Auburn football: Is Tigers’ linebacker room a top-10 unit in the nation?

There is talent in the Auburn football program heading into this season. Despite the adversity of the coaching change and transfers heading to and from the Plains, the Tigers are more determined than ever to compete this season.

One area of strength in the program this year is most definitely the Tigers’ linebackers. The dynamic duo of Zakoby McClain and Owen Pappoe is arguably the best pair of linebackers in the SEC, combining for 206 of the Tigers’ tackles last season and sitting at the top of the leaderboard in total tackles.

In fact, according to Big Game Boomer on Twitter, the Auburn football team holds two of the top 50 linebackers heading into the 2021 season. The only other schools with two on that list were Alabama (of course) and Tulane:

But the talent doesn’t end with McClain and Pappoe–they’re surrounded by impact players like T.D. Moultry, Tyrone Truesdell, and Marquis Burks, not to mention the newly signed JUCO product Joko Willis.

As for Phil Steele, the sportswriter has ranked the Tigers’ linebackers as the eighth-best in the nation heading into the 2021 season:

"“I think Bryan Harsin’s stepping into a decent situation,” Steele said. “The cupboard’s not bare there for him. They’ve got Bo Nix back at quarterback, Tank Bigsby at running back. The offensive line is solid. And defensively, I love their linebacking corps. In fact, I’ve ranked their linebacking corps number eight in the country. So, there is talent at Auburn. What I don’t like about Auburn this year is the schedule."

The Auburn defense has always anchored the team, and they’re expected to be a force entering the 2021 season with many returners and impact players added from the transfer portal. Derek Mason’s new schemes will change up and strengthen the defense this fall.