Five Class of 2026 Linebackers with the Highest Upside

It's time to rank the class of 2026. This month, my article output will be a tad smaller, but I promise I've been working as hard as I ever have. Today and tomorrow, I hope to 100% my linebacker rankings for the Class of 2026. These evaluations are pulled straight from my private rankings spreadsheet that only a select few colleges can access. I'll admit that some of these evaluations don't pull punches- I write what I see. That said, even if I write negative things about you, I firmly believe that EVERYBODY in this article has the upside to be a great Division 1 college football player- and I can only say that about maybe eight linebackers in the class.    Strengths   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Athletic ability</li>   <li>Explosive</li>   <li>Can scrape, fill, hit</li>   <li>Reads run game quickly</li>   <li>Sideline to sideline</li> </ul>   Weaknesses   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Unproven blitzer</li>   <li>Only played off-ball MLB</li>   <li>Makes wrong reads against run</li>   <li>Struggles to get off blocks against better OL</li> </ul>   Gersh is a phenomenal high school linebacker. Does everything you could ask from your middle backer. Especially against runs outside the tackles, Nathan does a great job of quickly diagnosing the play, and firing like a missile toward the ballcarrier. Against inside runs, he can scrape, read, and fill quickly- something I have not seen with barely any other LBs in this class. Also competitive. Plays through pain. Ideal size. Has opportunity to be a great LB in the B1G 10.   The biggest flaws are being unproven in the passing game and the fact that he's prone to mental errors. I've seen him read the wrong hole, and I've seen him run right into some blocks.     Strengths   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>All-around pass rush</li>   <li>Explosiveness</li> </ul>   Weaknesses   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Size</li>   <li>Run stopping</li> </ul>   A one-dimensional high-floor player. Still, absolutely zero reason why Allen can't be a successful pass rusher at the Division 2 or even MAC level. Overall pass rush ability is incredibly polished for a high school prospect. Explodes off ball, active hands, gets to QB quickly. He struggles when he doesn't win immediately and gets stonewalled against the run. One-dimensional, but I've seen players just like this succeed greatly at D2 or even MAC levels.     Strengths   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Size</li>   <li>Competition</li>   <li>Explosiveness</li>   <li>Good at setting the edge</li> </ul>   Weaknesses   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Raw all-around player</li>   <li>Lacks physicality</li>   <li>Lacks play speed</li>   <li>Lacks proper hand usage or dominance like you'd expect from a Division 1 prospect</li> </ul>   I frankly do not like Brain's tape. His biggest strengths lie in his size. Some good plays, but most of his best plays are setting the edge and going in on a gang tackle. Struggles to effectively use hands. Doesn't shed blocks. Did not stand out across from Hudsonville players who were the same size with zero offers. An offseason workout could possibly shift my opinion, but speaking on one game and his highlight tape, I believe he's a high-upside GLIAC prospect. Hope I can see more from Brain soon, and I'll be sure to watch at least one full Cass Tech game on NFHS Network to further evaluate him.     Strengths   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Leadership</li>   <li>Reading run</li>   <li>Tackling</li>   <li>Solid athlete</li> </ul>   Weaknesses   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Gives up on plays</li>   <li></li>   <li>Cannot scrape, read, and attack effectively</li> </ul>   Brayden is an interesting prospect. On one hand, I watched him be a sparkplug for his team, hyping everyone up and being an obvious leader when they played ND Prep. On the other hand, as his team began losing, Brayden began to give up and played much slower. Skill-wise, he's a good run stopper and great tackler. In close proximity, Brayden has a low missed tackle rate. Does a good job of reading inside runs and filling holes, but little in terms of scraping and attacking for TFLs. Haven't seen enough in pass coverage. Has GLIAC written all over him. D2 player.     Strengths   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Well-rounded game</li>   <li>Can scrape + attack ballcarrier</li>   <li>Above-average ability to read run</li>   <li>Excellent size- long limbs</li>   <li>A few promising plays in pass coverage</li>   <li>Very athletic from what I saw at GVSU camp last Summer</li> </ul>   Weaknesses   <ul class="wp-block-list"> <li>Sometimes fails to wrap up on tackles</li>   <li>Struggles to finish tackles; slows down rather than attacks</li>   <li>Injury history</li> </ul>   Elijah is currently my #2 linebacker in Michigan. Looks the part, is very athletic, long, and had a lot of success this past season. Needs to become a better tackler + better play speed. Too often does he lay down a shoulder instead of wrapping up. Struggles to play with the play speed + explosiveness I know he's capable of. Division 1 upside- high-tier GLIAC prospect likely.

It's time to rank the class of 2026. This month, my article output will be a tad smaller, but I promise I've been working as hard as I ever have. Today and tomorrow, I hope to 100% my linebacker rankings for the Class of 2026.
These evaluations are pulled straight from my private rankings spreadsheet that only a select few colleges can access. I'll admit that some of these evaluations don't pull punches- I write what I see. That said, even if I write negative things about you, I firmly believe that EVERYBODY in this article has the upside to be a great Division 1 college football player- and I can only say that about maybe eight linebackers in the class.