LSU Football Lands Commitment From No. 1 Available Transfer Portal Safety

Brian Kelly and the LSU Tigers have landed a commitment from North Carolina State safety Tamarcus Cooley, On3 Sports' Pete Nakos reported on Monday.

Cooley, the No. 1 available safety in the portal market, heads to Baton Rouge after a standout season with the Wolfpack in 2024.

The highest-rated defensive player on the North Carolina State squad in 2024, Cooley departed Raleigh after logging 30 tackles, nine passes broken, three interceptions and a pair of forced fumbles last season.

Cooley spent his first season with the Maryland Terrapins in 2023 prior to heading to North Carolina State in 2024.

He immediately caught the eye of head coach Dave Doeren midway through the season as a key contributor as a redshirt-freshman.

"He played really well in a lot of ways," Doeren said of the redshirt-freshman safety. "In the box, setting edges, fitting in the run. Then in coverage he had number of pass breakups. He had the big interception at the end of the game. He did a good job fitting a lot of formations and surface areas. There's a lot going on there communication-wise on motions. For a young guy to have to manage all that, it was impressive."

BREAKING: #LSU has landed a commitment from the No. 1 available safety in the Transfer Portal: Tamarcus Cooley.

The North Carolina State transfer heads to Baton Rouge after shining in the ACC last year.

Brian Kelly and Co. add the top available safety to the No. 1 portal class. pic.twitter.com/ORIZkEMqHf
— Zack Nagy (@znagy20) January 13, 2025

Cooley took visits to Ole Miss, LSU and Kentucky last week with the Tigers ultimately locking down the coveted ACC transfer during his visit to Baton Rouge.

It's no secret the program is need need of more competition in the defensive backfield after losing multiple safeties this offseason including starters Sage Ryan and Major Burns.

With the cornerback room restocked and ready for the 2025 season, attention shifted to the safety room with targets emerging via the NCAA Transfer Portal.

Cooley and others became priorities with the North Carolina State standout sitting atop the program's board.

Now, Cooley enters the mix with LSU adding the No. 2 overall safety in the NCAA Transfer Portal.

It's a monstrous get for the program with LSU addressing seemingly every need during the winter portal window. The final piece was adding two safeties, and with one down, attention could shift to another.

Kelly and Co. hold America's No. 1 Transfer Portal Class with 16 additions to this point:

Who have the Tigers gained commitments from?

The Additions on Offense (8):
- TE Bauer Sharp: Oklahoma
- WR Barion Brown: Kentucky
- QB Michael Van Buren: Mississippi State
- WR Destyn Hill: Florida State
- WR Nic Anderson: Oklahoma
- OL Braelin Moore: Virginia Tech
- OL Josh Thompson: Northwestern
- TE Donovan Green: Texas A&M

The Additions on Defense (7):
- CB Ja'Keem Jackson: Florida
- EDGE Jimari Butler: Nebraska
- EDGE Jack Pyburn: Florida
- CB Mansoor Delane: Virginia Tech
- DL Sydir Mitchell: Texas
- EDGE Patrick Payton: Florida State
- S Tamarcus Cooley: North Carolina State

The Special Teams Additions (1):
Punter Grant Chadwick: Middle Tennessee

More LSU News:

LSU Adds Commitments From Seven Top-100 Transfers in the Portal

LSU Dishes Out Offer to No. 1 Quarterback in America

Nick Saban Calls LSU Quarterback Garrett Nussmeier a "Sleeper" Ahead of 2024 Season

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