Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 24-45vs UCLA | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 21-18@ Syracuse | 6 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 6 tackles |
| Total | 10 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#9
AJ Tuitele
Redshirt freshman linebacker for California. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
6′2″ · 220 lb · North Las Vegas, NV · Mojave HS
Transferred USC → California for 2026
The numbers
10
tackles · 2026
2 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 6 tackles, at Syracuse
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
1 linebacker for California. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to USC in 2025.
- Transferred from USC to California in 2026.
AJ Tuitele
Two head coaches in two seasons, at two different programs. The receipt: 6 tackles against Syracuse — Week 2, 2026.
10 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- head-coach lineage
- game log
His career
2025
- Signed with USC3-star out of Mojave
2026
- Entered the portal
- Entered the portal
- Entered the portal
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2025–2026
2 coaches2025
California
2026era →
Tosh Lupoi
California
Coaching transition mid-career: Justin Wilcox → Tosh Lupoi. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Where He Ended Up · Transfer
Transferred to California
2025USC
2026California
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2025USC9-4HC: Lincoln Riley · Balanced
2026California1-1HC: Tosh Lupoi · Pass-leaning
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Elite: qb hurries (96th percentile). Concern: tackles (10th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
Percentiles are versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score production. There are no play-by-play efficiency bars here: CFBD's play-value model credits offensive players only, so no defensive EPA exists to rank.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 5.0 TKL/g, 0.0 TFL/g, 0.0 SACK/g, 0.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Tosh Lupoi
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | California | 10 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2025 | USC | 1 | -- | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 11 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 2 · 2026
W 21–18
at Syracuse
6 TOT · 3 SOLO · 1 QB HUR
A wire-to-wire battle — won by 3 on the road.
With A. Davies — 34 AVG · 3 IN 20 · 52 LONG · J. Sagapolutele — 182 yds · 2 TD · 0 INT · QBR 54.4 · -5 rush yds (2 car)
Game log
Background
Accolades - Athletic Polynesian Player of the Year Award Watch List (2026) Freshman (2025) - USC Played in three games. Redshirted. Prep Played at Mojave HS -- Class of 2025. Rated as the No. 1 player in the state of Nevada by On3, No. 10 by 247Sports and No. 11 by ESPN. He was touted as the No....
The linebacker corps · California
- #21Aaron Hampton41 tackles · 2025
- #10Jayden Wayne26 tackles · 2025
- #15Joshua Pierce14 tackles · 2025
- #4Justin Beadles12 tackles · 2025
- #9AJ Tuitele1 tackle · 2025
11 more on the roster · California team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology