Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 1 game
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 28-9vs Austin Peay | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 1 tackles |
| Total | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#1
Dontae Carter
Junior safety on Vanderbilt's 2026 roster.
6′1″ · 196 lb · Cibolo, TX · Byron P. Steele
CFB Index 19 · #509 of 544 safetiesMedium confidenceReturning to Vanderbilt 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
4★
S recruit
No. 166 nationally · Signed with Vanderbilt
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
3 safety on Vanderbilt's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 4-star recruit to Vanderbilt in 2024.
Dontae Carter
Moves between deep coverage and the slot. This is his third year in the same secondary at Vanderbilt. The receipt: 1 tackles against Austin Peay — Week 1, 2026.
1 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- seasons on the roster
- game log
His career
He was on the field for 3 seasons. That is rarer than it sounds.
202410 games
- Signed with Vanderbilt4-star out of Cibolo Steele
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★★
CFB
College
Vanderbilt
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coach2024–2026
Vanderbilt
Played his entire career under Clark Lea.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
3 seasons under Clark Lea — 19-9 over that span.
2024Vanderbilt7-6HC: Clark Lea · Run-heavy, slow tempo
2025Vanderbilt10-3HC: Clark Lea · Balanced, slow tempo
2026Vanderbilt2-0HC: Clark Lea · Run-leaning
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Medium 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: 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
Clark Lea
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.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Production · CFB Index Score
19 · #509 of 544 safeties
Former four-star. Now #509 at the position.
2026 outlook
Outside shot for All-SEC
Based on 2025: #26 of 28 SEC Ss
How the All-SEC estimate is computed
15% estimated, 95% confidence interval 13–17%. 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
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Vanderbilt | 1 | -- | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2025 | Vanderbilt | 33 | 18 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | -- | -- |
| 2024 | Vanderbilt | 11 | 8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2 | -- | -- |
| Career | 45 | 26 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 3 | -- | -- |
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 28–9
vs Austin Peay
1 TOT
With T. Ebel — 52 AVG · 1 IN 20 · 59 LONG · B. Berlowitz — 149 yds · 0 TD · 0 INT · 45 rush yds (11 car) · 1 TD
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Vanderbilt
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Safety · Vanderbilt
Returning around him
- 1 Vanderbilt player drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -2 net (18 in / 20 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Vanderbilt · Last season: 10-3 (AP #13) · Talent rank #42 · 2026 recruiting class #33
DNA match
Player DNA
Hybrid Nickel
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
S
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Tyson Player’s 2021 season.
Matches Tyson on
PD rate
Height
TFL rate
Differs from Tyson on
Class year (higher)
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Ayden Duncanson's sophomore season at East Carolina (2025).
Matches Ayden on
Class year
PD rate
Weight
The secondary · Vanderbilt
- #8C.J. Heard71 tackles · 2025
- #7Ricardo Jones39 tackles · 2025
- #4Martel Hight35 tackles · 2025
- #1Dontae Carter33 tackles · 2025
- #6Jordan Matthews19 tackles · 2025
18 more on the roster · Vanderbilt team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology