Who are the best defensive linemen in Alabama history? We narrowed it down to the five best of all-time.

5. Marty Lyons (1976-78) — Lyons was part of one of the greatest Alabama teams of all time, the 1978 national champions. During that season, he won SEC Defensive Player of the Year and was chosen as an All-American. In 2011, Lyons was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame. For his career, he’s credited with more than 200 tackles as well as six forced fumbles and four more fumble recoveries. He went onto an excellent NFL career with the New York Jets as part of the “New York Sack Exchange” defensive line that also featured Mark Gastineau, Joe Klecko and Abdul Salaam.

4 and 3. John Copeland and Eric Curry (1989-92) — Copeland and Curry are basically interchangeable; we have Curry a spot ahead of Copeland for a few reasons, namely career totals. After playing opposite each other for four years, Copeland went one spot ahead of Curry in the 1993 NFL draft (Nos. 5 and 6 overall). Copeland went on to a better professional career, playing eight seasons in the NFL and recording 24.5 sacks compared to Curry’s seven years and 12.5 sacks. Curry was the better college player, though. He topped Copeland in sacks, 22.5 to 17.5, as well as career tackles for loss (40.5 to 36.5), and finished ninth in 1992 Heisman voting. Both players were chosen as All-SEC and All-America performers in their final season at Alabama.

2. Terrence Cody (2008-09) — Cody’s career at Alabama was shorter than anyone else on our list after he transferred from junior college, but he played a massive role — both in terms of his impact and physical size — on the greatest Alabama team in program history. His numbers weren’t all that impressive, with 44 tackles and 9.5 tackles for loss in his two seasons, but Cody made life incredibly difficult on opponents as a two-time All-American. No opponent ran for 100 yards on the Tide in Cody’s two seasons, and he anchored a stifling defense as Alabama won the 2009 national title.

1. Leroy Cook (1972-75) — Cook stands alone as the best defensive lineman in school history. A member of Alabama’s all-decade team for the 1970s and its all-century team, Cook was a member of the 1973 national championship team who then went on to become a dominant individual player. He was an All-America selection in 1974 and 1975, racking up huge stat totals for the era. Over his final two seasons, Cook had 166 tackles, 24.5 tackles for loss and 14 sacks. He finished his career with 15 sacks, then the highest total in school history.