2025 SEC Football Preseason Position Rankings | Defensive Line

We’re kicking off our 2025 college football preseason coverage with one of the most intriguing and competitive position groups in the SEC: the defensive line. As always, our rankings are based on a weighted point system where a first-place vote earns 16 points, second earns 15, and so on down to one point for the team ranked last. Each of us—Caleb, Craig, and Matt—submitted our personal rankings, and the totals were combined to form the composite list. Spoiler alert: we’ve already got some tight races and heated debates.

At the top of the rankings, we have a tie at No. 2 between Oklahoma and Texas, both boasting deep, talented fronts full of future NFL prospects. Alabama narrowly edged both to claim the top spot thanks to its returning veterans and upside under new leadership. Meanwhile, there’s a noticeable logjam at No. 11, with Kentucky, Missouri, and South Carolina all earning equal point totals—an indication of just how muddled the middle of the SEC pack is. We were nearly unanimous on some teams like Alabama and Tennessee, while others—like LSU and Florida—sparked major disagreement in our individual ballots. Check out the full team-by-team rankings at the bottom of the page to see where your team lands and how each of us voted.

Heartland Sports Consensus SEC Defensive Line Rankings

Individual Rankings

Caleb 

1. Oklahoma | The Sooners have plenty of experienced players on their defensive line, With guys like Gracen Halton, R Mason Thomas, Jayden Jackson and Damonic Williams  who played at least 300 snaps last year. With great depth across the line the Sooner front will be a force to mess with, and we haven’t even talked about the young 5 star talent who has flashed their potential but haven’t been in a position to fully display their talent because of depth the years before. David Stone and PJ Adebawore should be household names at the end of the year, and did I mention former 5 star transfer Marvin Jones Jr who was a top EDGE transfer.

2. Alabama | Both edge defender LT Overton and defensive tackle Tim Keenan III could’ve entered the 2025 NFL Draft but decided to return to Tuscaloosa for another season, pushing the Crimson Tide’s defensive line near the top of this list. Overton broke out at Alabama after transferring in from Texas A&M, ending his junior year as one of the 15 most valuable edge defenders in America according to PFF’s wins above average metric. 

3.Florida | The Gators return two potential first-round picks on their defensive line in edge defender Tyreak Sapp and interior defender Caleb Banks. Florida also returned another starter in edge defender George Gumbs. Sophomore defensive tackle LJ McCray is also expected to break out, as he was a top-10 overall recruit from the 2024 high school class.

4. Texas

5.Georgia

6. Tennessee

7. Ole Miss

8. South Carolina

9. Texas A&M

10.LSU

11. Auburn

12. Arkansas

13. Kentucky 

14. Missouri

15. Vanderbilt |  With one of the bottom tier  D-lines in the SEC last year, the Commodores didn’t add a big name to help beef up their D-line. I don’t expect the Vandy D-line to strike much fear into any of their opponents.

16. Mississippi State |  The Bulldogs had the worst D-line in the SEC with the worst Defense in the SEC. They didn’t make a big splash in the portal for a key D-lineman keeping their D-line very underwhelming 

Craig

1. Oklahoma |  The Sooners are expected to have one of the better defenses in the SEC with a major strength being at the defensive line position. A few key returning players include Damonic Williams, Gracen Halton, and R Mason Thomas. But what sets the Sooners ahead of the rest is depth. The Sooners have some promising young talent in guys like Jayden Jackson and David Stone. 

2. Alabama | The Tide will have a solid defensive line as well in 2025. The reason I have them behind Oklahoma is due to their lack of depth in the interior. Tim Keenan III, James Smith, and LT Overton will lead the way for Alabama and will be just as talented as anyone in the country. 

3. Georgia | With some teams it’s always “next man up”. The Bulldogs lost a significant amount of talent to the NFL on their defensive line. But, they’re reloaded and ready to be one of the better defensive lines in the conference once again. Christen Miller and Xzavier McLeod will be the two top contributors returning for Georgia. 

4. Texas 

5. Tennessee 

6. Texas A&M 

7. Florida 

8. Ole Miss 

9. Auburn 

10. Kentucky 

11. Arkansas 

12. Missouri 

13. LSU 

14. Vanderbilt 

15. Mississippi State | MSU has the potential to put together a decent defensive line. However, their line will be made up of a bunch of unproven talent which is why I have them so low on my list. They’ll rely on their transfer portal signees such as Will Whitson and Jaray Bledsoe to turn things around on the line from a year ago. 

16. South Carolina | The Gamecocks have a lot of talent to replace which lands them at the bottom of my list. They had three guys get drafted from their defensive line a year ago. Depth is certainly a huge issue with this squad. Even if they find a few guys to step up, it won’t be a deep rotation. 

Matt 

1. Texas Longhorns | The Longhorns enter 2025 with arguably the deepest and most disruptive defensive front in the country. They allowed just 82 rushing yards per game last year and were top-10 nationally in sacks. The combination of edge pressure from Colin Simmons, and portal additions (like Travis Shaw from UNC and Cole Brevard from Purdue) gives Texas a defensive front that can dominate both in the run and pass game. There’s proven production, elite depth, and high-end NFL talent across the board.

2. Alabama Crimson Tide | Alabama’s defensive line returns key contributors in 2025, led by LT Overton and Tim Keenan III, both of whom passed on the NFL Draft to come back to Tuscaloosa. Overton and Keenan were productive in 2024, combining for over 80 tackles and 5.5 tackles for loss, with Keenan adding a strong presence in the backfield. James Smith, Qua Russaw, and Jah-Marien Latham also return to bolster a unit that underperformed in the sack department last season, ranking 14th in the SEC with just 25. Russaw and Latham each had standout games and will be expected to increase their impact under new DC Kane Wommack. The Tide added Florida transfer Kelby Collins and signed four promising defensive line recruits, including four-star edge Justin Hill. With improved development and added depth, Alabama’s defensive front has the pieces to take a significant step forward in 2025.

3. LSU Tigers | LSU’s defensive front is undergoing a retooling in 2025, but the new pieces could make the unit even more dangerous, especially in the pass rush. Transfer additions like Patrick Payton (Florida State), a future NFL edge rusher, Jack Pyburn (Florida), and Jimari Butler (Nebraska) bring proven production and immediate impact potential. Returning talent such as Gabriel Reliford, Ahmad Breaux, and Dominick McKinley adds youth and upside, while massive Texas transfer Sydir Mitchell will anchor the interior. The biggest X-factor is Harold Perkins Jr., a top-tier pass rusher working his way back from a torn ACL. 

4. Georgia Bulldogs

5. Tennessee Volunteers

6. Ole Miss Rebels

7. Oklahoma Sooners

8. Texas A&M Aggies

9. Missouri Tigers

10. Florida Gators

11. Auburn Tigers

12. Kentucky Wildcats

13. South Carolina Gamecocks

14. Mississippi State Bulldogs

15. Arkansas Razorbacks | Arkansas was near the bottom of the SEC in sacks, run defense, and pressure rate in 2024. While Cam Ball is solid in the middle, there’s not much returning experience or proven production around him. Their inability to generate pressure cost them repeatedly, and while they hit the portal, it’s not clear they upgraded significantly. There’s a rebuild underway, but it’s still in progress.

16. Vanderbilt Commodores | Vandy’s defensive front has struggled for multiple seasons, and 2024 was no different. They allowed over 180 rushing yards per game and ranked last in the SEC in sacks. No clear star has emerged, and even with some returning pieces, this unit remains overmatched against elite SEC offensive lines.

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