AUBURN, Ala. – After his spectacular introduction to college football, SEC Freshman of the Week Shadarius Toodle has been named the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Week, the Maxwell Football Club announced Tuesday.
In Auburn’s 26-23 win Saturday over Arkansas, Toodle registered three sacks, 4.5 tackles for loss, 11 tackles and a pass breakup, the most sacks by a true freshman in a game in program history along with the most sacks by a Tiger linebacker.
“It was truly amazing,” said Toodle, a 6-3, 235-pounder from Mobile. “I was blessed to be out on the field, blessed for the coaches to believe in me.”
Promoted from the scout team three weeks ago, Toodle capitalized on his opportunity.
“I put my head down and kept working,” he said. “Just earning trust from the coaches. Learning from some of the leaders, like Elijah (Melendez), one of the best linebackers in the country, just having a guy like that to help you, teach you things. But just coming in to work.”
Toodle’s dominant defensive performance also placed him among elites across college football. He became the first SEC freshman since at least 1996 to record three sacks in his collegiate debut and just the seventh freshman in the conference to reach that mark in a single game. His 4.5 tackles for loss were the most by an Auburn player since 2004, while his 11 tackles were the most by an Auburn freshman since 2015.
Auburn (5-4, 3-4) plays at Mississippi State (4-5, 2-5) Saturday at 11 a.m. CT on ESPN2 and the Auburn Sports Network.
Jeff Shearer is a Senior Writer at AuburnTigers.com. Follow him on X: @jeff_shearer