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USC defensive lineman De'jon Benton enters the transfer portal

Erik-McKinneyby: Erik McKinney12/05/23ErikTMcKinney
Dejon Benton appears at USC practice in hand cast status uncertain injury Rice Stanford
Dustin Bradford/Getty Images

USC defensive lineman De’jon Benton is the latest Trojan to enter his name into the transfer portal this offseason.

The 6-foot-1, 270-pound redshirt senior completed his fifth season with the Trojans but will look to use his final season of eligibility elsewhere. He initially came to USC as a signing day flip from Washington State in the 2019 recruiting class.

Benton was a fairly consistent contributor along the USC defensive line throughout his career, though he could never carve out a regular starting spot. He appeared in four games as a true freshman in 2019, making three tackles.

In 2021, Benton played in eight games and made three tackles. He recorded 14 tackles in 13 games in 2022 and has 12 tackles in nine games this season. Benton recorded the first sack of his career against Nevada and added a half sack at Colorado. But Benton did not see the field against Oregon or UCLA to end the season, following the dismissal of defensive coordinator Alex Grinch and USC going to linebackers coach Brian Odom and defensive line coach Shaun Nua as co-coordinators.

Benton is the first active defensive lineman to go into the transfer portal from USC this offseason. Fellow lineman Jamar Sekona also put his name into the portal, though he was not on the roster for the Trojans this fall. Benton joines Sekona, safety Xamarion Gordon, running backs Darwin Barlow and Matt Colombo, tight end Jude Wolfe, linebacker Chris Thompson Jr. and running back/wide receiver Raleek Brown in the transfer portal as players from USC.

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Garry Paskwietz (1966-2019)

Garry Paskwietz was a pioneer in bringing team-specific sports coverage to the internet. He founded WeAreSC in 1998 and was an Emmy winner for his work with Fox Sports West. Always generous with his time, knowledge, and compassion, he touched the lives of countless USC and high school football fans.

Garry Paskwietz