Jalen McLeod: NT · Auburn · #35.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Jalen McLeod
Disrupts the pocket from the interior. Played for two head coaches across five seasons and two programs. The first career honor came in 2022: Sun Belt Defensive Player of the Week. On tape: 10 tackles and 2 tackles for loss against Texas A&M, Week 13, 2024.
Play style
Disruptive interior rusher who lives in the backfield.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
56 tackles. 1 pass defended. 0 interceptions. 13.5 TFL.
Counts only, never a rate — splash-event sample sizes this small (interceptions, pass breakups, TFL) are noise as a rate and signal only as a tally.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Yahoo Sports Oct 26
USA Today Oct 18
On3 Oct 17Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Game log · Week-by-week
2024 season · 12 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 73-3vs Alabama A&M | 5 | 5 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 14-21vs California | 5 | 4 | 2.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 2.5 TFL |
| Wk 3 | W 45-19vs New Mexico | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 14-24vs Arkansas | 7 | 6 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 5 | L 21-27vs No. 21 Oklahoma | 4 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 13-31@ No. 5 Georgia | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 17-21@ No. 19 Missouri | 6 | 4 | 2.0 | 2.0 | — | 0 | 2 sacks |
| Wk 9 | W 24-10@ Kentucky | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | L 7-17vs Vanderbilt | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | W 48-14vs UL Monroe | 4 | 3 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | W 43-41vs No. 15 Texas A&M | 10 | 8 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 10 tackles |
| Wk 14 | L 14-28@ No. 13 Alabama | 9 | 4 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 56 | 40 | 13.5 | 8.0 | — | 1 |
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
TFL rate
24%14 TFLSack rate
14%8 sacksHurry rate
4%2 hurries56 tackles · 13.5 for loss · 8 sacks.
Splits · Per-game
2024 season · 12 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home8g | 4.8 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 0.1 |
| Road4g | 4.5 | 0.8 | 0.8 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 4.2 | 1.2 | 0.5 | 0.2 |
| Weeks 8+6g | 5.2 | 1.0 | 0.8 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Hugh Freeze
Pass share
48.0%
368 pass / 399 run
Plays / game
63.9
12 games
Team sack rate
6.4%
391 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2024
56 tackles in 12 games, more tackles a game than nearly every FBS defensive lineman who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #1 at the position.
How it ended
Five seasons, at App State and Auburn, 181 tackles — drafted at #194 overall by the Jacksonville Jaguars.
Four or fewer games in the first season, then ten or more.
The role got bigger.
Coaching lineage · 2020–2024
2 coachesPlayed for 2 head coaches at 2 schools: Shawn Clark and Hugh Freeze.
Next stop · NFL
Jacksonville JaguarsEntering 2nd NFL season
Jacksonville JaguarsEntering 2nd NFL season
