Jesse Luketa: LB · Penn State · #40.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Jesse Luketa
Fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge. Four seasons in the Penn State linebacker corps to date. First career honor, 2021: All-Big Ten. A game that shows it: 8 tackles and 1 tackle for loss against Auburn — Week 3, 2021.
Play style
Downhill striker who fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
52 tackles. 0 passes defended. 1 interception. 7.5 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.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
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| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2021 | Penn State | 61 | 34 | 8.5 | 0.5 | -- | 1 |
| 2020 | Penn State | 59 | 31 | 2.5 | 0.0 | 2 | -- |
| 2019 | Penn State | 24 | 15 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 4 | -- |
| 2018 | Penn State | 7 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- |
| Career | 151 | 85 | 11.5 | 0.5 | 6 | 1 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2021 season · 11 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 16-10@ No. 12 Wisconsin | 5 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 44-13vs Ball State | 4 | 2 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 28-20vs No. 22 Auburn | 8 | 6 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 8 tackles |
| Wk 4 | W 38-17vs Villanova | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 24-0vs Indiana | 3 | 0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 20-23@ No. 3 Iowa | 5 | 4 | 2.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 2.5 TFL |
| Wk 8 | L 18-20vs Illinois | 6 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | L 24-33@ No. 5 Ohio State | 7 | 4 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | L 17-21vs No. 9 Michigan | 7 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | W 28-0vs Rutgers | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | L 27-30@ No. 12 Michigan State | 4 | 2 | 1.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 52 | 30 | 7.5 | 0.5 | 1 | 0 |
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
61tackles this seasonTFL rate
14%8 TFLSack rate
1%0 sacksPD rate
0%0 pass breakups61 tackles · 8.5 for loss · 0.5 sacks · 1 interception.
4 seasons under James Franklin — 31-17 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2021 season · 11 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home7g | 4.4 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 5.2 | 1.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 4.5 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+5g | 5.0 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
James Franklin
Pass share
52.2%
458 pass / 419 run
Plays / game
73.1
12 games
Team sack rate
6.8%
547 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2021
Picked for an all-conference team by at least one selector.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Former four-star. Now #144 at the position.
How it ended
Four seasons at Penn State, 151 tackles — drafted at #256 overall by the Arizona Cardinals.
A blue-chip recruit with honors.
The role got bigger.
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-BIG TEN
All-Big Ten mention (2021)
Coaching lineage · 2018–2021
1 coachPlayed every college season under James Franklin.
Next stop · NFL
Arizona CardinalsEntering 5th NFL season
Arizona CardinalsEntering 5th NFL seasonFrom Ottawa, ON.
