Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 31-3vs Houston Christian | 3 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 0-52@ Notre Dame | 10 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 10 tackles |
| Total | 13 | 6 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#44
Cooper King
Junior linebacker for Rice. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
5′10″ · 211 lb · Stratford, TX · Stratford
Returning to Rice for 2026
The numbers
13
tackles · 2026
0.5 TFL
2 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 10 tackles, at Notre Dame
His career numbers, season by seasonCooper King
Cooper King has been at Rice through two head coaches in three seasons. The receipt: 10 tackles against Notre Dame — Week 2, 2026.
13 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- head-coach lineage
- game log
Career arc
HS
Recruit
—
CFB
College
Rice
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
2 coaches2024
Rice
2025–2026era →
Scott Abell
Rice
Coaching transition mid-career: Mike Bloomgren → Scott Abell. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2024Rice4-8HC: Mike Bloomgren · Pass-leaning
2025Rice5-8HC: Scott Abell · Run-heavy
2026Rice1-1HC: Scott Abell · Run-heavy, slow tempo
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Production sits in the middle of the position cohort across the board.
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: 6.5 TKL/g, 0.2 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
Scott Abell
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
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 31–3
3 TOT · 1 SOLO · 0 TFL
Dominant 28-point win at home against Houston Christian.
With Q. Jackson — 61 rush yds (10 car) · 2 TD · C. Durkin — 54 AVG · 54 LONG · 1 NO
Game log
How he plays
2026 Outlook
Rice
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Linebacker · Rice
Returning around him
- Transfer portal: -2 net (20 in / 22 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Rice · Last season: 5-8 · Talent rank #100 · 2026 recruiting class #104
Background
Pronunciation Guide Honors at Rice American Conference All-Academic 2024, 2025, 2026 2025 Saw action in all 13 games on special teams (80 snaps) and in three games on defense (Prairie View, UTSA & the Armed Forces Bowl… Credited with tackles in each appearance on defense, finishing the year with...
The linebacker corps · Rice
- #33Stone Combs72 tackles · 2025
- #54Austin Harnetiaux37 tackles · 2025
- #44Cooper King8 tackles · 2025
- #14Beau Barton6 tackles · 2025
- #34Kaleb Blanton2 games · 2026
2 more on the roster · Rice team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology