The changes necessary meant critical additions would enter the fold, but current members of the 2024 roster would also explore options elsewhere.
Now, through the first two weeks of the Transfer Portal window, Kelly and Co. have seen double-digit Tigers elect to enter the free agent market and test the waters.
LSU has seen 17 members of the 2024 roster depart the program while bringing in 13 commitments to this point through the portal. Who’s in? Who’s out?
The Transfer Portal Roster Moves:
The Departures (17):
– Rickie Collins: Quarterback
– Landon Ibieta: Wide Receiver
– CJ Daniels: Wide Receiver
– Dashawn Womack: EDGE
– Jordan Allen: Safety
– Shelton Sampson: Wide Receiver
– Kylin Jackson: Defensive Back
– Xavier Atkins: Linebacker
– Jyaire Brown: Cornerback
– Bernard Causey: Cornerback
– Nathan Dibert: Kicker
– De’Myrion Johnson: Defensive Tackle
– Jk Johnson: Cornerback
– Ka’Morreun Pimpton: Tight End
– Jay’viar Suggs: Defensive Tackle
– Sage Ryan: Defensive Back
– AJ Swann: Quarterback
The Additions on Offense:
IOL Braelin Moore: Virginia Tech
Moore, the No. 1 rated interior offensive lineman in the NCAA Transfer Portal, heads to Baton Rouge after three seasons with the Hokies.
The ACC stud became an integral piece to Virginia Tech’s offense after serving as the main source on the offensive line.
Moore handled business as the starting center for the Hokies where he will now look to take on the same role in Baton Rouge for the Tigers.
The 6-foot-3, 303-pounder helped lead a Virginia Tech rushing attack that logged over 2,000 yards during the regular season.
It’s no secret LSU’s run-blocking was a struggle in 2024, and with Moore in the mix, it’ll give a boost in the trenches the Tigers need.
LSU will lose four starting offensive linemen from the 2024 season with tackles Will Campbell and Emery Jones forgoing their final season of eligibility and declaring for the 2025 NFL Draft.
WR Nic Anderson: Oklahoma
Anderson set the Oklahoma freshman record for touchdown receptions with 10 in 2023. His 798 receiving yards that year rank No. 2 in Oklahoma history for a freshman. In two years with the Sooners, Anderson appeared in 17 games with six starts, all coming as a redshirt freshman in 2023. Anderson missed the entire 2024 season with an injury.
Anderson earned Freshman All-America honors from The Athletic in 2023 and was twice named Big 12 Newcomer of the Week. He had three 100-yard games with a career-high 120 yards on three receptions against Tulsa. All three of his receptions against Tulsa went for touchdowns.
WR Barion Brown: Kentucky
Brown went public with a decision to sign with the LSU Tigers on Saturday after a midweek visit to Baton Rouge. After a three-year stint with Kentucky, Brown now heads to LSU with over 120 career catches, 1500+ receiving yards and double-digit touchdowns.
Brown also holds the record for most kick return touchdowns in SEC history with five in his college career. Look for Brown to be an integral piece to LSU’s success in 2025.
“Explosiveness, veteran presence, maturity that he brings to the room. We have some young players and I think it’s pretty clear, when you’re recruiting receivers you’re looking at who your quarterback is to. You’ve got a veteran quarterback, someone who can push the ball down the field. He looked at that, at the success of the receivers at LSU. He’s an explosive player and I think it was pretty easy this was going to be a great fit for him,” Kelly said on Monday.
QB Michael Van Buren: Mississippi State
Mississippi State transfer quarterback Michael Van Buren went public with a decision to transfer to the LSU Tigers on Sunday after one season in Starkville. After starting as a true freshman for the Bulldogs, he heads to Baton Rouge for the 2025 season.
Van Buren provides LSU with a backup quarterback that has SEC experience. In 10 appearances as a true freshman in 2024, Van Buren completed 140-of-256 passes for 1,886 yards and 11 touchdowns. He added another five rushing TDs for the Bulldogs.
“When you’re looking at your entire roster, you’re making an incredible investment across the board. You have to look at each position and if Garrett was to go down, you have to have somebody there,” Kelly said on Monday. “But more importantly you have to have competition at every position. Michael is going to compete with Garrett and we wanted to bring Michael in because he’s somebody who has started in the SEC.
TE Bauer Sharp: Oklahoma
Oklahoma tight end Bauer Sharp will head to Baton Rouge after coming off of a year where he led the Sooners in receptions (42) and receiving yards (324) in 2024.
Look for Sharp to come in and be a versatile piece for the LSU offense in both the receiving and blocking game. Brian Kelly raved about his physicality in the run-game. It’ll be how he’s used most in 2025.
“He’s a talented player with physicality; especially in the run game. If you watch him closely, some of the things they did with him in the passing game, we’ve seen from other tight ends,” Kelly said of Sharp on Friday after the signing was made official.
“If you really look at his body of work, it’s the physicality in the run game. Pulling, blocking tackles, being out on the perimeter. Love his physicality in the run-game. Still, a very good athlete. He came in as a quarterback at Southeast Louisiana. He has the ability to do some really good things for us in the passing game as well.”
WR Destyn Hill: Florida State
Florida State wide receiver transfer Destyn Hill has made the decision to return to his home-state after two seasons in Tallahassee. It’s been a rollercoaster career to this point for Hill, but he now returns back to the Bayou State.
The former Top-100 wide receiver in the 2021 recruiting cycle returns home after a stint with the Seminoles. A 2021 recruit, Hill did not enroll with Florida State until 2023 where he made things official with the program. That year, he reeled in six receptions for 87 yards with an 14.5 yards per catch average. He missed the 2024 season due to injury and will have multiple years of eligibility for the Tigers.
Hill is the lone commitment yet to sign with the program. He remains pledged but has not submitted the necessary paperwork with the university yet to make an official announcement of his signing.
The Additions on Defense:
CB Ja’Keem Jackson: Florida
Ja’Keem Jackson, a season-opening starter at cornerback for Florida this year, has signed with LSU. He comes to LSU after two years at Florida where he appeared in 13 games recording 11 tackles, four pass breakups and a quarterback hurry.
He started the first two games of the 2024 season at cornerback for Florida before an ankle injury sidelined him for the remainder of the year.
In 2023 as a true freshman, Jackson appeared in 11 games, tallying seven tackles and three pass breakups. A native of Kissimmee, Fla., Jackson was a consensus four-star prospect at Osceola High School where he was named an ESPN Top 300 player and rated as the nation’s No. 3 overall cornerback by On3.
As a senior, he helped lead his team to a 10-4 record and a semifinal appearance in the Florida high school playoffs.
EDGE Jimari Butler: Nebraska
Jimari Butler, a standout defensive lineman during his four years at Nebraska, has signed with LSU. He appeared in 37 games for the Cornhuskers, starting 16 times, including 10 in 2024. He comes to LSU with 65 career tackles to go along with 17 tackles for loss and 7.5 sacks.
In 2024, Butler tallied 22 tackles, seven tackles for loss and a pair of sacks. During his All-Big Ten season in 2023, he had 34 tackles and led the team in both tackles for loss (8.5) and sacks (5.5). He was a key part of the 2023 Nebraska defense that limited opponents to 92.9 rushing yards per game and 18.3 points per game, the fewest for the program since joining the Big Ten in 2011.
EDGE Jack Pyburn: Florida
The Florida transfer is fresh off of a 2024 season where he logged 60 total tackles, four tackles for loss, one sack and one interception while starting the last eight games of the year. In three seasons with the Gators, Pyburn logged 80 total tackles with his “coming out season” being in 2024.
Pyburn, the No. 6 rated edge rusher in the NCAA Transfer Portal, heads to Baton Rouge after three seasons with the Gators. Kelly and Co. were in dire need of talent in the trenches, and with Pyburn now in the mix, it provides the program with a proven body on the outside to make an immediate impact.
CB Mansoor Delane: Virginia Tech
The Virginia Tech transfer pledged to Brian Kelly and the Tigers last Monday after three seasons with the Hokies. During his time in the ACC, Delane tallied 146 tackles, 16 pass breakups, six interceptions and four forced fumbles.
In 2024, Delane had his “coming out party” after tallying four interceptions on the season while leading the Hokies in the category. Now, the No. 2 rated cornerback in the NCAA Transfer Portal is Baton Rouge bound to help the Tigers’ defensive backfield.
DL Sydir Mitchell: Texas
The 6-foot-6, 350-pound New Jersey native signed with the Longhorns in the 2023 Recruiting Class with impressive expectations. The young defensive lineman with limited mileage played in only nine games with the Longhorns, including four games in 2024 to maintain redshirt status.
He totaled seven tackles during his time in Austin. Mitchell will have three seasons of eligibility remaining.
EDGE Patrick Payton: Florida State
Payton, the No. 1 defensive player in the NCAA Transfer Portal, was on a visit to Baton Rouge over the weekend with LSU sealing the deal on his trip to town.
Once his name was officially in the system, 247Sports rated Payton as the No. 2 overall transfer and the No. 1 edge rusher in the market. He is the No. 1 defensive player in the portal.
The 6-foot-5, 250-pounder logged 109 tackles, 32 tackles for loss, 16 sacks, 12 pass breakups and three forced fumbles in three seasons with Florida State.