Auburn football: 5 Tigers expected to be in All-SEC consideration in 2021

Auburn football All-SEC candidate #2: Zakoby McClain, LB

Zakoby McClain is tired of not being recognized as one of the game’s best–particularly after a season in which he ended up with the most tackles out of any defender in a Power 5 conference–and could very well be planning on using 2021 as his platform to force anyone watching to acknowledge that.

He was named the #3 SEC LB by USA Today, but Alabama’s Christian Harris and Arkansas’ Grant Morgan may as well have targets on their backs now, because McClain has the kind of chip on his shoulder that could well have him hyperfocused on stealing the spotlight for himself this season.

Auburn football All-SEC candidate #3: Owen Pappoe, LB

Also present on that list of the top LBs in the SEC was Owen Pappoe, who was eighth in the nation in tackles and also tied the lead for sacks on the Tigers.

Pappoe is a great athlete with NFL buzz despite not being the biggest LB, and he could well develop into being one of the top draft picks in next year’s NFL Draft due to his ability to track down the opposition in both the pass and run game.

With millions of NFL dollars on the line, Pappoe has plenty of motivation to ascend to the top of the SEC LB heirarchy.