Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 17-3vs Tulane | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 31-27@ Illinois | 6 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 6 tackles |
| Total | 9 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#8
DaShawn Stone
Junior safety on Duke's 2026 roster.
6′3″ · 195 lb · Asheville, NC · A.C. Reynolds
CFB Index 72 · #91 of 544 safetiesMedium confidenceReturning to Duke 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. 1173 nationally · Signed with Duke
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
3 safety on Duke's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Duke in 2023.
Buzz vs Tape
Country hotter than the fans
The wider college football conversation reads him warmer than his own fans do — a gap of 42.2 points in belief.
27.8own fans
70national conversation
Also worth knowing:
DaShawn Stone
Plays like an extra linebacker near the line. Four seasons at Duke, two different head coaches: Trooper Taylor and Manny Diaz. 2025 brought the first one: ACC Defensive Back Player of the Week. The receipt on tape: 6 tackles against Illinois, Week 2, 2026.
9 TACKLES · 0 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.
2023
- Signed with Duke3-star out of A.C. Reynolds
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
Duke
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
2 coaches2023
Trooper Taylor
Duke
Coaching transition mid-career: Trooper Taylor → Manny Diaz. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2023Duke8-5HC: Trooper Taylor · Run-leaning, slow tempo
2024Duke9-4HC: Manny Diaz · Pass-leaning
2025Duke9-5HC: Manny Diaz · Balanced
2026Duke2-0HC: Manny Diaz · Run-heavy
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Medium confidenceAscending
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: 4.5 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
Manny Diaz
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2025
Impact starter
Tackle volume for the position among the most productive regulars.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Production · CFB Index Score
72 · #91 of 544 safeties
Three-star recruit. Now #91 at the position.
2026 outlook
In the mix for All-ACC
Based on 2025: #5 of 25 ACC Ss
How the All-ACC estimate is computed
35% estimated, 95% confidence interval 31–38%. Base rate measured from players who finished at a comparable rank in their conference and came back the next season. It is an estimate from a small sample, not a forecast of this player.
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 2 · 2026
W 31–27
at Illinois
6 TOT · 3 SOLO
A wire-to-wire battle — won by 4 on the road.
With W. Eget — 206 yds · 3 TD · 0 INT · QBR 75.9 · -2 rush yds (1 car) · N. Sheppard — 147 rush yds (24 car) · 1 TD
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Lives near the line of scrimmage as a de facto extra linebacker.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Duke
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Safety · Duke
Returning around him
- 3 Duke players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: +2 net (19 in / 17 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Duke · Last season: 9-5 · Talent rank #69 · 2026 recruiting class #71
DNA match
Player DNA
Box Safety
Lives near the line of scrimmage as a de facto extra linebacker.
S
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Corey Myrick’s 2025 season.
Matches Corey on
Class year
PD rate
Tackle volume
Differs from Corey on
TFL rate (lower)
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a junior, his production profile tracks closest to Wylan Free's junior season at Georgia Southern (2022).
Matches Wylan on
PD rate
TFL rate
Weight
Player DNA
Players who play like DaShawn Stone
Background
2026 ACCOLADES Fourth Team Preseason All-ACC (Athlon) 2026: Returning starting safety … two-time Academic All-ACC selection (2024-25) .. .one of five returning student-athletes in the ACC to have booked 85 or more tackles in 2025 ... pairs with linebacker Luke Mergott to give Duke the only duo in...
The secondary · Duke
- #8DaShawn Stone86 tackles · 2025
- #2Patrick Smith-Young70 tackles · 2025
- #3Landan Callahan42 tackles · 2025
- #5Kimari Robinson34 tackles · 2025
- Dylan Flowers33 tackles · 2025
12 more on the roster · Duke team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology