Shadarius Toodle

Physical Profile

Listed 6-3/6-4 and 220 as a senior, now carrying 235 on Auburn's spring roster with room to hold 240-245 without losing function. That is a legitimate SEC linebacker frame today, not a five-year projection — long arms, thick lower half, and enough natural mass to take on pulling guards rather than run around them. Athletically he is above average but not elite: a reported ~11.5 100 meters and a state relay qualification confirm functional speed for the position, while his school shot put record speaks to the hip and torso explosiveness that shows up on contact. The knock is long speed and change of direction in space — evaluators watching him grow into the frame described stretches where he 'looked like a baby giraffe' moving, and that stride-length-over-quickness profile caps his range sideline to sideline.

Play Style

A bruiser-style thumper who plays best moving forward. He is at his most valuable stacked behind the nose in the A/B gaps, taking on the lead block and spilling or filling with force, and he tracks the football with an honest motor that shows up in fourth-quarter tackle numbers. On passing downs Cottage Hill walked him to the edge and turned him loose, where he wins with length and effort more than bend. He is also a factor as a ball-carrier — 494 total yards and three touchdowns on offense — which is less a college projection than proof of body control and vision for a player his size. What you do not see much of on film is a linebacker asked to run the alley to the far hash or open his hips and carry a vertical route.

Strengths

• Downhill striking power and tackle volume — 157 tackles with three separate 20-tackle games in a season is not a scheme artifact, it is a player who finds the ball and finishes; he arrives with pop and rarely needs a second effort to get the ballcarrier down.
• Guard-to-guard density — at 235 with a wide base he takes on and sheds lead blockers and pulling linemen instead of being displaced, which is the exact trait that lets a Mike stay on the field against SEC 12-personnel run games.
• Genuine positional versatility — the 3A Lineman of the Year award reflects how often Cottage Hill stood him up or put his hand down on the edge; he can rush from a walked-up alignment on passing downs, which gives a coordinator a sub-package answer without a substitution.
• Character and preparation — high school staff repeatedly cited his weight-room transformation and locker-room pull, and he backed the intangibles up by re-committing to Auburn from Georgia in October and then enrolling early rather than waiting on the summer.

Areas to Improve

• Coverage range and pass-drop technique — this is the make-or-break trait. His production is concentrated in the box; there is little film of him carrying a tight end up the seam or matching a back in the flat, and his build-up speed means he will be tested there immediately by SEC offenses. If it does not develop, he is a two-down player.
• Pass-rush refinement — 13 TFL against only 2 sacks is a telling split. He wins with power and effort in the run game but has not shown a counter or a corner-bending path as a rusher; he needs a real plan (long-arm, cross-chop, inside spin) before the edge role is more than a change-up.
• Diagnosis speed against complexity — AHSAA 3A private-school competition rarely stressed him with RPOs, motion, or tempo. Expect a real adjustment curve reading run/pass keys at SEC speed, where his first-step accuracy matters more than it ever did in high school.
• Pad level and play strength consistency at the point — he plays tall at times as a natural byproduct of his height, which will get him washed by SEC guards until he learns to strike with leverage under his frame.

College Projection

As a January enrollee who has already been through a spring at 235, Toodle enters 2026 ahead of a typical true freshman on the physical and installation curve. Realistic Year One role: core special teams plus a defined situational package — short-yardage and goal-line Mike, and a stand-up rush element on obvious passing downs where his size is an advantage and his coverage limitations can be schemed around. Do not expect three-down snaps as a freshman. The honest timeline is a rotational contributor in 2027 and a starting-caliber Mike by 2028, with the variable being how fast he develops in coverage. His floor, given the frame and the run-game production, is a valuable rotational box linebacker and special-teams core; the ceiling is a multi-year SEC starter and defensive signal-caller.

NFL Outlook

Draftable projection with a wide band. If he stays at 240 and the coverage work never fully arrives, he is a Day 3 (Rounds 5-7) run-down linebacker and special-teams ace — a real NFL job, just a limited one. The Day 2 path runs through the hybrid role he flashed in high school: if Auburn can develop him as a legitimate stand-up rusher who also plays off the ball, he becomes the positionless front-seven piece NFL defenses pay for, and the Jalon Walker comparison floated during his recruitment becomes relevant (though Toodle does not currently have Walker's twitch or first-step explosiveness). Best-case grade after a productive junior year: late second to third round. This is a three-year evaluation, not a two-year one.

Best Fit

He landed in the right place. Auburn under DJ Durkin runs a multiple front that will let him play downhill behind two-gapping defensive linemen and stand him up on the edge on third down rather than asking him to cover grass in a static 4-3 over. The wrong fit is a heavy nickel/dime scheme that demands its linebackers match backs in man coverage on every passing down — that highlights his one real weakness and wastes his one elite trait. Ideally he plays for a coordinator who defines his job by gap and assignment rather than by space, and who uses him as a designated pressure element rather than a full-time rusher. His stated draw to Auburn was Durkin and the family aspect of the program, which matters for a player whose development curve requires patience from a staff.