Recently, ESPN ranked the nation’s top 50 players, and Houston DT Ed Oliver (Houston, Texas) finished No. 1.

Oliver, who’s largely projected as the No. 1 overall draft pick in 2019, is an absolute animal for the Cougars. Exiting high school, Oliver was the nation’s No. 6 overall prospect in the class of 2016, and he shocked everyone when he chose Houston over the likes of LSU and Oklahoma.

In a recent Q&A with ESPN’s Sam Khan Jr., Oliver was asked why he attended UH over the two blue-blood programs.

“In almost every [recruiting] interview they asked me: “What’s your dream school?” My answer: “LSU.” I was almost a Louisianimal,” Oliver said. “I still hate that I didn’t go there, but I can’t be in two places at once. I might go get my degree from LSU, just to say I went there.”

The reigning Outland Trophy winner was then asked what changed his mind about LSU.

“Marcus,” Oliver said. “I was going to play football with my brother. If he wasn’t already at the University of Houston, I wouldn’t be here.”

At the time, Tom Herman, who’s now at Texas, recruited Oliver at Houston, and it was a monumental moment for the program. Les Miles, of course, recruited Oliver at LSU, and Miles reflected on Oliver in 2017.

“He’s a lot like some of the Tigers that I coached,” former LSU head coach Les Miles told Bleacher Report. “He would have fit in at LSU so well.”

It’s a “what could have been” story for LSU, but no doubt, Oliver’s presence on the Tigers’ defensive line would have been massive.