Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 1 game
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 2 | W 28-10vs San Diego State | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 2 tackles |
| Total | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#21
Dante Lovett
Junior defensive back on UCLA's 2026 roster.
6′0″ · 198 lb · Crofton, MD · DeMatha Catholic HS / Virginia Tech
CFB Index 42 · #203 of 327 cornersLow confidenceTransferred Virginia Tech → UCLA 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.
Recruiting
3★
S recruit
No. 882 nationally · Signed with Virginia Tech
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
3 defensive back on UCLA's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Virginia Tech in 2023.
- Transferred from Virginia Tech to UCLA in 2026.
Dante Lovett
Doesn't get beat deep and rarely gives up the big play. Dante Lovett has played for two head coaches across four seasons and two programs. The receipt: 2 tackles against San Diego State — 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
20236 games
- Signed with Virginia Tech3-star out of DeMatha Catholic
2026
- Entered the portal
- Entered the portal
- Entered the portal
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
4 coachesPlayed under 4 different head coaches: Chip Kelly, Deshaun Foster, Tim Skipper, and Bob Chesney. Multi-era developmental context.
Where He Ended Up · Transfer
Transferred to UCLA
2025Virginia Tech
2026UCLA
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2023Virginia Tech7-6HC: Brent Pry · Run-leaning
2024Virginia Tech6-7HC: Brent Pry · Run-leaning
2025Virginia Tech3-9HC: Brent Pry · Run-leaning
2026UCLA2-0HC: Bob Chesney · Run-heavy, slow tempo
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Low confidence
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 1 game: 2.0 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
Bob Chesney
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2024
Rotational
Tackle volume for the position in rotation-piece range.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Production · CFB Index Score
42 · #203 of 327 corners
Three-star recruit. Now #203 at the position.
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | UCLA | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2025 | Virginia Tech | 6 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2024 | Virginia Tech | 20 | 12 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 4 | 1 | -- |
| 2023 | Virginia Tech | 8 | 6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3 | -- | -- |
| Career | 36 | 22 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 7 | 1 | -- |
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 2 · 2026
W 28–10
2 TOT · 1 SOLO
With C. Gerrand — 49 AVG · 2 IN 20 · 55 LONG · N. Iamaleava — 151 yds · 0 TD · 1 INT · QBR 31.0 · 57 rush yds (13 car)
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Steady in coverage; doesn't get beat deep and rarely gives up the big play.
CFB Index positional classification
DNA match
Player DNA
Cover Corner
Steady in coverage; doesn't get beat deep and rarely gives up the big play.
S
His 2024 production profile sits closest to Tommi Hill’s 2022 season.
79%match
Matches Tommi on
Height
Weight
PD rate
Differs from Tommi on
Class year (lower)
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Jalil Tucker's sophomore season at Oregon State (2025).
Matches Jalil on
Class year
Height
Interceptions
Differs from Jalil on
Weight (higher)
Player DNA
Players who play like Dante Lovett
The secondary · UCLA
- #4Cole Martin65 tackles · 2025
- #6Tao Johnson50 tackles · 2025
- #1Scooter Jackson44 tackles · 2025
- #32DJ Barksdale36 tackles · 2025
- #21Dante Lovett6 tackles · 2025
18 more on the roster · UCLA team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology