Micah Bakersville didn’t take long to notice DeMario Tolan on the field at LSU.

Bakersville, LSU’s top returning tackler last season, was a veteran; last fall was his fifth year with the program, so he’d seen plenty during his time in Baton Rouge, La. Still, Tolan quickly caught his attention as a true freshman last season.

It started with a kickoff.

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“Just him coming down on kickoffs, smashing stuff — he’s got a real knack for being physical, hitting people,” Bakersville said Wednesday at the NFL Combine in Indianapolis. “That’s something I knew about him right off the bat.”

The 6-foot-1, 203-pound Tolan appeared in 12 games as a freshman at LSU last season, and while he didn’t make a start at linebacker, he contributed to the rotation at the position and saw time on special teams as part of the Tigers’ kickoff coverage team. The former four-star prospect, who was part of LSU’s 12th-ranked class in 2022, finished his lone season on the bayou with 10 tackles before entering the transfer portal in January.

While his time at LSU was short-lived, Tolan’s former fellow linebacker believes the Orlando, Fla., native has a bright future ahead of him.

“He’ll fit in well anywhere, you know?” Bakersville said. “He’s a great, talented player who can play. When he gets his opportunity, I know he’s going to run off with it.”

That opportunity for Tolan could come at Auburn this season. Tolan relocated to the Plains in January as part of an impressive transfer haul for first-year head coach Hugh Freeze. Tolan was one of a dozen transfer additions for Auburn, which signed the nation’s fifth-ranked portal class, according to the 247Sports Composite rankings.

The former blue-chip recruit got in his first set of practices with his new team this week, as Auburn opened spring practice Monday and returned to the field Wednesday. Tolan is looking to make an impact in a linebacker room that is replacing leading tackle Owen Pappoe while looking for more consistent production from veterans like Cam Riley and Wesley Steiner and adding in another transfer in former Ole Miss linebacker Austin Keys.

The opportunity to crack the rotation is there for Tolan this season, even if Freeze and his coaching staff aren’t keeping track of a depth chart this spring. That could be a benefit for someone like Tolan, who will get ample reps over the next six weeks as he adapts to his new team and tries to bring that physical, thumping style of play to the middle of Auburn’s defense.

“He’s a great kid; he’s real physical,” Bakersville said. “He has a great twitch to get to the ball—some of the best I’ve ever seen. He’s just got to stay doing what he’s doing, and he’s going to be good.”

Tom Green is an Auburn beat reporter for Alabama Media Group. Follow him on Twitter @Tomas_Verde.