Senior defensive lineman for Michigan State. 2023: 0.5 sacks, 0.5 tackles for loss, 15 tackles.
6′7″ · 330 lb · Colorado Springs, CO
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The story
4 defensive lineman for Michigan State. 2023: 0.5 sacks, 0.5 tackles for loss, 15 tackles.
Recruiting
DT recruit
No. 2414 nationally · Signed with Colorado
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonJalen Sami
Controls the point of attack and doesn't move. Jalen Sami has played for three head coaches across five seasons and two programs. The receipt on tape: 5 tackles against Penn State, Week 13, 2023.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
How it ended
Five seasons at Michigan State, 2 sacks — his college career is complete.
His career
He was on the field for 5 seasons. That is rarer than it sounds.
Career arc
Coaching lineage · 2019–2023
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Mark Dantonio → Mel Tucker. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Season context · Team result + system
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Concern: solo tackles (1st percentile).
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 · Per-game
2023 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 1.8 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-72g | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+6g | 2.2 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Pat Fitzgerald
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Player standing · 2023
Tackle volume for the position in rotation-piece range.
Recognition
Production · CFB Index Score
Two-star recruit. Now #280 at the position.
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Michigan State | 15 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.5 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2022 | Colorado | 28 | 15 | 3.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2021 | Colorado | 26 | 14 | 3.5 | 1.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2020 | Colorado | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2019 | Colorado | 24 | 11 | 1.5 | 0.5 | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 97 | 45 | 8.5 | 2.0 | -- | -- | -- |
Game log · Week-by-week
2023 season · 8 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 31-7vs Central Michigan | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 24-27@ Rutgers | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 0-49vs Michigan | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | L 12-27@ Minnesota | 1 | 0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | W 20-17vs Nebraska | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | L 3-38@ Ohio State | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | W 24-21@ Indiana | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | L 0-42vs Penn State | 5 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 5 tackles |
| Total | 15 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 |
Play style
The heaviest frame on the interior. Sack production is intentionally not the point of this profile.
CFB Index positional classification
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
15 tackles. 0 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 0.5 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.
Player DNA
The heaviest frame on the interior. Sack production is intentionally not the point of this profile.
His 2023 production profile sits closest to Tyrique Howard’s 2022 season.
Matches Tyrique on
Differs from Tyrique on
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a graduate, his production profile tracks closest to Gabriel Rubio's graduate season at Notre Dame (2025).
Matches Gabriel on
Differs from Gabriel on
Player DNA