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Ray Michael, a solid player and a senior, returns in the middle. Michael had 85 tackles last season.
The other starter on the outside may be Audie Cole. Cole has little game experience. Terrell Manning, a 4 star recruit from 2008, is coming off a knee injury and could push Cole for playing time.
4. Miami Hurricanes
After missing most of last season, talented Colin McCarthy looks to return as leader of an athletic but somewhat inconsistent linebacking crew. Sean Spence, the ACC's defensive rookie of the year, is only 6-0, 211 but is a hard hitter.
Senior Darryl Sharpton will likely handle the middle. Arthur Brown arguably the nation's top linebacker recruit in 2008, looks to begin fulfilling the high expectations he came in with.
5. Virginia Tech Hokies
The Hokies will be inexperienced at the linebacker position, but their young players have the potential to be one of the best linebacking units in the ACC.
At the Hokies whip linebacker position will likely be Cody Grimm. Grimm had 71 tackles and 7.5 sacks last season.
Cam Martin should still play significantly at this position. He had 51 tackles last season, but is recovering from off-season knee surgery. Barquell Rivers and Jake Johnson are only sophomores, but are physical and talented.
6. Clemson Tigers
The Tigers return all three starting linebackers from last season. Senior Kavell Conner had a monster season at the weakside LB position. Conner had 125 tackles last season.
Sophomore Brandon Maye was also solid. As MLB, he had 87 tackles, and showed the ability to go sideline to sideline.
Scotty Cooper was a starter in four games, and will man the third LB spot. The biggest linebacker including reserves is Brandon Maye at 6-2, 225 lbs. That may be a concern against the more physical teams Clemson plays.
7. Maryland Terrapins
We are going to assume Alex Wujciak recovers fully from off-season knee surgery. As one of the top-returning linebackers in the ACC, Wujciak by himself makes the Terps LB unit a solid one.
He had 133 tackles last season to rank second in the ACC. Adrian Moten had a solid freshman year, but suffered wrist injury last year, and looks to return to his previous form.
A freshman, Demetrius Hartsfield, will likely start at the weakside position. Maryland coaches love his athletic ability. Darin Drakeford is a talented freshman who should see some playing time.
8. Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets
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