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The SEC’s biggest hitters of 2015: These guys can really lower the boom
By Andrew Olson
Published:
Every Saturday in the SEC is full of big plays on defense, but these players were responsible for the biggest hits on the defense. One offensive player makes the list as a bonus for his unconventional method of pushing defenders out of the way.
Keanu Neal, Florida
With cornerbacks Vernon Hargreaves III and Jalen Tabor swatting down passes, it’s easy to overlook the safeties in Florida’s top-notch secondary. Neal isn’t interested in lockdown coverage, he’d rather get a running start and lower the boom. Whether it’s Ole Miss WR Quincy Adeboyejo getting drilled, Georgia WR Terry Godwin being knocked back into the previous day, FSU RB Dalvin Cook being stopped in his path, or the poor referee being laid out, no one one is safe when Neal is a patrolling the field.
The Nkemdiche brothers, Ole Miss
Rebels star DT Robert Nkemdiche, and his older brother, LB Denzel Nkemdiche, have anchored Ole Miss’ Landshark defense the past few seasons. When opposing quarterbacks drop back to throw, they know all bets are off if Robert bursts through the line. Mississippi State QB Dak Prescott was no match for a penetrating Robert, and Auburn QB Sean White had his own lineman pushed into him on a pass play. Arguably the most vicious hit of the season on a quarterback, however, belongs to Denzel, who trucked an unsuspecting Cooper Bateman after the Alabama QB threw an interception.
Reggie Ragland, Alabama
This article easily could have been a collection of Reggie Ragland vines and videos, as Alabama’s inside linebacker has a way of delivering hits like no one else in the SEC. If a player had the ball in his hands while the Alabama defense was on the field, he was in danger of Ragland wrapping him up and pushing him back dead in his tracks. Georgia WR Malcolm Mitchell should consider him fortunate to be alive to talk about the time Ragland popped him while trying to make a catch.
BONUS: Leonard Fournette, LSU
When someone talking about football says “hit,” they’re usually referring to a tackle or a collision. In LSU’s Week 7 contest with Florida, RB Leonard Fournette used a swinging stiff arm that looked on TV as though the running back was punching his opponent out of the way. No flag was called on the play, but viewers on Twitter wondered how the arm action was considered legal. The unconventional play earns Fournette a spot on this year’s biggest hitters for literally hitting the opponent in his path.
Andrew writes about sports to fund his love of live music and collection of concert posters. He strongly endorses the Hall of Fame campaigns of Fred Taylor and Andruw Jones.
