3 stories this week, from 3 outlets.
Video: Jayden Montgomery helped Iowa football pitch shutout vs. Wisconsin
Hawk Central Oct 31
Jayden Montgomery
Is steady in every phase without a signature trait. Second year in the Iowa linebacker corps. A game that shows it: 11 tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss against Ohio State — Week 5, 2026.
46 tackles · 2.5 sacks
Play style
Solid in every phase without a signature dimension.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
46 tackles. 0 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 7 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.
from 3 outlets
Video: Jayden Montgomery helped Iowa football pitch shutout vs. Wisconsin
Hawk Central Oct 31 · 1 outlet
from 9 outlets
Video: Jayden Montgomery helped Iowa football pitch shutout vs. Wisconsin
Hawk Central Oct 31 · 1 outlet
The Gazette (Cedar Rapids)Jayden Montgomery’s leadership to become a key element in Iowa football’s defenseAug 1
Sports IllustratedJayden Montgomery's Journey to Starting for Iowa Football Began Long AgoAug 2Hawk CentralThe story of Jayden Montgomery's emergence as leader for Iowa footballAug 26Hawk CentralHawk CentralHawk CentralHawk CentralSports IllustratedEach week: his team’s game, the stories about him that week, and the week’s biggest news headline.
Stories are headlines grouped by what they are about, counted through Nov 4.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Last game (Wk 9): 6 tackles, 1.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 8 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 40-0vs Northern Illinois | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 16-13vs Iowa State | 4 | 3 | 2.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 55-0vs Northern Iowa | 2 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 20-19@ No. 18 Michigan | 8 | 5 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | L 14-31vs No. 5 Ohio State | 11 | 4 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 11 tackles |
| Wk 6 | W 41-24@ Washington | 8 | 6 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 10-13@ Minnesota | 5 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 30-0vs No. 25 Wisconsin | 6 | 2 | 1.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 46 | 25 | 7.0 | 2.5 | — | 0 |
Oct. 31 · W 30-0 vs Wisconsin, play by play
6 tackles, including 1 more for loss.
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 on 3rd and 13. Fourth quarter, up 30-0.
His game this year: disruption in the backfield — 7 tackles for loss, 2 of them sacks, in the 8 games with play by play.
How Iowa’s defense played that day
Wisconsin’s 10 drives: 10 stopped (3 takeaways) · 0 scored.
5 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
8 tackles, including 1 sack.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Sacked the quarterback for a 13-yard loss on 3rd and 6. Second quarter, up 20-0.
11 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 10 of his 11, sacks included.
8 tackles, including 1 sack.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Sacked the quarterback for a 2-yard loss. Second quarter, down 10-7.
2 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
4 tackles, including 2 more for loss.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
2 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Week 4 · 2026
W 20-19
at Michigan
1 sack · 1 tackle for loss · 8 tackles
A close one, won by 1 on the road.
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 -25 to +29 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
15%7 TFLSack rate
5%2 sacksPD rate
0%0 pass breakups46 tackles · 7 for loss · 2.5 sacks.
2 seasons under Kirk Ferentz — 15-6 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 5.0 | 0.9 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| Road3g | 7.0 | 0.8 | 0.7 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 5.8 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 5.5 | 1.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Kirk Ferentz
Pass share
48.0%
240 pass / 260 run
Plays / game
62.5
8 games
Team sack rate
2.7%
258 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2026
About as many tackles a game as a typical FBS linebacker who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #129 at the position.
2026 outlook
Outside shot for All-Big Ten
Based on 2025: #61 of 72 Big Ten LBs
A base rate for the rank, not a forecast of this player: 15% of returning players who ranked #21 or lower at their position in their conference made an all-conference team the next season (95% confidence interval 13–17%).
The No. 1,470 recruit in the country is starting at linebacker in the Big Ten.
2026 is in progress.
Coaching lineage · 2022–2026
1 coachPlayed every college season under Kirk Ferentz.
CBS Sports College Football
