Everyone’s favorite west coast conference has a concentration of talent along the offensive line in Corvallis this upcoming season. But make no mistake, that unit will be tested for sure. Assembling the best Pac-12 defensive linemen returning to college football in 2023 included five different teams. Oregon State gets to face every single one of these five players this year on its schedule. But it just isn’t the Beavers who will be tested. These defensive linemen are all potential game-wreckers against any foe they face in 2023.
Best Pac 12 Defensive Linemen Returning For 2023
5. Ron Stone Jr. – Washington State
The first selection to the best Pac-12 defensive linemen unit has 45 games of experience, including 30 starts. Ron Stone Jr. anchored the Washington State defensive line in 2022. He tied for second in Pac-12 with 11 quarterback hits. His efforts last year earned him a second-team All-Pac 12 selection. Stone Jr., one of the defensive captains from last year, has a career total of 139 tackles, 20.5 tackles for loss, and 11 sacks. Head coach Jack Dickert guided the Cougars to a 6-6 record in his first year after a tumultuous exit by previous head coach Nick Rolovich. Washington State lost a significant amount of talent from last year’s team. But Stone Jr. provides an excellent point to anchor the defense around.
4. Brandon Dorlus – Oregon
This Duck flew the farthest away from his home pond (originally from Fort Lauderdale, FL) to make his mark on the Pac 12. And head coach Dan Lanning is sure glad former head coach Mario Cristobal convinced Brandon Dorlus to migrate west with his football talents. Dorlus finished the 2022 season with career-highs in tackles (39) and tackles for loss (nine-and-a-half). He was only one of three players to be named the Pac 12 Defensive Lineman of the Week multiple times last season. Dorlus earned his second selection to an All- Pac 12 team (first-team in 2021, second-team in 2022). The former three-star recruit has developed his way into an NFL draft prospect worth paying attention to. He projects as a third-day pick right now but has the chance to play his way up in 2023.
3. Junior Tafuna – Utah
Dorlus isn’t the only two-time All-Pac 12 performer on our best Pac-12 defensive linemen team. The defending Pac-12 champions bring back Junior Tafuna from one of the best defensive units in the conference. Tafuna made an impact in his first full season with the Utes. He was named the 2021 Pac-12 Freshman Defensive Player of the Year and earned second-team All-Pac 12 honors. Last season, Tafuna’s performance was good enough to land another second-team selection. He totaled 27 tackles, three-and-a-half of which were tackles for loss and one sack, one interception, and two quarterback hurries. Tafuna continues the theme of durability with 25 consecutive starts under his belt. Expect him to anchor another Utes team that will likely make its way back to Las Vegas to defend its Pac-12 title.
2. Bralen Trice – Washington
This defensive lineman exploded onto the Pac-12 scene in 2022. Coming into last season, Bralen Trice had only played in 12 games, with only two starts in his three seasons on campus. But last year, Trice’s production landed him on the first-team All-Pac 12 team. His 37.5 total tackles, including nine sacks and eight tackles for loss, were punctuated in the post-season by being named the Defensive MVP of the Alamo Bowl. He has already landed on two preseason first-team All-American teams for the upcoming season. Trice is currently projected as a day-two NFL draft pick. But another double-digit win season by the Huskies likely means Trice had another major impact on this team and can play his way to a day-one grade. However, the top spot on this unit is for a player who is already one of the top 10 defensive prospects in the 2024 draft.
The Best Of The Pac 12 Defensive Linemen is Laiatu Latu – UCLA
Not only is the best Pac-12 defensive lineman returning in 2023 the most productive, but he also has a tremendous comeback story to boot. Laiatu Latu was one of the best defensive players in the Pac-12 during the 2022 season. His 10.5 sacks during the 2022 season ranked him 8th nationally. He also had 12.5 tackles for loss and nine quarterback hurries. Latu is listed as an EDGE defender that sometimes plays with his hand in the dirt as well as more of a traditional outside linebacker role. As Chip Kelly continues to incrementally push UCLA forward (and to a new conference), having Latu to lean on defensively is a great chess piece Pac 12 offensive coordinators will have to scheme against for one more season.
Photo courtesy: Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports
