Jalen McLeod brings ‘freaky’ skillset with him to the Plains

A late addition from the transfer portal, Jalen McLeod will bring a “freaky” and “twitchy” style of play to the Auburn pass rush.

Auburn needed a few players to build up its pass rush depth and found just that within the transfer portal and recruiting.

Vanderbilt transfer [autotag]Elijah McAllister[/autotag] and true freshman [autotag]Keldric Faulk[/autotag] will see action this fall at the JACK position, but there is one player that is not being talked about enough, Appalachian State transfer [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag].

McLeod graded out at 86.6 last season according to Pro Football Focus, and had an incredible output of 90.7 in pass rushing. He created 37 total quarterback pressures last season at Appalachian State, which breaks down to six sacks, eight QB hits, and 23 hurries. Included in those sacks were two sacks of Texas A&M quarterback Haynes King in the Mountaineers’ 17-14 upset win over the Aggies.

McLeod is an incredible defensive player and plays the game in a humble way.

“He’s a humble guy; he doesn’t brag about it, but we see it on tape,” Elijah McAllister said Tuesday during SEC Media Days. “I’ve never seen that in my life. I’m like ‘dang, Jalen, you did that?’ What did it feel like? ‘I don’t know, I just blacked out, man.'”

Although McAllister, or the rest of his Auburn teammates, have yet to see McLeod on a full scale, he assures Auburn fans that McLeod will prove his worth this season on the field.

“J-Mac, man, that dude’s athletic, he’s freaky, he’s twitchy,” McLeod said. “I’m excited to share the field with him, I’m excited to continue to learn from him in terms of pass rush.”

McAllister also went on to say that he and McLeod will bring a lot to the table, and will provide a solid “1-2 punch” to the JACK linebacker spot.

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