If the Lane Kiffin era in Baton Rouge wasn't already officially underway, his tenure officially began on Tuesday as the LSU Tigers took the field for their first practice of the Spring. While it was Lane Kiffin's first time truly coaching his new team, it was the first time most of his players played together. Given the result of last year's season paired with how many players graduated, Lane Kiffin flipped this roster using the Transfer Portal.
LSU was seemingly picking their choice of top transfers like Jordan Seaton, Sam Leavitt, Princewill Umanmielen, Jayce Brown, and more to give this team a chance at making the Playoff. Where Lane Kiffin's always found the most success is with under the radar additions, and in just one practice, it looks like the Tigers found a star in the secondary.
Ty Benefield is earning rave reviews at LSU Spring Practice
When the LSU Tigers took the field on Tuesday, Lane Kiffin got his first look at his new group in action. After his first practice, Lane Kiffin referred to 3 LSU Tigers as ultra elite with offensive tackle Jordan Seaton and tight end Trey'Dez Green which is as expected, but joining the duo was Boise State transfer safety Ty Benefield.
Lane Kiffin used the term “ultra elite” to describe:
— Zack Nagy (@znagy20) March 24, 2026
- TE Trey’Dez Green
- S Ty Benefield
- OL Jordan Seaton
Benefield - the No. 2 rated safety in the Transfer Portal - remains the talk of the town this offseason.
Now, he receives the stamp of approval from Kiffin. pic.twitter.com/MKERM5wccm
The Tigers time on the field wasn't the first time that Ty Benefield picked up high praise from his new coaching staff. From the moment Benefield arrived on campus, reports started to emerge about just how impressive he was throughout offseason workouts.
#LSU assembled the No. 1 Transfer Portal Class in America this offseason headlined by nine Top-100 signees.
— Zack Nagy (@znagy20) March 18, 2026
There’s one addition that remains the talk of offseason workouts: Boise State safety Ty Benefield.
The No. 2 transfer safety logged 105 tackles, 3 PBUs + 2 INT last fall. pic.twitter.com/WcIjZn9QGa
The LSU Tigers have big holes to fill in the secondary as Mansoor Delane and AJ Haulcy are off to the NFL where they'll almost certainly be 1st and 2nd round picks respectively. Ty Benefield is going to need to play a big part in helping the Tigers at safety whether it's in the deep safety role or by playing in the box.
Landing transfers isn't always about picking the star player from a Power 4 school and paying him the most money as picking players from smaller programs who can play at an SEC level can win a team a championship. All signs point toward Ty Benefield being a home run, and Lane Kiffin will now look to see other players step up to that level.