Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 45-16vs UT Rio Grande Valley | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 31-26@ Texas State | 8 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 8 tackles |
| Total | 10 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#22
Elijah Newell
Sophomore safety on UTSA's 2026 roster.
5′10″ · 190 lb · Maumelle, AR · Maumelle HS
Returning to UTSA for 2026
Recruiting
3★
S recruit
No. 2157 nationally · Signed with UTSA
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
2 safety on UTSA's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to UTSA in 2024.
Elijah Newell
This is his third year in the same secondary at UTSA. The receipt on tape: 8 tackles against Texas State, Week 2, 2026.
10 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- seasons on the roster
- game log
His career
20245 games
- Signed with UTSA3-star out of Maumelle
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
UTSA
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coach2024–2026
UTSA
Played his entire career under Jeff Traylor.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
3 seasons under Jeff Traylor — 16-12 over that span.
2024UTSA7-6HC: Jeff Traylor · Balanced, fast tempo
2025UTSA7-6HC: Jeff Traylor · Balanced
2026UTSA2-0HC: Jeff Traylor · Balanced
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Concern: tackles (10th 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: 5.0 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
Jeff Traylor
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 45–16
Game log
How he plays
2026 Outlook
UTSA
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Safety · UTSA
Returning around him
- Transfer portal: -1 net (22 in / 23 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
UTSA · Last season: 7-6 · Talent rank #72 · 2026 recruiting class #79
The secondary · UTSA
- #15Tyan Milton51 tackles · 2025
- #12Marcellus Wilkerson27 tackles · 2025
- #14Jer'Marius Lewis25 tackles · 2025
- #27Jakevian Rodgers23 tackles · 2025
- #22Elijah Newell13 tackles · 2025
21 more on the roster · UTSA team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology