their early signing, with their 2023 recruiting class rising.

UL signed 21 total players Wednesday to kick off the early signing period, 19 of those are high school prospects with two junior college players and SMU transfer linebacker Trey Fite.

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Louisiana football recruiting class won't lead Sun Belt Conference after early signing period

The Cajuns won 41 games during Billy Napier's tenure. A big reason why, was how well the staff recruited. Napier recruited three straight classes from 2019 to 2021 that was rated the best in the Sun Belt. In most cases, they beat several Power Five teams.

Following its' haul Wednesday, Louisiana will have plenty of ground to make up come February, if it wants to get back to the No. 1 spot in the league. UL came into the day ranked 99th and is still hovering there, after inking seven three-star recruits out of 20 players counting toward the 2023 class.

Currently, the Cajuns are behind Appalachian State, Arkansas State, Southern Miss, Georgia State and Georgia Southern in the Sun Belt.

There's not much room remaining, and more space could be created if players hit the transfer portal. Even with that, Louisiana probably finishes outside the top five.

Michael Desormeaux, coaching staff address areas of need

Linebackers, offensive and defensive lines, along with receivers and tight ends were the biggest target areas for this class.

Desormeaux and his staff heavily addressed those positions, signing four offensive and defensive linemen, three linebackers, three receivers and two tight ends.

Tavion Smith, who is a JUCO transfer receiver might be the biggest piece to UL's 2023 class, not because of his size (6-foot-3, 210-pounds) but his playmaking skills.

Three-star guard Cooper Fordham from Jacksonville, Florida led the way for offensive linemen that added another three-star lineman in Matthew Broussard.

Louisiana had to rebound after losing two top commits

The Cajuns were looking to salvage this recruiting class after losing two of their top commits leading up to the early signing period.

Three-star linebacker Justin Horne, out of John Curtis in New Orleans, and Neville edge rusher Matthew Fobbs-White both decommitted and signed with Texas Tech and Tulane, respectively. Those two were set to be the major pieces for UL's 2023 class, both filing areas of need.

SMU transfer Trey Fite a big get, just not part of 2023 recruiting class

Transfer portal guys don't count toward recruiting rankings and technically not part of the class, because schools can sign transfers any time.

Landing Trey Fite, a 6-foot-5, 219-pound linebacker from SMU, was huge for Louisiana.

Fite should compete for playing time right away next season with several guys are graduating, depth will be thin at the position. He is a former three-star prospect out of Tatum, Texas and the only transfer the Ragin' Cajuns have brought in.

Players have until Jan. 18 to enter the portal.

Cory Diaz covers the LSU Tigers and Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his Tigers and Cajuns coverage on Twitter: @ByCoryDiaz. Got questions regarding LSU/UL athletics? Send them to Cory Diaz at bdiaz@gannett.com.

This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: Unpacking Louisiana football's 2023 early signees