I feel like I sound defense when talking about the linebackers but, we're a year removed from Strnad being an All-ACC linebacker missing half the season, Ryan Smenda being one of the best linebackers in the ACC, and Ja'Cquez playing at a very high level after Strnad went down. This has been really the only down year since I came to Wake as a student(2014) that the LBs haven't been some of the top in the ACC. 2014-2015 was Chubb and Kellz, 2016 was Kellz/Jaboree/Grant Dawson, 2017 Strnad/Grant/kemp/JB, 2018 even when the defense as a whole was bad Strnad/Smenda(with a sprinkle of DJ taylor before his injury) and then last year all 3 of Smenda/Strnad/Ja'Cquez were at a high level.
The question isn't really do they need an overhaul, but is this year just an aberration from every other year we've seen from the LBs. I'm leaning the latter given the only departure(yes Strnad but he missed the 2nd half of the season) was the LB coach. Their main issue has been in the run game where in 4 games(Clemson/NC State/UNC/Louisville) due to injuries/covid, they've been asked to do borderline impossible things. And that's not from just me, that's from Hemp and other people inside the program and well it shows up on the tape. Are the players faultless? No, there's definitely plays that even they will be first to be like "yep completely on me" but it's not throw away the entire linebackers level like it was.
In terms of the freshmen, if Hazen shows up and balls out then good on him but I think that's a year or so in the works given he projects(to me) to be a MIKE so he'd be behind Smenda and Monroe. Sosanya I'm interested in a bit more for *immediate* PT due to him already being up to 207 and I project him more of a BUCK or Rover which may have more available PT but he also hasn't played football in over a year due to NC pushing football to spring, so even with him enrolling early, has a lot of rust to work off.
I have more question marks at DE spots than I do LB, if im being truthfully honest