As middle linebackers go, this next guy on our countdown of the SEC’s 25 best players might have been underrated in the past, but he returns next season as one of the premier defenders in the league.
No. 13: Kelvin Sheppard, LB, Sr., LSU
2009 numbers: Finished fourth in the SEC with 110 total tackles, including 8.5 for loss.
Most recent ranking: Not ranked in the preseason or postseason countdown for 2009.
Making the case for Sheppard: The SEC was loaded with talented linebackers last season, and when you started listing them, Rolando McClain, Eric Norwood, Brandon Spikes, Rennie Curran, Jamar Chaney, Patrick Benoist and Micah Johnson were the names you usually heard first. The 6-foot-3, 239-pound Sheppard deserved to be in that group then, and he enters the 2010 season at the forefront of the top linebackers in the league and the country. He’s coming off his best season in more ways than one. Not only was he the Tigers’ leading tackler, but he was also their emotional leader on defense. That role will be even more important in 2010 when you look at all of the quality players the Tigers lost on defense. Plus, they will be especially young and inexperienced around Sheppard at the other linebacker spots. The good news for LSU is that Sheppard is a tackling machine and makes plays sideline to sideline, in the opposing backfield and even dropping into coverage on occasion. A weakside linebacker earlier in his career, he’s an extremely instinctive player, which is the reason he’s always around the ball. It’s also the reason he’s so consistent. In three straight games last season against Florida, Auburn and Tulane, he recorded 13 tackles and had at least seven tackles in 11 of LSU’s 13 games. So when you start reeling off the top linebackers in college football heading into this next season, don't forget about the guy on the Bayou.
The rundown
No. 14: Randall Cobb, WR/QB, Jr., Kentucky
No. 15: Janoris Jenkins, CB, Jr., Florida
No. 16: Mark Barron, S, Jr., Alabama
No.17: Darvin Adams, WR, Jr., Auburn
No. 18: Alshon Jeffery, WR, So., South Carolina
No. 19: D.J. Williams, TE, Sr., Arkansas
No. 20: Cliff Matthews, DE, Sr., South Carolina
No. 21: Clint Boling, OT, Sr., Georgia
No. 22: Greg Childs, WR, Jr., Arkansas
No. 23: Washaun Ealey, RB, So., Georgia
No. 24: Chris Marve, LB, Jr., Vanderbilt
No. 25: Luke Stocker, TE, Sr., Tennessee
No. 13: Kelvin Sheppard, LB, Sr., LSU
2009 numbers: Finished fourth in the SEC with 110 total tackles, including 8.5 for loss.
Most recent ranking: Not ranked in the preseason or postseason countdown for 2009.
Making the case for Sheppard: The SEC was loaded with talented linebackers last season, and when you started listing them, Rolando McClain, Eric Norwood, Brandon Spikes, Rennie Curran, Jamar Chaney, Patrick Benoist and Micah Johnson were the names you usually heard first. The 6-foot-3, 239-pound Sheppard deserved to be in that group then, and he enters the 2010 season at the forefront of the top linebackers in the league and the country. He’s coming off his best season in more ways than one. Not only was he the Tigers’ leading tackler, but he was also their emotional leader on defense. That role will be even more important in 2010 when you look at all of the quality players the Tigers lost on defense. Plus, they will be especially young and inexperienced around Sheppard at the other linebacker spots. The good news for LSU is that Sheppard is a tackling machine and makes plays sideline to sideline, in the opposing backfield and even dropping into coverage on occasion. A weakside linebacker earlier in his career, he’s an extremely instinctive player, which is the reason he’s always around the ball. It’s also the reason he’s so consistent. In three straight games last season against Florida, Auburn and Tulane, he recorded 13 tackles and had at least seven tackles in 11 of LSU’s 13 games. So when you start reeling off the top linebackers in college football heading into this next season, don't forget about the guy on the Bayou.
The rundown
No. 14: Randall Cobb, WR/QB, Jr., Kentucky
No. 15: Janoris Jenkins, CB, Jr., Florida
No. 16: Mark Barron, S, Jr., Alabama
No.17: Darvin Adams, WR, Jr., Auburn
No. 18: Alshon Jeffery, WR, So., South Carolina
No. 19: D.J. Williams, TE, Sr., Arkansas
No. 20: Cliff Matthews, DE, Sr., South Carolina
No. 21: Clint Boling, OT, Sr., Georgia
No. 22: Greg Childs, WR, Jr., Arkansas
No. 23: Washaun Ealey, RB, So., Georgia
No. 24: Chris Marve, LB, Jr., Vanderbilt
No. 25: Luke Stocker, TE, Sr., Tennessee
ABOUT THIS BLOG
Chris Low
Low joined ESPN.com in 2007 after 10 years with The (Nashville) Tennessean covering the University of Tennessee and SEC. The Rock Hill, S.C., native lives with his wife in Knoxville and has three sons.
Edward Aschoff
Aschoff joined ESPN.com in 2011 after spending four years covering the University of Florida for The Gainesville Sun. He grew up in Oxford, Miss., before attending UF, graduating with a B.S. in journalism.
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