Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 66-3vs New Hampshire | 4 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 18-21vs California | 11 | 8 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 11 tackles |
| Total | 15 | 10 | 3.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 |
#6
Chris D'Appolonia
Junior linebacker for Syracuse. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
6′3″ · 240 lb · Cranberry Township, PA · Seneca Valley
CFB Index 50 · #291 of 583 LBsHigh confidenceTransferred Toledo → Syracuse for 2026
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
How he plays
Fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge.
Tackles for loss: 95th percentile.
The full scouting readThe numbers
15
tackles · 2026
3 TFL · 1 sacks
2 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 11 tackles, 2 TFL, 1 sacks, vs California
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
3 linebacker for Syracuse. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
- Signed with Toledo in 2023.
- Transferred from Toledo to Syracuse in 2026.
Chris D'Appolonia
Fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge. Three head coaches in four seasons, at two different programs. His first career honor landed in 2025: All-MAC. The receipt: 11 tackles, 2 TFL against California — Week 2, 2026.
15 TACKLES · 1 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- recognition record
- game log
His career
Nobody recruited him. He earned the honors anyway.
20236 games
- Signed with Toledoout of Seneca Valley
202511 games
- All-MACthird
2026
- Entered the portal
- Entered the portal
- Entered the portal
Career arc
HS
Recruit
—
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
🎖
ALL-MAC
All-MAC mention (2025)
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
2 coaches2023
Nunzio Campanile
Syracuse
Coaching transition mid-career: Nunzio Campanile → Fran Brown. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Where He Ended Up · Transfer
Transferred to Syracuse
2025Toledo
2026Syracuse
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2023Toledo11-3HC: Jason Candle · Run-leaning
2024Toledo8-5HC: Jason Candle · Balanced
2025Toledo8-5HC: Robert Weiner · Run-leaning
2026Syracuse1-1HC: Fran Brown · Balanced, fast tempo
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
High confidence
Elite: tackles for loss (95th percentile). Strength: solo tackles (87th 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: 7.5 TKL/g, 1.5 TFL/g, 0.5 SACK/g, 0.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Fran Brown
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
Tackle volume for the position at the early end of the ladder.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 66–3
4 TOT · 2 SOLO · 1 TFL
Dominant 63-point win at home against New Hampshire.
With S. Angeli — 263 yds · 3 TD · 0 INT · -14 rush yds (3 car) · D. Samuel Jr. — 2 SOLO · 2 TOT · 42 AVG
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Downhill striker who fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge.
CFB Index positional classification
DNA match
Player DNA
Thumper
Downhill striker who fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge.
LB
His 2026 production profile sits closest to Ben Davis’s 2021 season.
Matches Ben on
TFL rate
Height
Differs from Ben on
Hurry rate (lower)
Class year (lower)
Sack rate (lower)
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Johnny Hodges's senior season at TCU (2023).
73%match
All-Big 12
Matches Johnny on
TFL rate
Tackle volume
Height
Differs from Johnny on
Solo tackle rate (higher)
Hurry rate (lower)
Player DNA
Players who play like Chris D'Appolonia
Background
Career Overview: All-MAC linebacker at Toledo, who transferred to Syracuse in January, 2026 … Appeared in 26 games with 12 starts at linebacker, including starting every game of the 2025 regular season … Has 80 tackles, 3.5 tackles for loss, 1.0 sacks, four pass breakups, two quarterback hurries...
The linebacker corps · Syracuse
- #6Chris D'Appolonia59 tackles · 2025
- #10Gary Bryant III53 tackles · 2025
- #5Antoine Deslauriers48 tackles · 2025
- #18David Omopariola34 tackles · 2025
- #82Jamie Tremble10 tackles · 2025
7 more on the roster · Syracuse team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology