| No. 67 – Indiana Hoosiers | |
|---|---|
| Position | Offensive lineman |
| Class |  |
| Personal information | |
| Born | August 20, 2002 Memphis, Tennessee, U.S. |
| Height | 6 ft 6 in (1.98 m) |
| Weight | 305 lb (138 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Southaven (Southaven, Mississippi) |
| College | |
| Stats at ESPN | |
Kahlil Benson (born August 20, 2002) is an American college football offensive lineman for the Indiana Hoosiers. He previously played for the Colorado Buffaloes.
Benson was born August 20, 2002, [1] in Memphis, Tennessee. [2] He attended Southaven High School in Southaven, Mississippi, where he competed in football and track and field. [2] In his senior year, Benson was named a team captain and earned first-team all-state honors. He was ranked as a three-star college football prospect by ESPN, 247Sports, and Rivals.com. [1] [2] Benson was named the most outstanding offensive lineman out of 240 prospects who attended the Southern Elite Combine in 2019. [3] He initially committed to play college football for the Ole Miss Rebels, but following a head coaching change at Ole Miss, he instead opted to play for the Indiana Hoosiers; though considered an offensive guard prospect by 247Sports, Indiana recruited him to play offensive tackle. [4]
Benson joined the Indiana Hoosiers football team in 2020. [5] He missed the 2020 season after sustaining a torn anterior cruciate ligament [6] during a preseason practice, [7] taking a redshirt for the season. He did not play in any games in 2021. [8] In 2022, Benson played in all 12 games, at first on special teams, but ultimately starting in five games at right guard. He started in all 12 games of 2023, now playing right tackle [1] and allowing only one sack on 424 pass attempts. [9]
After head coach Tom Allen was fired following the 2023 season, [10] Benson transferred to play for the Colorado Buffaloes, [11] stepping into a leadership role on an offensive line unit that allowed 56 sacks the previous season. [12] Benson played right tackle, right guard, and left guard in his season at Colorado, [13] [14] playing in nine games with four starts while missing four games, including the 2024 Alamo Bowl, due to injuries. [15] He transferred back to the Indiana Hoosiers for the 2025 season. [16]
Initially projected to play right guard in his second stint at Indiana, [17] and despite missing spring training camp due to an undisclosed injury sustained at Colorado, [18] head coach Curt Cignetti announced Benson would start at right tackle in 2025. [19] Benson did not appear in the first half of the game against the Indiana State Sycamores for disciplinary reasons that Cignetti called a "[v]iolation of team rules and regulations". [20] [21]
Benson's cousin, Kevin Elliott, played football professionally for the Jacksonville Jaguars and Buffalo Bills of the National Football League (NFL). [2]
During his time with the Colorado Buffaloes, Benson created a popular social media hashtag, #DT2, meaning "Don't Touch 2". It referred to the Colorado offensive line's commitment to protecting quarterback Shedeur Sanders, who wore jersey number 2, from opposing defenses. [22]
Benson earned a bachelor's degree in sociology from the University of Colorado Boulder. [1]