What LSU football's transfer portal plan should be for 2026
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BATON ROUGE — There’s no doubt, when the college football transfer portal officially opens later this week, LSU football is one of the more active teams searching for players.
And that’s not because Lane Kiffin, who many college football pundits have dubbed him the transfer portal king but mainly because his first roster in Baton Rouge has plenty of holes to fill starter and depth-wise.
The portal opens Jan. 2 and stays open for players to enter for two weeks before it closes Jan. 16. After that date, players cannot enter their name into the transfer portal but those who are in at the time it closes can still choose where they want to play.
Expectation is that Kiffin and his staff will be very active in the portal, looking for quarterbacks, receivers, linebackers and more. Former LSU coach Brian Kelly brought in 16 transfers last offseason. Kiffin could easily surpass that number, based on roster needs.
LSU football transfer portal needs
With Kiffin now at the helm, there is sizeable expected roster turnover for the Tigers. That means the new coaching staff will be in the market for a number of players and the roster needs will be plentiful.
LSU will likely start at quarterback but the needs on offense don’t stop there. The offensive line will be depleted as three linemen have announced they intend to transfer out and the unit was already young and lacking of depth. Kiffin will want some wide receivers as well as LSU’s top receiver is graduating.
On defense, defensive line and linebacker will be areas where the transfer portal should be most utilized. Both of those units had seniors and they’ll be gone so the Tigers will be in the market for quality players that can come in and start.
LSU football depth chart analysis
Offensive line is where LSU was hit the most with players exiting via the transfer portal. Arguably the Tigers’ most promising linemen, sophomore left tackle Tyree Adams and freshman Carius Curne plan to enter their names in the portal when it opens Jan. 2.
But the OL isn’t the only unit where LSU is thin with depth. There’s just two quarterbacks on the roster as of now, Michael Van Buren and walk-on Emile Picarella. The top four wide receivers have departed the team, most due to graduation while Aaron Anderson plans to enter his name in the 2026 NFL Draft, so some more depth would be helpful there.
LSU needs bodies up front along the defensive line but the main area of concern is in the middle of the defense at linebacker. Star Whit Weeks has yet to reveal if he’s returning to school for his senior season or forgoing it for the NFL Draft but LSU is losing Harold Perkins Jr. to the draft, West Weeks to graduation and the NFL.
LSU football transfer portal history
The top player LSU has gotten out of the transfer portal was quarterback Jayden Daniels from Arizona State. Daniels played two seasons in Baton Rouge and won the Heisman Trophy in 2023.
This past offseason, LSU landed cornerback Mansoor Delane out of the portal from Virginia Tech and that proved fruitful as he was named a unanimous All-American in 2025. Delane is projected to be a first-round NFL Draft pick.
Other players LSU has gotten out of the portal include wide receiver Aaron Anderson, wide receiver Barion Brown, safety A.J. Haulcy and safety Major Burns and receiver Zavion Thomas.
When does transfer portal open?
The college football transfer portal opens Jan. 2.
How college football transfer portal works
Players who decide they want to leave their school can enter their name into the transfer portal on Jan. 2. Once they do, other schools can then actively recruit them to play. Players generally announce before the portal opening that they intend to transfer but that doesn’t become official until they are formally in the database.
Cory Diaz covers the LSU Tigers for The Daily Advertiser as part of the USA TODAY Network. Follow his Tigers coverage on Twitter: @ByCoryDiaz. Got questions regarding LSU athletics? Send them to Cory Diaz at bdiaz@gannett.com.
This article originally appeared on Lafayette Daily Advertiser: What moves LSU football could make in 2026 transfer portal
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