Boston College Football Lands Former Consensus Four Star DL From Florida State

The Eagles' newest D-line addition marks the eighth player that BC head coach Bill O'Brien has grabbed out of the transfer portal this offseason.

Florida State football (seminoles.com)

Former Florida State defensive tackle KJ Sampson, a redshirt sophomore last year, has signed with the Boston College football program, the team announced Monday.

Force up front. Welcome DT, @ksampson94 to BC pic.twitter.com/vMTUComYl3

— Boston College Football (@BCFootball) January 6, 2026

Sampson is the eighth player to become an Eagle from the transfer portal, which opened on Friday, Jan. 2, this offseason.

Sampson played in 10 games in 2025 for the Seminoles, posting 11 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss. As a redshirt freshman in 2024, the 6-foot-3, 306-pound tackle appeared in 11 games, making 10 total tackles — including a career-high six at Miami alone.

As a true freshman in 2023, the New Bern, N.C., native was named FSU’s Defensive Scout Team Player of the Year and recorded five total tackles in just as many appearances. Sampson made his collegiate debut that season — in which the ‘Noles went 13-1 and won the Atlantic Coast Conference — against Southern Miss, registering two tackles in a 66-13 win.

Before arriving in Tallahassee, Fla., Sampson was a consensus four-star recruit out of New Bern High School in the class of 2022.

Along with being the No. 5 overall prospect in the state of North Carolina, Sampson was No. 29 among defensive-line prospects nationally and the No. 186 prospect in the nation by 247 Sports, No. 7 in N.C. and the No. 13 defensive tackle by ESPN, No. 8 in N.C. and No. 24 at his position by On3, and No. 13 in the state and No. 19 among defensive tackles by Rivals.

Sampson recorded 255 tackles, 47 tackles for loss, 31.5 sacks, two forced fumbles, and one interception in his prep career. He was selected to play in the Shrine Bowl of the Carolinas following his senior season, was named NC Prep’s Defensive Player of the Year, and helped lead New Bern to a perfect 16-0 record and a 4A state title in 2022.

In 2025, the Eagles’ defense ranked No. 126 in the nation in total defense (out of 134 FBS teams), surrendering 433.2 yards per game, including 49 total touchdowns to opponents.

A major factor that played into BC’s lack of success on the defensive side stemmed from inconsistent pressure from the pass rush, where Sampson plays.

The Eagles accumulated just 17.0 sacks (1.42 per game) as a team last year, including only 46.0 tackles for loss (3.8 per game).

Among BC’s newest additions to its 2026 roster on the defensive line, apart from Sampson, is former Buffalo edge rusher Demetrius Ballard, a 6-foot-6, 256-pound force who generated 12 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 1.5 sacks in 2025.