Top Five Inside Linebackers in the SEC

The SEC is home to some of the nation’s top linebackers in the country, year in, year out. Let’s take a look at SEC Network’s Cole Cubelic’s list of the top five inside linebackers in the SEC for the 2021 college football season.

Cole Cubelic’s Top Five Inside Linebackers in the SEC

5. Devin Nicholson: Missouri Tigers

Nicholson enters his third year for the Tigers and he’s coming off his best season yet in 2020. He racked up 82 tackles, three tackles for loss, 1.5 sacks, one interception, and one forced fumble. He’s 6-foot-2, 221 pounds and figures to be a problem yet again for SEC offenses this fall.

4. Owen Pappoe: Auburn Tigers

Pappoe was the nation’s top-rated outside linebacker prospect coming out of high school and was rated as a five-star prospect. High expectations were placed on his shoulders out of the gates. He played in the Under Armour All-America Game as a high school senior, a game where the nation’s elite high school prospects compete against each other. As a true freshman in 2019, he started every game for the Tigers and was named a FWAA midseason freshman All-American.

In 2020, the Georgia native continued to flourish for Auburn, racking up 93 tackles for his season. The Lawrenceville, Ga. native tallied a team-best 14 tackles against Ole Miss. Cubelic is looking for him to be a stat-sheet stuffer yet again this fall.

3. Ventrell Miller: Florida Gators

Miller had a highly productive year in 2020, and started 10 of 11 games for the Gators. He led his team in tackles with 88 and also racked up 3.5 sacks and 7.5 tackles for loss. He’ll team with Brenton Cox, Jr. and Mohamoud Diabate, Jr. to form one of the better linebacking corps in the SEC in 2021.

Diabate, Jr. attended the U.S. Army All-American game coming out of high school. Brenton Cox, Jr. is coming back from surgery. He underwent Jones’ fracture surgery on his left foot over the summer.

2. Zakoby McClain: Auburn Tigers

McClain is the second Auburn Tiger to grace Cubelic’s list. Pappoe and McClain will look to make their mark as one of the best linebacking duos in Auburn football history in 2021. Former Auburn legend Karlos Dansby was in attendance as McClain returned a pick-six in the Iron Bowl in 2019.

In 2020, McClain was virtually unblockable–racking up 113 tackles for the season. He tallied 17 tackles against Texas A&M, his career-best in a game, and the most by an Auburn player since 2012. A former U.S. Army All-American bowl game participant, McClain has lived up to his four-star rating coming out of high school. Look for him to continue to dominate this fall.

1. Christian Harris: Alabama Crimson Tide

The Crimson Tide continues to churn out linebacker talent like the ocean produces waves. Harris is one of the next greats in a linebacking corps that is being called the best in the country by SEC Network’s Gene Chizik.

In 2020, Harris was selected as a semifinalist for the Butkus Award, given to the nation’s top linebacker. He racked up 79 total tackles, seven tackles for loss, six quarterback pressures, 4.5 sacks, two pass breakups, and an interception. Look for him to be a force yet again in 2021, along with the rest of Alabama’s loaded linebacker corps.