Desmond Branch: DL · Georgia Tech · #99.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Desmond Branch
Wins the gap play after play. Third year in the Georgia Tech defensive front. A game that shows it: 5 tackles and 1 INT against Clemson — Week 4, 2018.
Play style
Stout at the point of attack — steady tackle-for-loss production without a standout pass-rush number.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
37 tackles. 1 pass defended. 1 interception. 5 TFL.
Counts only, never a rate — splash-event sample sizes this small (interceptions, pass breakups, TFL) are noise as a rate and signal only as a tally.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Sports Illustrated Oct 27Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2018 | Georgia Tech | 37 | 17 | 5.0 | 0.5 | 1 | 1 |
| 2017 | Georgia Tech | 20 | 12 | 3.5 | 1.0 | 3 | -- |
| 2016 | Georgia Tech | 5 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | -- |
| Career | 62 | 32 | 8.5 | 1.5 | 5 | 1 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2018 season · 13 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 41-0vs Alcorn State | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 38-49@ South Florida | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 19-24@ Pittsburgh | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 21-49vs No. 3 Clemson | 5 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1 | 0 | Season-high 5 tackles |
| Wk 5 | W 63-17vs Bowling Green | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 6 | W 66-31@ Louisville | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 14-28vs Duke | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 49-28@ Virginia Tech | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | W 38-28@ North Carolina | 4 | 0 | 1.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | W 27-21vs Miami | 2 | 1 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | W 30-27vs Virginia | 3 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | L 21-45@ No. 5 Georgia | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
 Bowl | L 10-34vs Minnesota | 5 | 3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 37 | 17 | 5.0 | 0.5 | 1 | 1 |
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
TFL rate
14%5 TFLSack rate
1%0 sacksHurry rate
8%3 hurries37 tackles · 5 for loss · 0.5 sacks · 1 interception.
3 seasons under Paul Johnson — 21-16 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2018 season · 13 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home6g | 2.5 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.2 |
| Road6g | 2.8 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-78g | 2.9 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Weeks 8+5g | 2.8 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Paul Johnson
Pass share
14.6%
127 pass / 744 run
Plays / game
67.0
13 games
Team sack rate
11.9%
143 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy.
Player standing · 2018
37 tackles in 13 games, about as many tackles a game as a typical FBS defensive lineman who plays every week.
How it ended
Three seasons at Georgia Tech, 2 sacks — the college career is complete.
Coaching lineage · 2015–2018
1 coachPlayed every college season under Paul Johnson.
