BYU · W 39-31
No tackles.
Baylor · L 9-41
4 tackles, 0.5 for loss
The other 6 games average 2 tackles. This one was 2 above.
McDonald has tackles in 7 of UCF’s 8 games: none against BYU.
Jayden McDonald
The four seasons span two programs and two head coaches: Brent Pry and Scott Frost. One game to point at: 4 tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss against Baylor — Week 9, 2026.
17 tackles · 0 sacks
Play style
Is steady in every phase without a signature trait.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Yahoo Sports Oct 29Yahoo Sports Oct 26Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | UCF | 17 | 8 | 1.5 | 0.0 | -- | -- |
| 2025 | UCF | 15 | 9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2023 | Virginia Tech | 26 | 8 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1 | -- |
| 2022 | Virginia Tech | 19 | 6 | 3.0 | 1.0 | -- | -- |
| Career | 77 | 31 | 5.5 | 1.0 | 2 | 1 |
Last game (Wk 9): 4 tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 7 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 73-6vs Bethune-Cookman | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 7-12@ Pittsburgh | 4 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 4 tackles |
| Wk 3 | W 44-30vs Georgia State | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 21-13vs TCU | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | L 17-27@ No. 20 Houston | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 28-42@ No. 18 Oklahoma State | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | L 9-41vs Baylor | 4 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 17 | 8 | 1.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
Ratings of the games shown run from -9 to +13 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
17tackles this seasonTFL rate
9%2 TFLSack rate
0%0 sacksPD rate
0%0 pass breakups17 tackles · 1.5 for loss.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 7 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 2.5 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Road3g | 2.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 2.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+1g | 4.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Scott Frost
Pass share
48.3%
248 pass / 265 run
Plays / game
64.1
8 games
Team sack rate
5.7%
280 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS linebackers who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #518 at the position.
The No. 2,057 recruit in the country is starting at linebacker in the Big 12.
2026 is in progress.
A stat line in 31 games over four seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2021–2026
4 coachesPlayed for 4 head coaches at 2 schools: Justin Fuente, J.C. Price, Brent Pry and Scott Frost.
