- Anthony Hill Jr. is at the top: The rising junior is the best returning linebacker in college football due to his penchant for finding the football.
- Two Pittsburgh Panthers in the top 10: Kyle Louis and Rasheem Biles form what should be the best linebacker unit in college football in 2025.
- 2025 NFL Draft season is here: Try PFF’s best-in-class Mock Draft Simulator and learn about 2025’s top prospects while trading and drafting for your favorite NFL team.
Estimated Reading Time: 7 minutes
With the 2024 college football season in the books, it’s time to turn our attention to 2025 by ranking the top returning players at every position.
Next up is linebacker. The position has lacked top-end talent in recent years due to players needing to be so versatile — run defending, pass rushing and coverage. However, plenty of exciting star linebackers are returning to college football.
Below is a list of PFF’s top 10 returning linebackers in college football, in addition to an honorable mention nominee. Please note that NFL projection was not taken into account in these rankings.
Click below to view our other position rankings
QB | RB | WR | TE | OT | IOL | DI | EDGE
1. Anthony Hill Jr., Texas
Hill was a five-star recruit and immediately lived up to the hype, starting as a true freshman. He is constantly around the football, whether as a run defender, a pass rusher or in coverage. Since 2023, his 32 coverage stops are tied for the most among FBS linebackers and his 10 sacks and five forced fumbles are tied for the most among Power Four linebackers. Hill racked up 127 plays where he made first contact on a ball carrier in that same span, the most of any returning Power Four linebacker.
Hill is a versatile athlete who wears many hats for the Longhorns’ defense and could find his way into the first round of the 2026 NFL Draft.
2. Taurean York, Texas A&M
Like Anthony Hill Jr., York has been a starter in each of his first two college seasons. But unlike Hill, he was just a three-star recruit coming out of high school.
York has proven those rankings wrong thus far, leading all returning Power Four linebackers with 59 run-defense stops since 2023. His 122 plays with first contact on ball carriers are tied for fourth among that group. York has a stocky build at 6-foot and 235 pounds, and he is an excellent tackler.
3. Whit Weeks, LSU
Harold Perkins Jr. began last season as PFF’s top-ranked linebacker in college football, and now it’s a different Tiger who graces the top three.
Weeks was a constant in opposing backfields as a sophomore. His 21 tackles for loss or no gain were the fourth most among all linebackers in the nation, while his 25 pressures were a top-15 mark. Weeks’ ability to click and close is as good as anyone in college football.
4. Austin Romaine, Kansas State
Romaine was the Power Four’s highest-graded linebacker as just a true sophomore, earning a 91.0 mark in 2024. His 90.7 run-defense grade (third best) powered that mark, and his 43 run-defense stops were the fourth most among Power Four linebackers.
Romaine is a prototypical Mike linebacker at 6-foot-2 and 242 pounds, and he is excellent at beating blockers before they can get a clean shot on him.
5. Kyle Louis, Pittsburgh
Louis was one of six FBS linebackers to earn 80.0-plus grades as a run defender and in coverage last season. The sophomore led the Power Four with 22 tackles for loss or no gain and four interceptions in 2024.
Louis’ movement ability in coverage is reminiscent of a slot cornerback, and he has elite agility at 225 pounds.
6. Sonny Styles, Ohio State
Styles began his career as a safety for the Buckeyes before transitioning to linebacker this past season. The move paid off for the former No. 4 overall recruit in the 2022 high school class, as he finished his junior year as one of the 20 most valuable linebackers in the nation, according to PFF’s wins above average metric.
Styles still looks like a safety in coverage, tying for fifth among Power Four linebackers with 16 coverage stops last season. He also adjusted well to the more physical style of play that playing linebacker requires, tallying six sacks and 75 plays with first contact on ball carriers.
7. Deontae Lawson, Alabama
The Crimson Tide are losing linebacker Jihaad Campbell, who will likely become a first-round pick in the 2025 NFL Draft, but they still have another stud patrolling the middle of the field in Lawson.
His eight forced incompletions since 2023 are tied for the most among all returning linebackers in college football, while his 56 run-defense stops in that same span stand third among returning Power Four linebackers. Lawson takes on blocks very well due to his strong build at 6-foot-2 and 239 pounds and does an outstanding job of reading the quarterback’s eyes in zone coverage.
8. CJ Allen, Georgia
Allen is a fantastic athlete at 6-foot-1 and 235 pounds, placing above the 98th percentile in PFF’s Game Athleticism Score metric. His sideline-to-sideline speed and sturdy build make him an excellent run defender. The sophomore’s 89.8 PFF run-defense grade last year ranked seventh among all college football linebackers.
Allen is also an outstanding tackler, placing in the 94th percentile at the position with just a 7.1% missed tackle rate since 2023.
9. Drayk Bowen, Notre Dame
Bowen is an even better tackler than CJ Allen, missing just 6.3% of his career attempts — the seventh-best rate among 297 linebackers since 2023. No returning FBS linebacker was more valuable than him last year, according to PFF’s wins above average metric.
The rising junior is a very physical player who will need to assume more of a leadership role in 2025 following Jack Kiser’s departure.
10. Rasheem Biles, Pittsburgh
Between Kyle Louis and Biles, the Panthers have the best linebacker unit in the nation entering next season. Like Louis, Biles is built more like a safety at 215 pounds — and he has the coverage ability of one, as well. The sophomore tallied five forced incompletions in 2024, tied for the most among returning Power Four linebackers.
Biles was more than just a coverage linebacker, though, placing among the top 10 Power Four linebackers in sacks (six) and tackles for loss or no gain (15) last season.
Honorable Mention: Wade Woodaz, Clemson
Woodaz spent his freshman season at safety for the Tigers before playing the past two years at linebacker. That’s mainly due to his versatility in coverage, as he forced five incompletions last season and has picked off three passes since 2023.
The rising senior is also a weapon as a blitzer, tallying 22 pressures last year — a top-20 mark in the Power Four.
