Tag: Jalen McLeod

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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Auburn Tigers Snapshot Profile: No. 18 Stephen Sings V

The veteran spent the past three season with Hugh Freeze at Liberty.

Going into the 2023 football season, Auburn Wire will be looking at each scholarship player listed on the Tigers’ roster.

Over the preseason, each profile will cover where the player is from, how recruiting websites rated them coming out of high school, and what role they will play for [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] in his first season on the Plains.

Up next is transfer jack linebacker [autotag]Stephen Sings V[/autotag]. The veteran followed Freeze and defensive line coach [autotag]Jeremy Garrett[/autotag] from Liberty and gives Auburn another experienced option at a key position.

Preseason Player Profile

Hometown: Charlotte, North Carolina

Height: 6-3

Weight: 248

Previous School: Liberty

Class in 2023: Junior

247Sports Composite Ranking

Three-Star / No. 28 in North Carolina / No. 44 WDE

Career Stats

Year G Tackles TFLs Sacks PDs FRs
2020 (Liberty) 9 10 3.0 2.5 1 0
2021 (Liberty 11 25 3.0 1.0 0 1
2022 (Liberty) 11 13 3.5 3.5 3 0

PFF Grades

Year Defense Tackling Run Defense Pass Rush Coverage
2020 73.4 67.6 64.3 76.0 63.2
2021 67.1 68.8 63.4 66.5 62.5
2022 62.4 67.2 60.9 58.6 67.6

Depth Chart Overview

Sings never started for Liberty but was a key rotational player and knows what Garrett is looking for along the defensive front. While he has a short amount of time to get to know the playbook, his experience and familiarity should help him get up to speed quickly and be ready to contribute at the jack linebacker spot.

WhileAuburn does not return a single player from last year’s roster there, Sings along with fellow transfers [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag] and [autotag]Elijah McAllister[/autotag] give Auburn three veteran options who should each be able to contribute and give Auburn solid depth.

Stephen Sings’ Photo Gallery

Jersey numbers for spring transfers unveiled

Here’s a look at what number each of Auburn’s eight spring transfers will wear this fall.

After finding success in the first window of the transfer portal window, [autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] and his staff continued to work to fill needs for their team in the spring portion.

As part of their spring transfer haul, Auburn gained support at wide receiver, jack linebacker, offensive line, and quarterback. [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] headlines the spring additions, as Freeze now has a worthy quarterback to compete with [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] for the starting QB1 job.

Whoever wins the quarterback battle will also have more options to throw to thanks to the addition of three wide receivers in [autotag]Shane Hooks[/autotag], [autotag]Jyaire Shorter[/autotag], and [autotag]Caleb Burton[/autotag].

Defensively, the biggest position Auburn needed to fill was JACK linebacker. In the winter window, Auburn added [autotag]Elijah McAllister[/autotag] from Vanderbilt to build depth. However, Dylan Brooks elected to leave the program, which left more room to fill. The Tigers received assistance, however, by landing [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag] from Appalachian State and [autotag]Stephen Sings[/autotag] from Liberty.

At linebacker, Auburn gains [autotag]Larry Nixon III[/autotag]. Nixon was the second-leading tackler at North Texas last season with 105 total stops and was named first-team All-Conference USA.

RELATED: Ranking Auburn’s 2023 transfers by PFF grade

All eight transfers are now on campus and have received their jersey numbers for the upcoming season. Here’s a look at what number each spring transfer will wear this upcoming season.

No.  Name
1 Payton Thorne, QB
10 Caleb Burton, WR
11 Shane Hooks, WR
14 Jyaire Shorter, WR
16 Stephen Sings V, JACK
30 Larry Nixon III, LB
35 Jalen McLeod, JACK
63 Jaden Muskrat, OL

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Mike Farrell talks Auburn’s ‘interesting’ additions of Jalen McLeod and Larry Nixon III

The College Football analyst is intrigued by Auburn’s LB additions from the transfer portal, and is interested to see how they pan out on the Plains.

When it comes to the transfer portal, Auburn football had just as much success in the spring window as it did in the winter by reeling in seven more players which included two linebackers.

Mike Farrell recently spent time breaking down transfer linebackers, and has listed Auburn’s additions of [autotag]Larry Nixon III[/autotag] from North Texas and [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag] from Appalachian State as “interesting moves.”

Farrell released his choices for the top five interesting linebacker moves of the spring transfer window and has included Nixon and McLeod in the mix. Starting with Nixon, Farrell says that he will have plenty of opportunities to earn playing time this season.

Having totaled 245 tackles, 11.5 tackles for a loss and 6.5 sacks during his time with North Texas, Nixon now brings his productive experience to Auburn. He is part of a revamped linebacking group, being the fourth added by the Tigers during this cycle. While [autotag]Cam Riley[/autotag] and [autotag]Wesley Steiner[/autotag] are also important returnees at the position, there is plenty of opportunity to earn playing time this fall.

He then mentions McLeod by saying that his production at Appalachian State will provide a quick boost to the position.

McLeod arrives at Auburn in a similar situation as the above-mentioned Larry Nixon. Coming off a season when he finished with 7.5 tackles for a loss and six sacks, his production and playmaking ability will be an immediate valuable asset for the Tigers. However, just like Nixon, he will have to battle with several returning players and other transfers for playing time which will make summer camp very interesting at the position.

Nixon and McLeod are among the seven valuable additions to Auburn’s roster from the spring window of the portal. Quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag], offensive lineman [autotag]Jaden Muskrat[/autotag], and wide receiver [autotag]Jyaire Shorter[/autotag] brings Auburn’s transfer haul to 21 total members, which is second in the nation behind Colorado.

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Auburn named a spring transfer portal winner

The Tigers have added eight transfers during the spring window, including quarterback Payton Thorne.

[autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] inherited a roster that needed a massive injection of talent if the Auburn Tigers were going to compete in the SEC in his first year on the Plains.

Well, he went out and got the talent and on Thursday the Tigers were named a winner of the spring transfer portal by Ralph D. Russo of the Associated Press.

Auburn has brought in quarterback [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag] (Michigan State) and wide receivers [autotag]Shane Hooks[/autotag] (Jackson State), [autotag]Caleb Burton[/autotag] (Ohio State) and [autotag]Jyaire Shorter[/autotag] (North Texas) to fix a passing attack that was one of the worst in the SEC last season.

While Thorne struggled last season, Russo points out that his 19 touchdown passes were over double the nine that Auburn managed.

The Tigers also added offensive lineman [autotag]Jaden Muskrat[/autotag], who started for offensive coordinator [autotag]Philip Montgomery[/autotag] at Tulsa last season.

It wasn’t just the offense that got reinforcements though, they added linebackers [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag] (App State) and [autotag]Larry Nixon III[/autotag] (North Texas) and defensive end [autotag]Stephen Sings V[/autotag] (Liberty) to shore up the front seven on defense.

McLeod and Sings are both expected to help rush the passer at the Jack linebacker spot as defensive coordinator [autotag]Rob Roberts[/autotag] looks to create more “havoc” plays.

Nixon, who made 105 tackles last season, will help shore up the middle of the defense.

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Former Liberty pass-rusher Stephen Sings V commits to Auburn

He spent the past three seasons at Liberty.

[autotag]Hugh Freeze[/autotag] is reuniting with one of his former players at a position of need. Former Liberty defensive end [autotag]Stephen Sings V[/autotag] announced his commitment to Auburn Saturday on Twitter.

Sings spent the last three seasons at Liberty where he made 48 tackles, 9.5 tackles for a loss and 7.0 sacks. The 6-foot-3, 255-pounder is expected to play at both defensive end and jack linebacker for Auburn.

A three-star recruit in the 2020 recruiting cycle, he picked the Flames over Auburn, Missouri, Oregon and more.

He is the 9th defensive transfer to commit to Auburn this offseason and the 19th player overall as Freeze works to overhaul the roster after Auburn went 11-14 over the past two seasons.

Sings is the fifth addition Auburn has made at the jack linebacker spot this offseason. He joins transfers [autotag]Elijah McAllister[/autotag] (Vanderbilt) and [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag] (App State) as well as true freshmen [autotag]Keldric Faulk[/autotag] and [autotag]Brenton Williams[/autotag].

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Transfer target Isaac Ukwu picks SEC rival over Auburn

Auburn was unable to land Ukwu and will now have to face him next season.

[autotag]Isaac Ukwu[/autotag] will play next season in the SEC but it will not be for the Auburn Tigers.

The transfer edge rusher announced his commitment to Ole Miss Friday night on YouTube. He chose the Rebels over Auburn, Kansas, Cal and others.

He entered the transfer portal back on April 25 and Auburn quickly made him a priority, they offered him just two hours after he entered the portal. Ukwu then visited Auburn on April 29.

The Tigers were recruiting him as a jack linebacker, a position they are returning zero players from last year’s roster.

They may have missed out on Ukwu but they have done a great job filling that hole with four addition this offseason. Auburn landed [autotag]Elijah McAlister[/autotag] (Vanderbilt) and [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag] (App State) from the transfer portal to go with true freshmen [autotag]Keldric Faulk[/autotag] and [autotag]Brenton Williams[/autotag].

Even after McLeod committed to Auburn, the Tigers kept pursuing Ukwu and would have loved to add him. He made 83 tackles, 27.0 tackles for loss, 16.5 sacks, three forced fumbles, and one fumble recovery over the past two seasons.

The Tigers will get a chance to face Ukwu on Oct. 21 when he and Ole Miss come to Jordan-Hare Stadium.

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Twitter reacts to Auburn landing North Texas LB transfer Larry Nixon III

Auburn Twitter was fired up after the Tigers landed their second transfer of the day.

Auburn’s coaching staff has done a great job adding talent through the transfer portal and on Tuesday they added two more key pieces.

First was North Texas transfer wide receiver [autotag]Jyaire Shorter[/autotag] but the Tigers were not done taking players from the Mean Green and just hours later former linebacker [autotag]Larry Nixon III[/autotag] announced his commitment to Auburn.

Nixon III is coming off a career year, where he made 105 tackles, 2.5 tackles for loss, and one sack in 14 games.

He is the fourth addition that linebackers coach [autotag]Josh Aldridge[/autotag] has made to his room this offseason, joining [autotag]Austin Keys[/autotag] (Ole Miss), [autotag]DeMario Tolan[/autotag] (LSU) and [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag] (App State).

The move fired up the Auburn fanbase which took to Twitter to celebrate the addition of Nixon III, here are the best reactions.

Former North Texas LB Larry Nixon III commits to Auburn

Nixon becomes the second transfer from North Texas that Hugh Freeze has landed this week.

How’s this for a Texas two-step?

A few hours after reeling in former North Texas wide receiver Jyaire Shorter, Auburn took in another former North Texas product in linebacker [autotag]Larry Nixon III[/autotag].

The former was a bit of a surprise, but Auburn’s most recent commitment was anticipated after Nixon paid Auburn a visit last Thursday. Following his visit, he told Auburn Undercover’s Christian Clemente that Auburn was high on his list.

“Right now, it’s up there right now,” Nixon III said. “Being in Auburn, it’s crazy. You can’t beat that stadium, being in the SEC.”

In four seasons at North Texas, Nixon has recorded 245 total tackles, with 11.5 being for a loss. His most productive season was in 2022 when he made 105 tackles, the second-highest total on the team. Pass rush was his strong suit last season according to Pro Football Focus, which gave him a grade of 78.0.

Auburn has now added four linebackers to their roster from the transfer portal. Nixon joins [autotag]Austin Keys[/autotag] (Ole Miss), [autotag]Demario Tolan[/autotag] (LSU), and [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag] (Appalachian State).

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Top ten: The best games of Payton Thorne’s career at Michigan State

Thorne had several memorable performances during his time at Michigan State. Here’s a look back at his best work.

There has been a heavy buzz on the Plains surrounding the recent additions to the football program from the transfer portal.

Auburn has added an experienced offensive lineman in [autotag]Jaden Muskrat[/autotag], as well as a solid upgrade to the Jack position with [autotag]Jalen McLeod[/autotag]. The wide receiver room has also received a bump with the transfer of [autotag]Caleb Burton[/autotag], a highly-touted high school prospect from the state of Texas. But the transfer that has made the most noise is the addition of former Michigan State quarterback, [autotag]Payton Thorne[/autotag].

Thorne was a staple of the 2021 Spartan squad that finished 11-2 and won the Chick Fil A Peach Bowl over Pittsburgh. During that season, he passed for 3,240 yards and 21 touchdowns. Thorne’s presence will definitely ramp up the quarterback battle with incumbent [autotag]Robby Ashford[/autotag] and [autotag]Holden Geriner[/autotag] heading into the fall.

Patrick Conn of College Sports Wire recently ranked each SEC quarterback following spring practice exercises and says that if Thorne can return to his 2021 form, that Auburn “should be a lot more dangerous on offense.”

Following the announcement of Thorne’s transfer to Auburn, we at Auburn Wire decided to do a breakdown of his ten best performances during his three-season career at Michigan State based on his final grade from Pro Football Focus.

From his coming out party at Penn State to his amazing performance at Rutgers, here’s a look at Payton Thorne’s best performances during his time at Michigan State.