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Sixth in an 11-part series. Coming tomorrow: Edge rushers.
It had been three years since Nick Eason worked with J.J. Pegues, but when Clemson’s defensive coordinator — and Auburn’s former defensive line coach — decided to scout units that pressured opposing quarterbacks better than most in 2024, he watched film from Ole Miss and recognized something.
The Rebels combined to generate 52 sacks and 120 tackles for loss, with both leading the nation, and in the middle of that, thriving after the position change that altered the trajectory of his career, was Pegues.
He’d transferred to Ole Miss — planted in the city where Pegues was dubbed “The Mayor of Oxford” and named the honorary mayor for a day — for his final three college seasons following a shift to defensive line and carved out a role on both sides of the ball.
