When it rains it pours. After finishing with the 43rd best transfer portal group in the class of 2024, coach Brian Kelly has completely flipped things around for LSU football, most recently landing a 16th portal commitment, in former NC State safety Tamarcus Cooley – only adding to what was already ranked as the No. 1 group in the class of 2025.
Ball hawking former NC State safety announces transfer portal commitment to LSU football
Well Brian Kelly, it appears that you may have exceeded your own expectations for this transfer portal season.
Heading into the December portal period, the Tiger head coach went ahead and let the media know that they were expecting to bring in somewhere around 12 new additions through the portal. A few weeks later, he adjusted expectations a bit, saying, “It’s gonna probably be closer to the 15 number, before it’s all said and done.”
Now, as we sit here on January 13, 2025, we can officially say that he undersold it once again, as the purple and gold have most recently landed their 16th transfer commitment of the class of 2025, in former NC State safety Tamarcus Cooley.
Listed as a 5-foot-11, 205-pound safety, out of Rolesville, NC, Cooley is one of the most exciting young defensive backs in college football, quickly emerging as a top talent, even despite his three-star rating coming out of high school.
Having first began his career with the Maryland Terrapins, it took some time for the now rising junior to adjust to the college level, but after transferring to NC State ahead of the 2024 season, it’s become abundantly clear that he’s just about adjusted.
Appearing in 12 games for the Wolfpack as a redshirt freshman this past season, the standout safety logged a respectable 30 tackles, two tackles for loss and a sack to go along with an impressive one interception, seven passes defended, two forced fumbles and a fumble recovery.
In short, he has a nose for the ball, and for a Tiger team that ranked 81st in turnover margin in 2024, this is a welcome addition, to say the very least.
A potential starter from the moment he steps foot on campus, Cooley has only added to what is currently rated as the No. 1 transfer portal class in the country, giving LSU football 16 total commitments thus far.
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