Average Size of College Football Defensive Ends (Height & Weight)
I’ve been a collegiate sports performance coach for 20 years. One thing I always loved doing was going through and checking out the sizes of the other teams in our conference.
It helped give me (and our staff) an idea of how we stacked up against our competition. It also could be used as motivation with our team both during the season and, often, during the following off-season.
So, this is essentially the same research I’ve always done, but now I’m sharing it with you. I took starting depth charts for each team in the FBS (a total of over 3000 players) going into the 2023 season and broke them down by position.
For this guide, I took an average of the heights and weights of the over 200 starting Defensive Ends* across college football. In addition, I broke down the sizes of Ends by conference and individual players.
Go ahead and impress someone today with your trivia bona fides.
Average Height of a College Football DE
The average height of a College Football Safety is 75.37 inches (a little over 6’3 1/4″).
Average Weight of a College Football DE
The average weight of a College Football Defensive End is 258.01 pounds.
Want to see how college football Defensive Ends compare with the size of NFL Defensive Ends? Good news, I’ve also run the numbers on the guys at the next level.
Which Conference Has the Tallest Defensive Ends?
| Conference | Avg Height (Inches) |
|---|---|
| SEC | 76.30 |
| Big 10 | 76.13 |
| Big 12 | 75.79 |
| Pac 12 | 75.65 |
| AAC | 75.63 |
| MAC | 75.63 |
| Independents | 75.50 |
| ACC | 75.39 |
| Mountain West | 74.71 |
| Conference USA | 74.33 |
| Sun Belt | 73.92 |
Which Conference Has the Heaviest Defensive Ends?
| Conference | Avg Weight |
|---|---|
| Big 10 | 266.17 |
| SEC | 264.57 |
| Independents | 264.25 |
| Big 12 | 262.38 |
| AAC | 259.79 |
| ACC | 258.86 |
| Pac 12 | 256.65 |
| Conference USA | 254.27 |
| MAC | 252.13 |
| Mountain West | 252.10 |
| Sun Belt | 248.04 |
Who Are the Tallest Defensive Ends in College Football?
There are 15 (yes 15!) starting Defensive Ends listed at 6’6″.
However, there is only one who stands above the rest, listed at 6’7″.
| Name | Height | Weight | School |
|---|---|---|---|
| Landon Jackson | 6’7″ | 281 | Arkansas |
Who Are the Shortest Defensive Ends?
While it may seem like all Defensive Ends are 6’5″ monsters, that’s not exactly the case. There are 10 Ends who are 6’0″ or shorter (6 of which play in the Sun Belt)
Here are the two shortest, listed under six feet tall.
| Name | Height | Weight | School |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jaylen Swain | 5’10” | 255 | Jacksonville State |
| Jordan Revels | 5’11” | 235 | Texas State |
Who are the Heaviest Defensive Ends in College Football?
Keep in mind that Defensive Ends can be very different body types depending upon the defensive scheme.
3-4 Ends are usually much bigger than 4-3 Ends, as they play inside much more and are often closer to Defensive Tackles in size than edge rushing ends.
The five biggest players are all listed over 295 pounds.
| Name | Height | Weight | School |
|---|---|---|---|
| Jeffrey M’Ba | 6’6″ | 315 | Purdue |
| Malik Langham | 6’4″ | 310 | Purdue |
| Braylen Ingraham | 6’4″ | 301 | Syracuse |
| Jowon Briggs | 6’2″ | 297 | Cincinnati |
| Darius Robinson | 6’5″ | 296 | Missouri |
Who are the Lightest?
On the other end of the scale, the five lightest Defensive Ends all weigh under 225 pounds.
| Name | Height | Weight | School |
|---|---|---|---|
| Donell Harris | 6’4″ | 200 | Louisiana-Monroe |
| Shane Bonner | 6’0″ | 220 | Ohio |
| Markel Perry | 6’2″ | 220 | Sam Houston |
| Cian Slone | 6’4″ | 220 | Utah State |
| Richard Jibunor | 6’3″ | 222 | Troy |
Important Notes
As a former sports scientist, I tend to take data pretty seriously so I must stress that these ‘averages’ should be used for entertainment purposes only.
Why do I say that?
There are multiple issues that can make all the data in this article flawed.
First and foremost, it’s pretty commonplace in athletics to lie about heights and weights. I once worked at a school where it was standard procedure to add an inch and 5 to 10 pounds to almost every player on the roster.
Why?
The best answer that I was ever given is that it could potentially help with NFL scouting. However, I can’t imagine in 2023 that anyone is fooling an NFL scout with the size listed in a program. I think the real answer is it’s just part of the culture in sports.
*I used the heights and weights of all the projected starters leading into Week 1. Whether it’s through injury or performance, starters can and will change throughout the season.
In fact, it took me a week to gather all these numbers and by the time I was done I would bet that there were at least a couple of starting positions that had already changed hands.
And, if a couple of 6’5″ 280-pound players are swapped out with a couple of 6’0″ 225-pound players, the sample size is small enough that this would likely affect the overall averages.
Finally, I can tell you for a fact that players’ weights can fluctuate pretty wildly from week to week and sometimes even day to day and, especially, over the course of a season.
Just because a guy weighed 250 on the first day of camp when weights were put in the program, does not mean that’s what he weighs in Week 8.
So, have fun with the data above, but this is just a reminder to not take the numbers too seriously.
More Info
I also broke down the sizes of Defensive Linemen (as a whole) across college football that you can check out.
Or, if you really want to have your mind blown, check out the fastest 40 times that Defensive Ends have put up at the NFL Combine over the years.
Finally, you may not be able to control how tall you are, but you can control how hard you work and how smart you work. I can’t help you with your work ethic, but I have put together a Strength and Conditioning Guide for Football.
