Air Force · W 28-14
3 tackles, 0.5 for loss
The other 7 games average 7 tackles. This one was 4 below.
Jones Thomas
Hits like a linebacker and still takes the ball away. Third year in the Wyoming secondary. On tape: 8 tackles against Northern Illinois, Week 7, 2026.
53 tackles · 0 sacks
Play style
Hits like a linebacker and still takes the ball away.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
53 tackles. 10 passes defended. 2 interceptions. 1.5 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.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Last game (Wk 8): 1 pass breakup, 3 tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss.
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 | L 13-35@ Colorado State | 8 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 8 tackles |
| Wk 2 | W 21-13vs Northern Colorado | 5 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 2 | 1 | |
| Wk 3 | L 10-24@ Central Michigan | 7 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 27-10vs Hawai'i | 7 | 6 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 3 | |
| Wk 5 | L 0-28@ North Dakota State | 7 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 16-13@ San José State | 8 | 5 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 2 | |
| Wk 7 | W 41-23vs Northern Illinois | 8 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 3 | |
| Wk 8 | W 28-14vs Air Force | 3 | 2 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Total | 53 | 31 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 2 | 10 |
Oct. 23 · W 28-14 vs Air Force, play by play
3 tackles, including 1 pass broken up.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
His game this year: coverage — 10 passes defended in the 8 games with play by play.
How Wyoming’s defense played that day
Air Force’s 6 drives: 3 stopped (3 takeaways) · 3 scored. While the game was within a score they held 3 of 4.
8 tackles, including 3 passes broken up, tied for the most passes broken up in FBS that week.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 7 of his 8, sacks included.
8 tackles, including 2 passes broken up, tied for 5th-most passes broken up in FBS that week.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 6 of his 8, sacks included.
7 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
7 tackles, including 3 passes broken up, tied for 5th-most passes broken up in FBS that week. His pass breakup on 4th and 1 ended Hawai'i’s drive (downs).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Broke up a pass on 4th and 1. Third quarter, up 13-3. Ended Hawai'i’s drive (downs).
7 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 8 for him; the box score credits 7.
A big game: 5 tackles, including 2 interceptions, 1 pass broken up, tied for 2nd-most interceptions in FBS that week. His interception ended Northern Colorado’s drive (int).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Intercepted. Second quarter, tied 0-0. Ended Northern Colorado’s drive (int).
Intercepted. Fourth quarter, up 14-13. Ended Northern Colorado’s drive (int).
8 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
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 +9 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
19%10 pass breakupsInterceptions
2interceptionsTackle volume
53tackles this seasonTFL rate
3%2 TFL53 tackles · 1.5 for loss · 10 pass breakups · 2 interceptions.
3 seasons under Jay Sawvel — 12-20 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 5.8 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 2.0 |
| Road4g | 7.5 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 7.1 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 1.3 |
| Weeks 8+1g | 3.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 1.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Jay Sawvel
Pass share
38.1%
173 pass / 281 run
Plays / game
56.8
8 games
Team sack rate
8.1%
197 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy, slow tempo.
Player standing · 2026
53 tackles in 8 games, more tackles a game than nearly every FBS defensive back who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Unranked recruit. Now #10 at the position.
2026 outlook
In the mix for All-Mountain West
Based on 2025: #7 of 17 Mountain West Ss
A base rate for the rank, not a forecast of this player: 35% of returning players who ranked #4–10 at their position in their conference made an all-conference team the next season (95% confidence interval 31–38%).
2026 is in progress.
A stat line in 22 games over three seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Craig Bohl → Jay Sawvel. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
