Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 59-7vs Eastern Illinois | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 13-38vs Mississippi State | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 2 tackles |
| Total | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#17
John Nestor
Senior defensive back on Minnesota's 2026 roster.
6′1″ · 210 lb · Chicago, IL · Marist
CFB Index 97 · #2 of 364 cornersLow confidenceReturning to Minnesota for 2026
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.
Recruiting
3★
S recruit
No. 833 nationally · Signed with Iowa
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
4 defensive back on Minnesota's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Iowa in 2023.
- Transferred from Iowa to Minnesota in 2025.
John Nestor
Hits like a linebacker and still takes the ball away. Two head coaches in four seasons, at two different programs. In 2025 the league put his name on paper for the first time: Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week. One game to point at: 2 tackles against Mississippi State — Week 2, 2026.
3 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- recognition record
- game log
His career
Nobody recruited him. He earned the honors anyway.
2023
- Signed with Iowa3-star out of Marist
202511 games
The role got bigger.
- Entered the portal
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
1 coach2023–2026
Minnesota
Played his entire career under P.J. Fleck.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2023Iowa10-4HC: Kirk Ferentz · Run-leaning, slow tempo
2024Iowa8-5HC: Kirk Ferentz · Run-heavy, slow tempo
2025Minnesota8-5HC: P.J. Fleck · Balanced, slow tempo
2026Minnesota1-1HC: P.J. Fleck · Pass-leaning
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Low confidenceBreakout
Concern: tackles (0th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
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 & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 1.5 TKL/g, 0.0 TFL/g, 0.0 SACK/g, 0.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
P.J. Fleck
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2025
Part-time starter
Tackle volume for the position in part-time-starter range.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Production · CFB Index Score
97 · #2 of 364 corners
Three-star recruit. Now #2 at the position.
2026 outlook
In the mix for All-Big Ten
Based on 2025: #1 of 77 Big Ten DBs
How the All-Big Ten estimate is computed
49% estimated, 95% confidence interval 43–54%. Base rate measured from players who finished at a comparable rank in their conference and came back the next season. It is an estimate from a small sample, not a forecast of this player.
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 59–7
1 TOT · 1 SOLO
Dominant 52-point win at home against Eastern Illinois.
With J. Tracy — 5 rec · 98 yds · D. Lindsey — 264 yds · 1 TD · 0 INT · QBR 86.2 · 6 rush yds (2 car)
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Hits like a linebacker and still takes the ball away.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Minnesota
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Defensive back · Minnesota
Returning around him
- 1 Minnesota player drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -1 net (19 in / 20 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Minnesota · Last season: 8-5 · Talent rank #41 · 2026 recruiting class #28
DNA match
Player DNA
Rover
Hits like a linebacker and still takes the ball away.
S
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Giovanni Biggers’s 2021 season.
Matches Giovanni on
PD rate
Class year
Differs from Giovanni on
TFL rate (higher)
Height (lower)
Weight (higher)
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a junior, his production profile tracks closest to Randon Fontenette's junior season at Vanderbilt (2025).
86%match
Matches Randon on
PD rate
Tackle volume
TFL rate
Background
PRONUNCIATION Your browser does not support HTML5 audio. HONORS: Big Ten Defensive Player of the Week (Dec. 1, 2025) Bednarik Award Player of the Week (Dec. 2, 2025) OVERVIEW: Enrolled at Minnesota in June 2025 • spent the previous two seasons (2023-24) at Iowa. 2025: Played in 11 games • made 50...
The secondary · Minnesota
- #14Kerry Brown56 tackles · 2025
- #17John Nestor50 tackles · 2025
- #7Aidan Gousby27 tackles · 2025
- #5Aydan West19 tackles · 2025
- #8Mike Gerald11 tackles · 2025
16 more on the roster · Minnesota team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology