San José State · W 21-16
4 tackles
The other 7 games average 3 tackles. This one was 1 above.
Drew Speech
Played for two head coaches at New Mexico: Bronco Mendenhall and Jason Eck. A game that shows it: 5 tackles and 1 sack against Central Michigan — Week 1, 2026.
23 tackles · 1 sack
Play style
Moves between deep coverage and the slot.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
23 tackles. 3 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 4 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.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | New Mexico | 23 | 16 | 4.0 | 1.0 | 3 |
| 2025 | New Mexico | 10 | 6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 8 |
| 2024 | New Mexico | 8 | 6 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 2 |
| Career | 41 | 28 | 5.0 | 1.0 | 13 |
Last game (Wk 9): 1 pass breakup, 4 tackles.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 8 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 38-7vs Central Michigan | 5 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 5 tackles |
| Wk 2 | W 70-7vs Mercyhurst | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 6-14@ No. 24 Oklahoma | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 42-18@ New Mexico State | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 61-7vs UTEP | 2 | 1 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | W 21-10@ Hawai'i | 3 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 8 | W 21-16vs North Dakota State | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 9 | W 21-16@ San José State | 4 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Total | 23 | 16 | 4.0 | 1.0 | — | 3 |
Oct. 31 · W 21-16 at San José State, play by play
4 tackles, including 1 pass broken up.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
His game this year: disruption in the backfield — 4 tackles for loss, 1 of them a sack, in the 8 games with play by play.
How New Mexico’s defense played that day
San José State’s 10 drives: 7 stopped (2 takeaways) · 3 scored. While the game was within a score they held 5 of 7. His pbu came with New Mexico up 5.
2 tackles, including 1 pass broken up.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
3 tackles, including 1 pass broken up. The fumble he forced on 3rd and 12 ended Hawai'i’s drive (fumble).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 2 of his 3, sacks included.
Forced a fumble on 3rd and 12. Fourth quarter, down 10-7. Ended Hawai'i’s drive (fumble).
2 tackles, including 1 more for loss.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
3 tackles, including 1 more for loss.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
3 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
1 tackle, including 1 more for loss.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
5 tackles, including 1 sack.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Sacked the quarterback for a 7-yard loss on 3rd and 6. First quarter, tied 0-0.
Week 1 · 2026
W 38-7
1 sack · 1 tackle for loss · 5 tackles
Dominant 31-point win at home against Central Michigan.
Ratings of the games shown run from -24 to +10 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
13%3 pass breakupsTackle volume
23tackles this seasonTFL rate
17%4 TFL23 tackles · 4 for loss · 1 sack · 3 pass breakups.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 2.5 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
| Road4g | 3.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 2.8 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 3.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Jason Eck
Pass share
28.9%
142 pass / 349 run
Plays / game
61.4
8 games
Team sack rate
10.6%
180 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy, slow tempo.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS defensive backs who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
2026 is in progress.
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Bronco Mendenhall → Jason Eck. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
