Building the Perfect College Football Defense in 2023

What would a premier, shutdown defense in college football look like in 2023?

Before you say "the Georgia Bulldogs," well, yes, the two-time defending national champions have been darn salty on that side of the ball the past two years. While they boast one dude on this elite, mythical team, guys such as edge-rusher Mykel Williams and safety Malaki Starks just missed.

Clemson nearly placed a second guy on this list, as did Alabama. Penn State had two close misses in Chop Robinson and Abdul Carter.

But not only does this squad have a space-eating run-stuffer in the middle, the front line also features guys great against the run who can stifle quarterbacks. We also have guys to rush the passer and shutdown stars on the back end.

It's the versatility of this all-star team that would make it the perfect defense, and even if you think we're a little susceptible in coverage on the second level, the defensive backs are good enough to survive and thrive on the island.

Let's take a look at the can't-miss defense for the '23 season.

This defense starts with a stalwart who could have bypassed another year of college football (which will be his redshirt junior season) and made millions in the NFL.

Instead, Jared Verse will return for his second season in Tallahassee to try to lead a defense with ill intentions that could help propel the long-dormant Seminoles back to the top of the ACC.

When Verse transferred from little-known Albany a season ago, he was a hot commodity, and he proved why in his first foray into big-time college football. The defensive end stands 6'4" and weighs 248 pounds, so he is the perfect size to have a diversified skill set.

Not only can he get after quarterbacks, he's big enough to excel against the run, too, and he does both extremely well, which is why he's going to play with his hand down in this defense.

A season ago, Verse finished with 48 tackles, including 17 for a loss and nine sacks. Still, getting another season of tutelage under renowned DL coach Odell Haggins will be big, and his top-20 draft pick status will still be in-tact a year from now.

Verse is a no-brainer inclusion here.

When it comes to a rock in the center of the defense who can plug gaps and still be athletic enough to collapse the pocket, there's no better option than Illinois' Jer'Zhan Newton.

The 6'2", 295-pound defensive tackle got All-Big Ten and second-team All-American nods last year after finishing with 61 tackles, including 14 for loss and 5.5 sacks.

Registering that many stops from his spot in the center of the defense is a big deal, and he flashes on film.

Browns Wire's Cory Kinnan wrote in November:

"Newton is the definition of a player who plays with his hair on fire. From whistle to whistle, Newton works relentlessly to get to the quarterback or ball carrier. Again, the Illinois defensive tackle is not the biggest defensive tackle on the field, but his passion between the lines is evident.

Pro Football Focus also named Newton the best returning defensive tackle in the nation.

There may be bigger guys on the defense, but Newton is massively productive and fills the stat sheet. We'll take him to anchor the front.

With so many players who can get after the quarterback on this hypothetical roster, we've got to have another versatile guy on the front, especially since we've committed to a 3-4 base package.

Don't get us wrong, Washington's Bralen Trice can still apply pressure. But he can do so many other things too.

He hearkens back to former North Carolina State star and current Miami Dolphin Bradley Chubb, who is enjoying a stellar NFL career. Trice is about Chubb's size (6'4", 275 lbs), and he is wildly productive for the Huskies.

Everybody talked about coach Kalen DeBoer's offense a season ago, but U-Dub had some dawgs on defense, too, and Trice was the best of the bunch.

The 6'4", 269-pound lineman had 38 tackles, including 12 for loss and nine sacks. Trice has only been a starter for one season at Washington, so the redshirt junior is just scraping the surface of his potential.

According to Pro Football Focus, Trice led the nation with an astounding 70 quarterback pressures a season ago. Even though the Huskies rely on his propensity to get in the backfield, he actually was their best edge-rusher against the run.

When you have a dude pushing 270 who can do it all, you put him in your lineup.

At times, no defender in the nation outside Alabama's Will Anderson Jr. popped quite as much from a sheer talent perspective as LSU true freshman Harold Perkins Jr.

As a matter of fact, the latter has drawn favorable comparisons to the former Crimson Tide star, who is a near-certainty to be a top-five pick in this year's draft.

Perkins is a onetime top recruit who has at least two more seasons in college, and entering his second year in Baton Rouge, he'll be one of the leaders on a unit that will welcome back defensive tackle Maason Smith from a torn ACL.

Much of the attention will be on Perkins, not only from the media but also from offensive lines. He'll have to adapt, but a player with as much natural ability shouldn't fall off, especially considering he's going to have a much better idea of how he fits into the defense this year.

On this hypothetical team, we're going to let him go after signal-callers because, after all, that's what's fun, right? You can't throw the ball if you don't have time, and Perkins arrives at quarterbacks in a hurry.

He didn't need any time adjusting to campus, racking up 72 tackles, including 13 for loss and 7.5 sacks in his first year. He also picked off a ball and forced four fumbles. The linebacker/edge-rusher can do it all, and that's why he's on this team. He'd be our No. 1 pick for this team.

Jamon Dumas-Johnson has impressive hardware, flashing a pair of national championship rings as a member of Georgia's defense the past couple of seasons.

He's also the next great one in a long line of outstanding Bulldogs 'backers.

Even though coach Kirby Smart is bringing in plenty of reinforcements with dynamic recruiting classes, Dumas-Johnson will be a leader who gets the most national attention.

At 6'1", 245 pounds, he is a big, traditional run-stuffer who can swallow running backs and keep them from large gains. But don't let that fool you into believing he's one-dimensional.

The rising junior from Baltimore's St. Frances Academy also displays a suddenness and is fast enough to move from sideline to sideline and arrive with a problem.

On a defense competing to see who gets to the ball first and featuring a bevy of athletes who make it difficult to post eye-popping stats, Dumas-Johnson finished the '22 title season tied for the team lead with 64 tackles, per Georgia's official site.

He added eight tackles for loss, which led the team, and three QB sacks, which tied for the Georgia lead. Despite having a lot of responsibility calling the middle of the defense, he also finished with 21 quarterback hurries.

Dumas-Johnson is the best returning defender on the nation's best defense and does everything you need from an elite linebacker. He's a game-changer.

We've talked so much about guys who can rush the passer because it's necessary in today's game the way teams throw it around so much.

But you're going to get dominated if you're susceptible against the run, which is why the linebacking corps has to be big and physical and have the ability to terrorize running backs.

Dumas-Johnson is the big, fast, do-it-all athlete, but for the other inside spot, we're giving the nod to Ohio State throwback linebacker Tommy Eichenberg.

The past couple of seasons, he's been in the considerable shadow of another Big Ten linebacker who dominated the stat sheets and perhaps was a bit better as a veteran than Eichenberg at the same game. That was Iowa's Jack Campbell, who is off to the NFL.

Now, Eichenberg will become the poster boy for "Big Ten Linebacker."

A season ago, the 6'2", 239-pound second-level defender was a catalyst for the massive improvement under first-year Buckeyes coordinator Jim Knowles. He finished the year with 120 tackles, 12 tackles for loss, 2.5 sacks, an interception and a touchdown.

The Cleveland native will return for his fifth year alongside fellow starter Steele Chambers, but on this defense, the tackling machine could win the Butkus Award as the nation's best linebacker.

As with Ohio State receiver Marvin Harrison Jr., many aren't exactly surprised to see another Jeremiah Trotter on the radar when it comes to the nation's top linebackers.

The Clemson underclassman's father was an NFL standout at the position, and the Philadelphia native is following in his father's footsteps. Coincidentally, the younger Harrison and Trotter were teammates at Philadelphia's St. Joseph's Preparatory School.

Jeremiah Trotter Jr. barely beat out teammate Barrett Carter for this spot, but it could have gone to either. They can both do everything, are great in pass coverage and are tackling machines.

Perhaps Trotter has a little higher ceiling, so that's why he occupies the outside for us. It also doesn't hurt that he can shift inside at 6'0", 230 pounds.

Trotter finished 2022 with 114 tackles, 14.5 tackles for loss, 7.5 sacks, seven pass breakups, a forced fumble and a pick-six, per Clemson.

"The younger Trotter excels on passing plays, as he was the only Power Five linebacker with 80-plus grades as a pass-rusher and in coverage," Pro Football Focus' Max Chadwick wrote after declaring him the top returning linebacker. "Trotter was second in that same group in both passer rating allowed (42.9) and open target rate allowed (47.6 percent)."

He's too talented to leave off this defense.

Alabama cornerback Ga'Quincy McKinstry has perhaps the best nickname in college football: "Kool-Aid."

Receivers probably don't think so when he's guarding them, though.

The former Pinson Valley (Alabama) High School standout was a 5-star recruit in 2021, and it was a big deal when Crimson Tide coach Nick Saban kept him at home to play for Alabama. He only had one interception a year ago, but that's chiefly because quarterbacks stayed away.

Not only is McKinstry long and lanky at 6'1", 188 pounds, but he's also a decent tackler (35 of them a season ago) and a pass-breakup machine.

It's a bit of a projection to go with McKinstry here when there are cornerbacks with better statistics, but there is a lot to love about his ceiling heading into what is almost certain to be his final season in Tuscaloosa.

This is a lockdown cornerback who has length and athleticism (he would be the de facto punt returner on our team too). Even with guys who have limitless talent out there such as Michigan's Will Johnson and Penn State's Kalen King, McKinstry stands out.

Expect him to have a huge year for new coordinator Kevin Steele, the veteran who understands the way Saban likes to play defense.

With so much focus on rushing the passer in the front seven and a couple of run-smotherers at linebacker, why not supplement that with the best coverage safety in the nation?

Holding down things on the back end of this all-star defense is Miami safety Kamren Kinchens, who makes up one half of a dynamic duo for the Hurricanes with James Williams.

The All-American was tied for third nationally a season ago with six interceptions, even though he didn't have the same clout coming out of high school as Williams. The ball-hawking safety is known by everybody now, and 247Sports' Chris Hummer listed him among the next wave of college stars.

There's good reason. You've got to have a knack for the ball if you're a safety, and Kinchens' recognition, closing speed and ability to close out interceptions are innate. They're the type of traits that will translate into his becoming a high-round draft pick.

At 5'11", 202 pounds, Kinchens is a big-bodied safety who prepped at powerhouse Miami Northwestern, and his skill set has translated nicely in two seasons in Coral Gables.

Look for him to have another big year, and even if the same statistical prowess isn't there for '23, you can bet he will find multiple ways to impact the game positively.

A bunch of players were in consideration for this other safety spot, and a lot of them had plenty of viable reasons to be included.

Calen Bullock (USC) can retrieve balls like Kinchens, but that's why the latter is on the list. Miami's James Williams and Georgia's Malaki Starks are young, uber-talented future megastars who probably have higher ceilings.

But we're going with Michigan's Rod Moore because he can do everything, and he complements Kinchens' ball-snagging ability very well.

According to Pro Football Focus' Max Chadwick: "[Moore] was one of two Power Five safeties in 2022 who earned 80-plus grades both in coverage and as a run defender. The other, Alabama's Brian Branch, is a top-10 prospect on PFF's 2023 NFL draft big board. Moore's four interceptions were tied for seventh among Power Five safeties."

Even with a guy like Will Johnson in the same secondary, Moore flashes for one of the nation's best teams. He led the Wolverines with 48 solo tackles, and he paced the squad with four interceptions. Teaming with big-bodied Makari Paige (6'4", 200 lbs), he was exceptional.

Moore is the best all-around safety in the nation, and he'll emerge as a household name and a buzzworthy prospect for the '24 draft.

As mentioned in the McKinstry section, there aren't a ton of proven commodities at cornerback returning to college, so we're rolling the dice on a high-ceiling prospect.

You wouldn't be wrong to choose Michigan's Will Johnson, and veterans Kalen King (Penn State) and Fentrell Cypress (Florida State) could stake a claim too. But production is key, and Notre Dame's Benjamin Morrison was elite last year.

It also was his true freshman campaign in South Bend, so what will we get for an encore?

A year ago, the former 4-star prospect from Phoenix bucked the trend of freshmen struggling to get on the field and thrived under first-year head coach Marcus Freeman.

The 6'0", 179-pound defensive back finished the year with six interceptions (tied for third nationally), the most for an Irish defender since 2012 when Manti Te'o recorded seven on his way to finishing second in the Heisman race.

Word got out quickly about Morrison's game, and teams avoided him.

Morrison's father, Darryl, played for Washington in the NFL, and the younger Morrison looks like he's on track to follow in his father's footsteps. According to The Athletic, his six picks tied for second among all freshmen in the College Football Playoff era.

There's plenty more to come from him.

All stats courtesy of cfbstats and Sports Reference unless otherwise noted. Recruit rankings courtesy of 247Sports unless otherwise noted.

Follow Brad Shepard on Twitter, @Brad_Shepard.