LSU Baseball Signee Luke Tucker Opts For Junior College, But Expected To Return To The Tigers

TIGER RAG NEWS SERVICES

LSU shortstop signee Luke Tucker of Krum, Texas, near Denton plans to attend McLennan Community College in Waco and likely return to the Tigers after a season or two.

Tucker (6-foot-4, 210 pounds) made that announcement on social media on Wednesday.

Good luck Luke Tucker geaux get some valuable experience and come back in a big way geaux tigers pic.twitter.com/8iCiuLeRJY

— Robert (Robbie) Plaisance ⚾🏈🏀🇺🇸 (@robplaisance) August 12, 2026

Ranked as the 292nd prospect in the country and No. 79 shortstop by Perfect Game out of Krum High School, Tucker originally committed to Arkansas State, but signed with LSU coach Jay Johnson on Nov. 12.

“It was crazy,” Tucker told the Denton Record Chronicle at the time of his flip to LSU. “I had a breakout summer, played pretty well on the circuit. I got to meet with Jay Johnson, and I just knew from the start that he was the guy. He’s the man.”

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Tucker was not taken in the Major League Baseball Draft last July. LSU’s roster is crowded at 39 players with Tucker off that list for 2027. The NCAA roster limit is technically 34, but programs can keep extra players through the designated student-athletes rule, which has no specific limit.

Under the terms of a previous NCAA settlement, current student-athletes who were already on rosters or promised spots before a specific cutoff date can be grandfathered in as designated student-athletes, who do not count toward the 34-player cap for 2027.