Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 21-17vs UAlbany | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 1 tackles |
| Wk 2 | L 20-33@ Florida International | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#99
Cornell Evans
Senior defensive tackle on Buffalo's 2026 roster.
6′0″ · 290 lb · Baltimore, MD · St. Frances Academy
Returning to Buffalo for 2026
The numbers
0
sacks · 2026
2 tackles · 1 hurries
2 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 1 tackles, vs UAlbany
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
4 defensive tackle on Buffalo's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Buffalo in 2022.
Cornell Evans
Wins his gap play after play. Four seasons at Buffalo, two different head coaches: Maurice Linguist and Pete Lembo. The receipt on tape: 1 tackles against Florida International, Week 2, 2026.
2 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- game log
His career
2022
- Signed with Buffalo3-star out of St. Frances Academy
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
Buffalo
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
2 coaches2023–2024
Buffalo
Coaching transition mid-career: Maurice Linguist → Pete Lembo. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2023Buffalo3-9HC: Maurice Linguist · Balanced
2024Buffalo9-4HC: Maurice Linguist · Run-heavy
2025Buffalo5-7HC: Pete Lembo · Balanced
2026Buffalo1-1HC: Pete Lembo · Pass-leaning
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Elite: qb hurries (83rd percentile). Concern: tackles (0th 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: 1.0 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
Pete Lembo
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2025
Rotational
Tackle volume for the position in rotation-piece range.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 21–17
vs UAlbany
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Stout at the point of attack — steady tackle-for-loss production without a standout pass-rush number.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Buffalo
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Defensive tackle · Buffalo
Returning around him
- 1 Buffalo player drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: +0 net (16 in / 16 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Buffalo · Last season: 5-7 · Talent rank #120 · 2026 recruiting class #101
DNA match
Player DNA
Two-Gap Base
Stout at the point of attack — steady tackle-for-loss production without a standout pass-rush number.
IDL
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Aeneas Peebles’s 2021 season.
92%match
NFL Rd 6
Matches Aeneas on
TFL rate
Weight
Height
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a junior, his production profile tracks closest to Fitzgerald West Jr.'s junior season at Louisiana (2025).
Matches Fitzgerald on
Class year
TFL rate
Hurry rate
Player DNA
Players who play like Cornell Evans
Background
Hoof Prints: Defensive tackle who worked his way into the starting lineup in 2024... major is communication. Redshirt-Junior (2025): Appeared in all 12 games and made seven starts... had 14 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss and a sack on the season... had a season-high four tackles and a tackle for l...
The defensive line · Buffalo
- #99Cornell Evans1.5 tackles for loss · 2025
- #11Will Clark0.5 tackles for loss · 2025
- #30Jacari Bennett0 tackles for loss · 2025
- #95Stantavious Smith1 game · 2026
- #16Caleb Oliver1 game · 2026
16 more on the roster · Buffalo team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology