Ranking college football's best LB units for 2026
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There are a handful of intriguing linebacker corps returning to college football in 2026, along with a few key transfers across the sport.
At Texas Tech, linebacker Jacob Rodriguez is off to the NFL after sweeping linebacker awards with an all-time season in 2025, taking home the Butkus Award (best linebacker), Nagurski Trophy (best defensive player), Lombardi Award (best lineman/linebacker) and Bednarik Award (defensive player of the year).
Even without him, the Red Raiders will have a standout unit once again with returner Ben Roberts and Kansas State transfer Austin Romaine. As good as that unit could be, however, it narrowly misses the list ranking the top five linebacker units in college football.
The linebacker position is stacked with talent this season. Here's a look at the best linebacker units in college football heading into 2026:
College football positional rankings: Best LB units in 2026
1. Notre Dame
Notre Dame doesn’t have the most well-known names at linebacker in the country, but its blend of experience and veteran presence is virtually unmatched. Indeed, the Irish return nearly all of their linebacker snaps from last season in Kyngstonn Viliamu-Asa, Drayk Bowen and Jaiden Ausberry.
Viliamu-Asa, one of the top 2027 NFL Draft prospects at the position, ended the year with 48 total tackles with three sacks and an interception, despite only having three career starts. He’s expected to be one of the biggest breakouts in college football this season.
Bowen, an experienced player at the MIKE position, is heading into his third season as a starter and was voted as a team captain last year. He led the team with 67 total tackles and 3.5 sacks in 2025 after ranking second for the Fighting Irish with 78 total tackles in 2024.
Ausberry, meanwhile, has played a key role for Notre Dame the past two seasons, as well, with 107 total tackles combined the past two seasons.
2. Oklahoma
Fifth-year coach Brent Venables knows defense and knows linebackers, playing the position himself at Kansas State.
The Sooners return one of the most experienced groups in college football, headlined by fifth-year senior Kip Lewis and sixth-year senior Owen Heinecke, a former walk-on. Oklahoma also added sought-after Michigan transfer Cole Sullivan, who stands 6-4 and 230 pounds and had two sacks, a forced fumble and three interceptions in 2025.
Lewis tallied 76 total tackles with four sacks and a forced fumble last season, and has a knack for coming up with huge plays. The Carthage, Texas native had two sacks in Oklahoma’s upset win over Alabama last season, and also had two interceptions returned for touchdowns in 2024 against Auburn and Alabama in key moments.
Heinecke, meanwhile, was granted an injunction for this season after the NCAA originally denied his eligibility waiver despite playing only a handful of minutes as a lacrosse player at Ohio State in 2021. He came out of nowhere in 2025 and tallied 74 total tackles with three sacks and a forced fumble, making his first career start in Week 10 against Tennessee.
3. Georgia
Senior Raylen Wilson and juniors Chris Cole and Justin Williams, a trio of former five-star recruits, will hold down the middle of Georgia's defense in 2026 after losing star CJ Allen to the NFL Draft. Like Notre Dame, Georgia’s linebacker unit also features players it recruited from high school.
A preseason second-team All-SEC pick, Wilson ended 2025 with 74 total tackles and 2.5 sacks last season, starting all 14 games. Cole, a versatile linebacker, was used in a variety of ways in 2025, ending the year with 59 total tackles, along with 4.5 sacks and seven tackles for loss.
Williams, meanwhile, played in all 14 games last season and could have an even bigger role in 2026, likely in a rotational role once again with Wilson and Cole. The Conroe, Texas native made 36 total tackles, four for loss.
4. Ole Miss
Mississippi grabbed one of the best transfer portal linebackers available in former Baylor star Keaton Thomas, who tallied 205 total tackles with 3.5 sacks and two interceptions in two seasons with the Bears.
Thomas will pair with returning starter Suntarine Perkins, a preseason All-American by multiple outlets, and fellow transfer Luke Ferrelli, who made headlines this offseason for first transferring to Clemson from Cal, before backing out and joining Ole Miss.
Thomas, who will play the WILL position, took the road-less traveled to Ole Miss, starting his career at Northeast Mississippi Community College before bulking up and becoming a junior college standout. He starred at Baylor before transferring to the Rebels for his final season of eligibility.
Perkins, meanwhile, has been one of the most feared defenders in the SEC for multiple years, with 179 total tackles and 18.5 sacks in three seasons. He also opted to return to Ole Miss instead of following former coach Lane Kiffin to LSU. Ferrelli, a classic MIKE linebacker, had 91 total tackles at Cal last season with a sack and an interception.
5. Indiana
Indiana lost consensus All-American Aiden Fisher to the NFL Draft, but still returns Isaiah Jones and Rolijah Hardy to the reigning national champions in 2026.
Jones was a third-team All-Big Ten selection last season, starting seven games and racking up 78 total tackles with seven sacks, an interception and a forced fumble. Hardy, meanwhile, was a second-team All-Big Ten member after ending the year with 102 total tackles and eight sacks. Hardy and Jones ranked first and second in sacks for the Hoosiers last season, respectively.
Defensive coordinator Bryant Haines runs a multiple 4-2-5 defense, deploying Jones and Hardy as pass rushers often, hence their sack totals last season.
Jones, a fifth-year senior, has 33 career appearances at Indiana, with Hardy appearing in 29 games with 20 career starts in three seasons. It’s clear Curt Cignetti has gotten the best of his two linebackers that’ll be asked to carry a lot of responsibility in 2026.
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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Ranking college football's best LB units for 2026
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