Who are the top linebackers in SEC history?

We’ve spent the last several weeks flipping through team-specific media guides, glancing over highlight film and nearly coming to blows at our home office determining this 25-member comprehensive list of the league’s best tacklers.

Editor’s note: The SDS staff weighed multiple factors during our SEC’s all-time linebackers rankings process including career statistics, individual awards, importance to their respective team and the era in which they played. Official statistics were pulled from team web sites or media guides.

10.) Alonzo Johnson, Florida (1982-85)

Johnson filled a gaping hole left on the Gators defense by legend Wilber Marshall (another player in our Top 25) and didn’t miss a beat as a standout replacement, contributing consecutive All-American seasons as a junior and senior in 1984 and 1985.

The burly tackler ranks near the top of several statistical categories in school history, including career sacks (27, second), career tackles-for-loss (55, second) and single-season sacks (12, third). Johnson’s 335 career tackles is the 10th-best total at Florida. The Panama City, Fla., native lost only twice over his final 22 games in Gainesville.

Johnson’s NFL career was short-lived, lasting just two seasons with the Philadelphia Eagles after he was asked to enter a drug rehabilitation program in 1987 and placed on the non-football injury list shortly thereafter.

Career numbers:

335 tackles, 55 TFL, 27 sacks

Individual superlatives:

All-American (1984-85); All-SEC (1984-85); University of Florida Hall of Fame

NFL Draft:

No. 48 overall (second round) in 1986

Defining moments:

Johnson’s emphatic senior campaign in 1985 was punctuated by an SEC-high 12 sacks, the third-most ever in a single season by a Gator (Alex Brown, 13, 1999; Huey Richardson, 12.5, 1989).

9.) Al Wilson, Tennessee (1995-98)

One of the SEC’s best tacklers during the BCS era, Wilson starred on consecutive league title teams and Tennessee’s national championship squad in 1998 as the heart and soul of one of college football’s top defenses.

During his third year as a starter, Wilson earned first-team All-American status as a senior with 77 tackles and five fumble recoveries during an unbeaten season despite missing three games due to injury. The two-time All-SEC standout helped the Vols post a 34-4 record during his time in the middle.

Wilson was just getting started as a hard-hitting tackle machine. Drafted in the first round by the Denver Broncos in 1999, Wilson went on to make five Pro Bowls in eight NFL seasons with 714 career tackles.

Career numbers:

272 tackles, 23 TFL, 11 sacks, 8 fumble recoveries

Individual superlatives:

Consensus All-American (1998); All-SEC (1997-98)

NFL Draft:

No. 31 overall in 1999

Defining moments:

Wilson forced a school-record three fumbles to go along with 12 tackles during an overtime win over second-ranked Florida in 1998.

8.) Frank Emanuel, Tennessee (1963-65)

Around the same time football coaches began putting some of their best athletes on the defensive side of the football, Emanuel arrived at Tennessee. Credited with paving the way for several All-American linebackers after him, Emanuel played defense full-time as a junior in 1964 a year after splitting snaps on offense at halfback as a two-way standout.

The move was in the Vols’ best interest as the program’s best athlete led Tennessee in tackles his final two seasons and earned All-American status as a senior in 1965. One of his more famous performances as a senior was a 26-tackle explosion against Kentucky when he began picking up on the Wildcats’ plays early in the first half.

Emanuel knew the linebacker position well and helped Tennessee post one of its best defensive seasons in program history, giving up just 98 points in 11 games (8-2-1 record).

Career numbers:

N/A

Individual superlatives:

All-American (1965); Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame (1999)

NFL Draft:

No. 52 overall (fourth round) in 1966

Defining moments:

As a junior, Emanuel met Alabama legend Joe Namath at the goal line with a bone-jarring hit that is still talked about in Big Orange circles.

7.) Steve Kiner, Tennessee (1966-69)

After establishing himself as one of college football’s top sophomores during his first season as a starter in 1967, Kiner commanded Tennessee’s defense with two All-American honors as an upperclassmen, capping his career with the SEC’s defensive player of the year award in 1969.

Kiner, who finished ninth in Heisman voting that season, tallied nine career interceptions (an impressive total considering the era in which he played) and was drafted in the third round by the Dallas Cowboys in 1970.

Kiner was Tennessee coach Doug Dickey’s first player to twice be named a consensus All-American.

Career numbers:

N/A

Individual superlatives:

All-American (1968-69); All-SEC (1968-69); SEC Def. POTY (1969); SEC Soph. of the Year (1967); Tennessee Sports Hall of Fame (1999)

NFL Draft:

No. 73 overall (third round) in 1970

Defining moments:

As a senior, Kiner posted one of the best individual performances by a linebacker against Alabama in college football history, managing 11 tackles, five sacks, an interception and a fumble recovery during a 27-point victory for the Vols.

6.) Patrick Willis, Ole Miss (2003-06)

Willis led the SEC in tackles per game after becoming a full-time starter as a junior in 2005 and did it again the following season, spearheading a respected Rebels defense as the league’s best linebacker.

Willis punctuated a brilliant career as a senior with his most noteworthy campaign, collecting three national awards, the SEC’s defensive player of the year honor and earning consensus All-American accolades following a 137-tackle masterpiece in Oxford.

Willis ranks sixth on the school’s all-time list with 355 career tackles and ninth in total sacks (11). The first-round pick has played in seven Pro Bowls, is a five-time All-Pro and led the NFL in tackles during the 2007 and 2009 campaigns with the San Francisco 49ers.

Career numbers:

355 total tackles, 33 TFL, 11 sacks, 5 FF

Individual superlatives:

Consensus All-American (2006); SEC Defensive Player of the Year (2006); Dick Butkus Award (2006); Jack Lambert Award (2006); Conerly Trophy (2006); All-American (2005); All-SEC (2005-06)

NFL Draft:

No. 11 overall in 2007

Defining moments:

In his first career start as a junior, Willis’ legacy truly began with a 15-tackle performance against Memphis, limiting Tigers All-American running back DeAngelo Williams under 100 yards rushing for only the third time in his last 23 games.