Elijah Roberts: DE · SMU · #5.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Elijah Roberts
Collapses the pocket even when the sack doesn't come. The five seasons span two programs and four head coaches: Manny Diaz, Jess Simpson, Mario Cristobal and Rhett Lashlee. The first one came in 2023: All-AAC. A game that shows it: 6 tackles against Florida State — Week 5, 2024.
Play style
Collapses the pocket even when the sack doesn't come.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
32 tackles. 1 pass defended. 0 interceptions. 10 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.
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Game log · Week-by-week
2024 season · 12 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 29-24@ Nevada | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 2 sacks |
| Wk 2 | L 15-18vs BYU | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 66-42vs TCU | 3 | 2 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 42-16vs Florida State | 6 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 6 tackles |
| Wk 6 | W 34-27@ No. 22 Louisville | 5 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 40-10@ Stanford | 3 | 2 | 1.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 28-27@ Duke | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | W 48-25vs No. 18 Pittsburgh | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | W 33-7@ Virginia | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 14 | W 38-6vs California | 4 | 2 | 1.5 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 15 | L 31-34vs No. 18 Clemson | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Bowl | L 10-38@ No. 5 Penn State | 4 | 1 | 2.0 | 2.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 32 | 15 | 10.0 | 6.5 | — | 1 |
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Sack rate
20%6 sacksTFL rate
31%10 TFLHurry rate
31%10 hurriesPressure-to-sack conversion
39%6 of 16 pressures32 tackles · 10 for loss · 6.5 sacks.
Splits · Per-game
2024 season · 12 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 3.4 | 0.9 | 0.4 | 0.0 |
| Road6g | 2.3 | 0.8 | 0.6 | 0.2 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 3.7 | 1.0 | 0.7 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+6g | 1.7 | 0.7 | 0.4 | 0.2 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Rhett Lashlee
Pass share
45.3%
436 pass / 527 run
Plays / game
68.8
14 games
Team sack rate
4.0%
455 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2024
About as many tackles a game as a typical FBS defensive lineman who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
How it ended
Five seasons, at Miami and SMU, 16 sacks — drafted at #157 overall by the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Four or fewer games in the first season, then ten or more.
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-AAC · 2ND TEAM
All-AAC 2nd team (2023)
Coaching lineage · 2020–2024
3 coachesPlayed for 3 head coaches at 2 schools: Manny Diaz, Mario Cristobal and Rhett Lashlee.
Next stop · NFL
Tampa Bay BuccaneersEntering 2nd NFL season
Tampa Bay BuccaneersEntering 2nd NFL season
