State of the Position 2024: Edge Rushers
Auburn needs to get its edge back on defense — literally. Adding a strong freshman class to a pair of established stars is a great step.
This is Part 4 of an Auburn football 2024 season preview series that we’re calling “State of the Position.” It’s a breakdown of the past, present and future of each group on the Tigers’ roster as they look to end their streak of losing seasons and take a significant step forward this fall.
The goal is to run a pair of these each week. They’ll most likely be on Wednesday and Thursday mornings, but they could be moved around in case of any schedule conflicts. After starting with the passing offense, this week, we move on to two important defensive groups.
STATE OF THE POSITION: QB • WR • LB
EDGE Jalen McLeod (Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers)
The Past
If the most important aspect of winning modern football is passing offense, the pass rush on the defensive side has to be a close second.
Pass coverage, for the most part, is about delaying the offense rather than stopping it. Even the best coverage defensive backs can’t stay with their assignments forever. Without adequate pressure up front, receivers will eventually work their way open. But a great pass rush is the ultimate equalizer, flipping the numbers game to the defense.
The easiest way to measure the effectiveness of a pass rush is looking at how many times it sacks the quarterback. But, as former Auburn defensive coordinator Kevin Steele was always quick to remind everyone, affecting the quarterback — like hurrying, hitting or deflecting — can be just as damaging as a sack.
The best Auburn defenses of the last several years have almost always been armed with a strong pass rush. In 2017, Auburn ranked No. 26 nationally in sacks per game and No. 8 in total defense. In 2018, it was at No. 16 and No. 34, respectively. In 2021, the Tigers were inside the top 40 in both categories. Only the 2019 team had elite total defensive numbers without a strong sack rate.
Last season, Auburn didn’t have either. The Tigers were No. 44 nationally in sacks per game, but that was eighth in the SEC. They ranked No. 66 nationally in total defense, which was No. 10 in the SEC. According to SEC StatCat, Auburn was ninth in the league in pressure rate during conference games. Compared to its peers, Auburn was a bottom-half defense with a bottom-half pass rush.
To be fair, Auburn went through a complete overhaul of its top pass-rushing spots in 2023. Gone were the likes of Derick Hall and Eku Leota, along with effective interior rusher Colby Wooden. Auburn’s Jack linebackers were all brand-new to the program, and the Tigers were also changing a lot along the defensive line.
Jalen McLeod was expected to be the star pass-rusher for the Tigers after putting up some impressive numbers during his time at Appalachian State. And McLeod did so when healthy — he was a top-five edge rusher in the SEC in several categories, per Pro Football Focus. But McLeod missed time early in the season with an injury, and his production wasn’t consistently strong until the middle of the campaign.
On top of that, McLeod didn’t really have a true partner in crime in the pass rush last season. Inside linebacker Eugene Asante ended up being the most effective weapon on well-timed blitzes. In terms of win rate and productivity, there was a sizable drop-off between McLeod and veteran transfer Elijah McAllister. Both Marcus Harris and Keldric Faulk got to the quarterback with 20-plus pressures each, but it still felt like there was something missing from the pass rush.
During the best days of Auburn’s pass rush under Steele, the Tigers had a variety of players who could affect quarterbacks at good rates. The 2017 SEC West title season had Jeff Holland get double-digit sacks, but the Tigers also utilized Marlon Davidson, Big Kat Bryant and T.D. Moultry off the edges. It also helped that Derrick Brown was an ultra-dominant wrecking ball up front for several of those seasons.
A healthy McLeod was quite the weapon for Auburn’s defense, and he made plenty of impact. But being able to rush the quarterback was crucial for the Tigers — and they didn’t do it often enough. Auburn averaged three sacks per game in wins last season. In losses, it averaged less than two. The Tigers had little pass-rushing production in losses to Georgia, LSU, New Mexico State and Alabama.
The offseason staff changes affected the edge rushing positions greatly. D.J. Durkin’s arrival as defensive coordinator and Jeremy Garrett’s move to the NFL meant that Josh Aldridge would become the “defensive edge coach.” While Aldridge had been an inside linebackers coach for the last few seasons, edge-rushing was his specialty as both a player and an assistant.
With Vontrell King-Williams getting the promotion to defensive tackles coach, Aldridge was officially in charge of both the stand-up outside linebackers — now called Bucks again at Auburn — and the traditional defensive ends. In spring practices, Aldridge oversaw both spots, and there was some real versatility in who was lining up where on the outside.
And, between who returned for the Tigers and who they brought in this offseason, Aldridge now finds himself in charge of the position group that might have the highest ceiling on the Plains in 2024 and beyond.
(Zach Bland/Auburn Tigers)
The Present
McLeod’s decision to return to college football for one more season was huge, as he’s going to be one of the most proven pass-rushers in the entire SEC for the 2024 season. If he can avoid any preseason injuries this time around, there’s a chance he could push for the first double-digit sack season at Auburn since Holland in 2017.