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.

20.) WARREN CAPONE, LSU (1970-73)

One of only eight two-time All-Americans ever at LSU, this hard-hitting linebacker and three-year starter played in three bowl games during his time in Baton Rouge as one of the program’s most respected players at the position. Capone is referred to by most LSU historians as the best linebacker in school history.

Career numbers:

N/A

Individual superlatives:

All-American (1972-73); All-SEC (1972-73); LSU Hall of Fame (1988)

NFL Draft:

Undrafted

Defining moments:

Capone twice led LSU in tackles during his time and was said to control opposing offenses with his ability to cover the field from sideline to sideline.

19.) JACKIE WALKER, TENNESSEE (1968-71)

Tennessee’s second-ever black football player and later the SEC’s first black team captain, Walker left a substantial impact on Volunteers football both culturally and athletically as one of the few two-time All-Americans to ever play in Knoxville.

One the league’s first true ‘gamechangers’ at linebacker, Walker intercepted 11 passes and returned five of them for touchdowns — the all-time SEC-record and an NCAA-record he still shares today with two other players — during his three-year stint as a starter.

Twice against Alabama, Walker scored defensive touchdowns, one coming on an intercepted pitch-out in 1970 — one of the rare times that occurrence has happened in college football. He recorded 258 tackles over his junior and senior campaigns when tackles became an official tracked statistic.

Walker was known for his ability to fight off double-teams to cause massive disruption and like many SEC greats during his era, played through a number of concussions.

Career numbers:

258 tackles (over final two seasons); 12 tackles for loss, 11 INT, 5 TD

Individual superlatives:

All-American (1970-71); All-SEC (1970-71)

NFL Draft:

Sixth round (1972)

Defining moments:

As a senior in 1971, Walker’s fifth career interception return for a touchdown helped the Vols upset previously-unbeaten Penn State.

18.) TAKEO SPIKES, AUBURN (1995-97)

Even more impressive than his recognizable 21-inch neck, ‘TKO’ Spikes comes in at No. 1 on our ‘Auburn’s Top 5 Linebackers All-Time‘ list after posting 331 career tackles and an All-American honor in 1997.

Considered one of the program’s all-time greatest players on defense, Spikes skipped his senior season in 1998 for the NFL Draft where he was selected 13th overall by the Cincinnati Bengals where he began a lengthy (and successful) pro career.

Chiseled from stone, the two-time All-Pro collected 1,423 tackles and 29 sacks during 15 seasons. Spikes now works as a football analyst for several different cable outlets.

Career numbers:

331 tackles

Individual superlatives:

All-American (1997); All-SEC (1996-97)

NFL Draft:

13th overall (1998)

Defining moments:

During his All-American junior season on the Plains, Spikes tallied 18 tackles, a blocked kick and an interception during a win over LSU.

17.) D.D. LEWIS, Mississippi State (1965-67)

This decorated Tennessee native starred at Mississippi State during an illustrious collegiate career culminating with a seismic senior season featuring the SEC’s Defensive Player of the Year honor and All-American status.

The youngest of 14 children, Lewis was the headliner on a bad team in Starkville, respected by the opposition as often the best player on the field. Lewis was built on speed and earned a reputation as one of the nation’s best in pursuit of the ballcarrier.

After playing 13 years for the Dallas Cowboys and winning two Super Bowls as an outside linebacker, Lewis was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 2001. Lewis is one of only eight players to participate in five Super Bowls.

Career numbers:

N/A

Individual superlatives:

All-American (1967); All-SEC (1966-67); SEC Def. POTY (1967); Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame (1987); College Football Hall of Fame (2001)

NFL Draft:

159th overall, sixth round (1968)

Defining moments:

Lewis never beat Alabama during his tenure, but he did earn praise from legendary coach Bear Bryant who called him one of the nation’s finest tacklers.

16.) BARRY KRAUSE, ALABAMA (1975-78)

This two-time All-American for Bear Bryant was the ideal run-stopper at middle linebacker, Alabama’s secret weapon against run-heavy offenses.

Krause is the only player in college football history to win Sugar and Liberty Bowl MVP awards. His 112 tackles as an All-American in 1978 ranks ninth all-time on the school’s single-season list.

Career numbers:

N/A

Individual superlatives:

All-American (1977-78); All-SEC (1977-78); Alabama Sports Hall of Fame (2007)

NFL Draft:

6th overall (1979)

Defining moments:

Without question, Krause’s shining moment came during the Crimson Tide’s 1968 national title run when he stopped Penn State running back Mike Guman short of the end zone to preserve a Sugar Bowl victory.