LSU football hosts elite transfer portal safety on Monday

Former Boise State safety Ty Benefield visited LSU Monday afternoon, per ESPN’s Matt Moscona. Benefield holds a four-star rating in this year’s portal class and ranks as 247Sports' No. 2 safety available. Benefield earned All-Mountain West First Team honors after tallying 107 tackles, 8.5 tackles for loss and two interceptions this season.

Michigan is another name closely tied to Benefield, as the Wolverines recently hired his former position coach, but LSU is clearly still in the running.

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Benefield would be a significant signing for a Tigers’ defensive backfield that’s in need of an experienced, versatile option to fill the hole left by AJ Haulcy’s departure for the 2026 NFL Draft.

Although replacing Haulcy’s impact is likely too high a bar to clear, Benefield certainly brings a similar physical profile (6-2, 205) and a hard-hitting disposition. His combination of size and explosiveness is featured below:

Although he’s certainly a playmaker, with two forced fumbles, five interceptions, and 71 stops over his career, he could use some coaching to hone his skills. That’s where Blake Baker and his staff come in. They turned Haulcy — who was Dane Brugler’s 13th-ranked safety in the draft before the season began — into someone carrying an early Day 2 projection. If they can show Benefield why he could get the same sort of bump in 2026, it could lead to the Tigers’ first defensive signing of their portal class.

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This article originally appeared on LSU Wire: LSU football hosts elite transfer portal safety on Monday