2024 College Football's Best Defensive Duos

The 2024 college football season gets into full swing this week after a long offseason. As the season returns, it's time to take a look at which programs have some of the best defensive duos in the country.

What is a defensive duo you may ask? Teams with some of the most talented pairings of players at the same position. There are a number of great defenses in college football this season, but several have multiple stars at the same position.

Let's take a look at the best defensive duos in the country for 2024.

Utah enters the 2024 season as the favorite to win the Big 12. The Utes were decimated by injuries last year, including along the defensive line. But now that the likes of defensive ends Logan Fano, Connor O'Toole and Van Fillinger are fully healthy, it gives the Utes one of the most talented edge-rushing units in the country.

O'Toole finished last season with 4.5 sacks, including 14 total stops with four tackles for loss. He put up those numbers despite playing hurt for most of the season.

Fano tore his ACL in late September during a game against Oregon State last season. Although he only played five games, he was putting up some impressive numbers as a true freshman. He accounted for 14 total tackles, 3.5 sacks and two forced fumbles.

For the sake of this exercise, we're going with O'Toole and Fano, but Utah listed co-starters at right defensive end on its first two-deep: Fano and Fillinger, so this is more of a trio.

Fillinger, who enters 2024 as a redshirt senior, was limited by a foot injury last season. He still finished with 31 total tackles, three sacks and a forced fumble. Utah's talented defensive ends should help the Utes win a Big 12 title their first season in the new conference.

The Buckeyes entire defensive front was on this list last year. Well in 2024, Ohio State has brought a lot of those same guys back, in addition to adding some major playmakers elsewhere on defense.

That gives us three OSU duos to highlight.

Although they were expected to declare for the 2024 NFL draft with some high draft stocks, defensive ends J.T. Tuimoloau and Jack Sawyer are both returning to Columbus in 2024. Sawyer led the Buckeyes with 6.5 sacks last season, including another 48 total tackles and two forced fumbles and two passes defended. Tuimoloau was second on the team with five sacks, and added 38 total tackles.

On the interior defensive line, Tyleik Williams is also returning. Along with Sawyer, he was tied for first on the team with 10 tackles for loss, adding 53 total stops and five passes defended. Ty Hamilton, who had a 76.4 grade in 350 snaps last season per Pro Football Focus, is expected to start as well.

As if this front didn't make the Buckeye defense formidable enough, you can't talk about OSU's defense without mentioning Alabama transfer safety Caleb Downs. Downs finished 2023 as the first Alabama true freshman in school history to lead the team in tackles, with 107. As the nation's best returning safety, he immediately elevates the safety room. He'll join fellow starter Lathan Ransom, who finished 2023 with 34 total tackles.

Miami looks like it has the talent to finally be a legitimate contender in the ACC this season. A talented edge-rushing group is a huge reason for that.

And as with Utah, this is more of a trio than a duo. Elijah Alston and Rueben Bain Jr. are the listed defensive end starters at Ourlads, but Tyler Baron is a notable talent as well.

Bain enters 2024 as a sophomore, and he had quite the productive season in Coral Gables last season as a true freshman. He finished tied for first on the team with 7.5 sacks, and added 12.5 for loss and three forced fumbles.

Canes head coach Mario Cristobal's additions of Baron and Alston from the transfer portal also massively elevate the unit. Alston spent the last four seasons at Marshall, where he accounted for 106 total tackles, 18.5 for loss. He finished with a career-high six sacks last season for the Thundering Herd.

Baron comes to Miami after spending the last four seasons at Tennessee. He had his best season with the Vols in 2023, finishing with 28 total tackles with six sacks and two passes defended.

Pro Football Focus ranks all three edge defenders inside the top 10 in the entire ACC.

Yes, I am aware that Jeremiah Trotter Jr. is no longer with the Tigers. But this unit has some impressive depth and experience, and it starts with linebacker Barrett Carter.

Carter returns to Clemson despite having the chance to go pretty early in the 2024 NFL draft. He has been a consistent starter at Clemson since his true freshman year in 2021. Over three seasons, he's racked up 151 total tackles, including 21 for loss and nine sacks.

His best season came in 2022, when he finished with 5.5 sacks, two interceptions and two forced fumbles. Per PFF, Carter is the most valuable power conference linebacker in the country, dating back to 2022.

Alongside Carter will be returning linebacker Wade Woodaz, who finished with 28 total stops last season. Woodaz also finished third among ACC linebackers last year with a 49.7 passer rating allowed, per PFF.

And as is the case with a few other teams featured here, the position group isn't limited to two potential standouts.

Expected to replace Trotter Jr. is Kobe McCloud, who had 17 total tackles last season. Also expected to be in the mix is former 5-star linebacker recruit Sammy Brown. If Clemson is going to make it back to the College Football Playoff this season, having a talented linebacking corps should help.

Georgia's Malaki Starks is one of the nation's most talented safeties. He's been a consistent starter in Athens since his true freshman season in 2022. Over two seasons, he has racked up 120 total tackles with five interceptions. Per PFF, Starks earned an 84.8 grade in run-defense.

Speaking of starting as a true freshman, it looks like former 5-star safety prospect KJ Bolden is in a great spot to see the field immediately this season. He is projected to start at either the free or strong safety spot in the Bulldogs' opener against Clemson on Saturday.

Dawgs head coach Kirby Smart even said earlier this offseason that Bolden may be further along than when Starks was a true freshman.

"I think KJ Bolden has a chance to really help us out," Smart said via Dawgs 247 in July. "He's athletic, he's intelligent, he comes from a really good high school program. He got 15 practices in the spring and he approaches every practice like a veteran. Like where he is right now is ahead of probably where Malaki (Starks) was at that time and Malaki was able to play as a freshman. I'm excited about what KJ is gonna do."

We'll see how well Bolden and Starks can play together at the safety spot this fall as the Bulldogs push for a playoff spot.

Michigan will replace a lot of talent from its national championship squad from last season. But having experienced guys along the defensive line like Mason Graham and Kenneth Grant will help on defense.

Graham enters the 2024 season as a junior and is coming off his most productive season yet. He accounted for 36 total tackles with three sacks and 7.5 stops for loss. PFF ranks Graham as the No. 1 overall returning defensive tackle this fall, thanks to his 80.3 grade and 15.9 percent pass-rush win rate.

Although the Wolverines lost interior defensive lineman Kris Jenkins to the NFL, they get back fellow junior Kenneth Grant. Grant is coming off his best season in Ann Arbor last season, finishing with 29 total tackles, 3.5 sacks and an interception.

PFF has Grant as the nation's sixth-ranked returning defensive tackle in the country. Although he mostly played in a rotational role last season, he had a 78.4 pass-rushing grade per PFF, which finished inside the top 15 nationally. Playing in more of a starting role this season, Grant should put up even more impressive numbers.