Kentucky · L 13-21
No tackles.
Mississippi State · W 23-15
No tackles.
South Carolina · L 25-42
2 tackles, 0.5 for loss
The other 5 games average 3 tackles. This one was 1 below.
Nesta has tackles in 6 of Oklahoma’s 8 games: none against Kentucky and Mississippi State.
“James Nesta left his feet and my mind goes to Teddy Lehman yelling "do NOT leave your feet.”
James Nesta
Third year in the Oklahoma linebacker corps. One game to point at: 5 tackles against New Mexico — Week 3, 2026.
19 tackles · 0 sacks
Play style
Is steady in every phase without a signature trait.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Fans first named James Nesta vs New Mexico.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Last game (Wk 9): 2 tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 6 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 51-0vs UTEP | 4 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 10-17@ Michigan | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 14-6vs New Mexico | 5 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | Season-high 5 tackles |
| Wk 4 | L 13-41@ No. 2 Georgia | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 27-24vs No. 1 Texas | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | L 25-42vs South Carolina | 2 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 19 | 8 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 1 |
Ratings of the games shown run from +9 to +27 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
19tackles this seasonTFL rate
3%0 TFLSack rate
0%0 sacksPD rate
5%1 pass breakups19 tackles · 0.5 for loss.
3 seasons under Brent Venables — 20-14 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 6 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home3g | 3.7 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
| Road2g | 3.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-75g | 3.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 |
| Weeks 8+1g | 2.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Brent Venables
Pass share
48.6%
250 pass / 264 run
Plays / game
64.2
8 games
Team sack rate
7.5%
293 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS linebackers who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Former four-star. Now #484 at the position.
2026 is in progress.
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coachPlayed every college season under Brent Venables.
