Transfer Breakdown: Jaylin Alderman

The Canes added a starting-level linebacker on Sunday with the addition of Louisville transfer Jaylin Alderman. Once again, we notice that Miami has been much more aggressive in the portal, continuing to add players who will compete for starting jobs instead of merely adding depth pieces. With the departure of K.J. Cloyd to the NFL, who was one of the Canes’ best linebackers last season, Alderman is expected to be an upgrade to the linebacking corps, as he was starting over Cloyd at Louisville.

One of the things we continue to see with Cristobal is that his linebackers are big—220+ lbs. Alderman perfectly fits that mold at 6’1”, 230 lbs, and is a physical specimen. A durable player who started every game for the Cardinals last year, Alderman had 62 tackles, including seven tackles for loss and 1.5 sacks, with 47 of those tackles coming against ACC opponents. Outside of Francisco Mauigoa, who played 697 snaps, no other linebacker played at least 500 snaps for Miami. In contrast, Alderman played 606 snaps for the Cardinals this past season, which would have been the second most for the Canes in the 2023 season.

Another plus that Alderman brings is his versatility. Ever since high school, Alderman has played multiple positions, serving both as a wide receiver on offense and as an outside linebacker on defense. In college, he has shown the capability to play both weak-side and middle linebacker. This gives Miami a strong middle linebacker option if Kiko Mauigoa were to go down with an injury. Alderman is a very high-IQ player, productive in part because he is always in the right place to make a play. In 2021, he demonstrated his anticipation and athletic ability when he returned an interception for a touchdown against UCF.

With Alderman’s familiarity with linebacker coach Derek Nicholson, who recruited him out of high school when he was linebackers coach at Louisville, I expect he will transition seamlessly to the Canes’ defensive scheme and immediately compete for and take over a starting outside linebacker role. The Canes now have a linebacker who is good in space and is a ball magnet, providing Guidry with a Swiss Army knife player that he can use in different formations, either inside or outside, to attack the quarterback.

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