UCLA · L 0-27
9 tackles, 0.5 for loss
The other 7 games average 11 tackles. This one was 2 below.
EJ Smith
Is steady in every phase without a signature trait. Second year in the Nevada linebacker corps. A game that shows it: 21 tackles against Air Force — Week 4, 2026.
86 tackles · 2.5 sacks
Play style
Solid in every phase without a signature dimension.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
86 tackles. 3 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 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.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Last game (Wk 9): 9 tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss, 1 pass breakup.
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 49-14vs Western Kentucky | 14 | 9 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 7-20vs Montana State | 10 | 7 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 20-27@ Middle Tennessee | 11 | 5 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 2 | |
| Wk 4 | L 33-36vs Air Force | 21 | 10 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 21 tackles |
| Wk 6 | W 30-13@ UTEP | 4 | 1 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 17-31@ North Dakota State | 12 | 8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 28-13vs San José State | 5 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | L 0-27@ No. 7 UCLA | 9 | 5 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Total | 86 | 47 | 5.0 | 2.5 | — | 3 |
Oct. 31 · L 0-27 at UCLA, play by play
9 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 — 5 tackles for loss, 2 of them sacks, in the 8 games with play by play.
How Nevada’s defense played that day
UCLA’s 10 drives: 6 stopped · 4 scored.
5 tackles. He hurried the quarterback once.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
A big game: 12 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
4 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 4-yard loss on 3rd and 4. First quarter, up 7-0.
21 tackles.
11 tackles, including 2 passes broken up, tied for 4th-most passes broken up in FBS that week.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Sacked the quarterback for a 4-yard loss on 3rd and 4. Third quarter, tied 17-17.
10 tackles, including 1 more for loss, 1 sack. His sack on 3rd and 21 ended Montana State’s drive (punt).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Sacked the quarterback for a 4-yard loss on 3rd and 21. First quarter, down 7-0. Ended Montana State’s drive (punt).
A big game: 14 tackles, including 1 more for loss.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 15 for him; the box score credits 14.
Ratings of the games shown run from -24 to +14 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
86tackles this seasonTFL rate
6%5 TFLSack rate
3%2 sacksPD rate
3%3 pass breakups86 tackles · 5 for loss · 2.5 sacks.
2 seasons under Jeff Choate — 6-14 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 12.5 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 9.0 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.8 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 12.0 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.3 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 7.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Jeff Choate
Pass share
43.4%
221 pass / 288 run
Plays / game
63.6
8 games
Team sack rate
4.8%
248 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2026
86 tackles in 8 games, more tackles a game than nearly every FBS linebacker who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
2026 is in progress.
