111 tackles not enough for linebacker

[aubiefifty 18,231]

111 tackles not enough for Auburn linebacker

ByMark Murphy

4-5 minutes

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Wide Receivers On Opening Day of Auburn Preseason Football Practice

 

AUBURN, Alabama–As the Auburn football Tigers open preseason practice, one of the key players for the defense said the big numbers he produced as a junior linebacker are not big enough. Zakoby McClain said he won’t be satisfied with last season’s total of 111 tackles, which was the most by any player in the Southeastern Conference.

“I have got a lot of goals,” McClain said. “I am making more of them (tackles this year). How many tackles did I have last year? I am making more than that.

“I didn't even start the first two games so I am going to dominate,” the six-foot-even, 219-pounder predicted. “My goal is to make more plays, get my team hyped up to make more plays, win my awards and just be a better leader, win more games and get better every day, play 100 percent and love the game the most.”

McClain, who led Valdosta High School to a state championship prior to signing with the Tigers, was overlooked on postseason all-star teams in 2020 after the Tigers finished the regular season with a 6-4 mark playing SEC-only games.

“It gives me a lot of motivation,” he said of being snubbed. “I just have to keep working hard and being a leader so I can win more games with my team.”

In July the linebacker received respect at SEC Media Days when he was selected to the preseason second team all-conference squad while his teammate, junior Owen Pappoe, was a third team selection at linebacker. Pappoe finished second on the team in tackles last season with 93.

McClain notes that he and Pappoe blend well together in the starting lineup, sort of like peanut butter and jelly.

“Oh, yeah, our chemistry goes crazy,” the senior said. “We know what each is thinking. I know if he does this, I need to do that. If he runs over here, I have got to replace him. We have got good chemistry and we know how to talk to each other, and we make sure we stay on our D-line because we are going to need them boys.”

McClain said it will be a big deal for the defense as a whole for the big guys up front to step up as a group and he said after Friday’s practice he is seeing signs that is going to happen for the 2021 season.

The entire defensive coaching staff is new this year with Bryan Harsin making the move from Boise State to take over as head coach. McClain said he likes what he has seen so far from the group, including Jeff Schmedding, who works with the inside linebackers, and Derek Mason, the coordinator.

“He (Schmedding) was a coordinator and Coach Mason was a head coach so they know the defense,” McClain said. “They don’t just let me do what I want. They make sure I am doing everything right. Even if I do it right, they want me to do it better. That’s pretty much it right there.

“I like the coaches because they are very strict on discipline and they want us to do everything right,” McClain noted. “They always worry about the small things.”

Senior Zakoby McClain (9) lines up for a defensive drill in practice (Photo: Adam Sparks / Inside the Auburn Tigers, 247Sports)

A not so small thing for the 2020 defense was the way it struggled to stop opposing offenses in third down situations. One of the reasons the Tigers allowed 24.9 points per game is that opposing offenses converted 50.3 percent of their third down plays into first downs.

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Last year the Tigers often went with extra defensive backs and pulled McClain in those situations. The senior said he expects that to change this fall. “I wasn’t out there on third down so me, I’m going to be playing more third downs. It’s going to make a big difference with me out there.”