2024 Miami Hurricanes Position Preview: Linebackers
Unlike the rest of the room in Coral Gables, The Miami Hurricanes have built the linebacker room from the group up with homegrown talent and some that could be consisted home grown in some transfers.
The heart and soul of this Lance Guidry defense has seen the rise of some of the best linebackers in the country and future longtime starters in the NFL.
Led by its captian and one of the first Hurricanes to dawn the No. 1 jersey in Francisco Mauigoa, this group of players have a lot to be exicted about for this upcoming season.
2024 Miami Hurricanes Football Team Projected Depth Chart Entering Fall Camp
1. Francisco Mauigoa
Next to Rueben Bain Jr, Mauigoa is the heart and soul of his defensive unit. He led the team in tackles for loss (18) and tied for the lead with Bain for sacks in 7.5. This also complemented the run defense which helped lead the team to be one of the best in the country at it.
As a team, when it came to stopping the run, Miami ranked 17th according to PFF and 11th in FBS, allowing 1373 rushing yards in 2023.
According to PFF (Pro Football Focus), Mauigoa ranked 45th in defensive grade among 2025 draft-eligible linebackers with a minimum of 20 percent of snaps.
2. Wesley Bissainthe
Bissainthe is entering his junior season as an athletic tackler who is improving each year as a Cane. He played 12 games in his freshman year and recorded 30 total tackles in year one. In his sophomore year, he saw his role increase as he recorded 6.5 tackles for loss and two sacks.
He ranked second in total tackles last season with 38 and will be alongside Maigoa as one of the focal points of the 4-2-5 defense that defensive coordinator Lance Guildy specializes in.
According to Pro Football Focus, Bissainthe ranked 16th among 2026 draft-eligible linebackers with a minimum of 20 percent of the snaps.
3. Jaylin Alderman
It was a shock to many Louisville Cardinal fans when their star linebacker hit the portal but quickly he found a new home in the Hurricanes.
He started in all 14 games last season finishing the season ranked fourth on the team in tackles with 62, and second in tackles for loss with seven. He also finished the season with 1.5 sacks and a pair of pass breakups.
His addition to the roster not only adds incredible depth to the already talented room, but he can give quality minutes anywhere on the field with his versatility.
4. Raul "PoPo" Aguirre
A young and talented player who saw the most time out of the core group of young linebackers still developing for the Canes. Aguirre Jr. has plenty of upside spending most of his freshman season working on special teams like many young and talented players tend to do when starting their career. With is development over the summer, some more playing time could be called for him as he continues to rise the ranks of the Hurricanes linebacker room.
