UTEP · W 31-7
No tackles.
Sell has tackles in 8 of North Dakota State’s 9 games: none against UTEP.
Gavin Sell
Is steady in every phase without a signature trait. On tape: 10 tackles and 5 tackles for loss against New Mexico, Week 8, 2026.
46 tackles · 2 sacks
Play style
Solid in every phase without a signature dimension.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
46 tackles. 1 pass defended. 1 interception. 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.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | North Dakota State | 46 | 21 | 10.0 | 2.0 | 1 | 1 |
| Career | 46 | 21 | 10.0 | 2.0 | 1 | 1 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 8 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 33-7vs Jacksonville State | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 1 | W 38-0vs Fordham | 6 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 38-32@ Air Force | 6 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 31-10@ Sacramento State | 6 | 2 | 2.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 28-0vs Wyoming | 8 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 7-13@ UNLV | 4 | 2 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | W 31-17vs Nevada | 4 | 3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 8 | L 16-21@ New Mexico | 10 | 7 | 5.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 10 tackles |
| Total | 46 | 21 | 10.0 | 2.0 | 1 | 1 |
Oct. 24 · L 16-21 at New Mexico, play by play
10 tackles, including 4 more for loss, 1 sack, the most tackles for loss 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 5-yard loss. Third quarter, down 14-9.
Against his own season: his best backfield disruption game of the season so far.
His game this year: disruption in the backfield — 10 tackles for loss, 2 of them sacks, in the 8 games with play by play.
How North Dakota State’s defense played that day
New Mexico’s 11 drives: 9 stopped (1 takeaway) · 2 scored. While the game was within a score they held 8 of 10. His sack came with North Dakota State down 5.
4 tackles, including 1 more for loss, 1 pass broken up.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
4 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
8 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 7 of his 8, sacks included.
A defensive touchdown: his fumble recovery went 24 yards for the score. 6 tackles, including 2 more for loss.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 5 of his 6, sacks included.
Forced a fumble, recovered and returned for the score. First quarter, made it 14-0.
6 tackles, including 1 interception. His interception on 3rd and 9 ended Air Force’s drive (int).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Intercepted on 3rd and 9. Second quarter, up 21-7. Ended Air Force’s drive (int).
6 tackles, including 1 sack.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 7 for him; the box score credits 6.
Sacked the quarterback for a 9-yard loss on 3rd and 5. First quarter, up 3-0.
2 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Conference ranks count every player in the conference with a row in that stat, any position. Career ranks count current FBS players, from the games in our log.
Ratings of the games shown run from -29 to +9 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
46tackles this seasonTFL rate
22%10 TFLSack rate
4%2 sacksPD rate
2%1 pass breakups46 tackles · 10 for loss · 2 sacks · 1 interception.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 5.0 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
| Road4g | 6.5 | 1.9 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 5.1 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Weeks 8+1g | 10.0 | 5.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Tim Polasek
Pass share
40.7%
236 pass / 344 run
Plays / game
64.4
9 games
Team sack rate
4.1%
266 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2026
About as many tackles a game as a typical FBS linebacker who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Two-star recruit. Now #57 at the position.
The No. 3,325 recruit in the country is starting at linebacker in the Mountain West.
