2026 games, tackles for loss per game. W and L: the team’s results.
“Tanuvasa man. Guy looks like a first round pick against ND then makes insane mistakes...”
As of
The Utah transfer settled in as BYU's defensive-line leader in 2025 — 26 tackles, two sacks, and the steady interior presence a defense organizes around — and was named a team captain. He returned for a fifth season largely because head coach Kalani Sitake stayed, framing 2026 openly as his draft-stock final ride. The forward stakes are a team's ceiling: a veteran anchor in the middle is the unglamorous foundation of good run defense, and Tanuvasa believes the unit around him is ready to break through. He's not a stat-sheet stuffer — he's the captain who holds the point and sets the tone for a defense with real ambitions.
Update (Oct. 28, 2026): BYU lost 39-31 at UCF on Oct. 24 as a 7.5-point favorite. The Cougars are 6-1 and No. 8 in the AP poll. Tanuvasa has 3.5 tackles for loss in 6 games, with a high of 2 against Iowa State and none in the UCF game.
Sources
Play style
Tanuvasa is a classic anchor tackle — 6-4, 300, built to occupy blockers and hold the interior against the run. The value isn't in flashy numbers (his sack and tackle totals are modest); it's in the dirty work and the leadership, the captain who two-gaps, eats double-teams, and frees the players around him to make plays. He's a veteran's veteran, a former missionary and fifth-year leader whose game is about reliability and toughness in the middle. On a defense aiming to take a step, his job is the foundation everything else is built on.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Last game (Wk 9): 2 tackles, 1 hurry.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 7 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 2 | W 28-17vs Arizona | 3 | 1 | 1.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 41-23@ Colorado State | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 17-10@ TCU | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 24-10vs Iowa State | 4 | 2 | 2.0 | 0.0 | — | 2 | Season-high 4 tackles |
| Wk 7 | W 28-24vs No. 2 Notre Dame | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 31-39@ UCF | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 9 | W 27-20vs Arizona State | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 2 | |
| Total | 16 | 10 | 3.5 | 0.5 | — | 5 |
Oct. 31 · W 27-20 vs Arizona State, play by play
2 tackles, including 2 passes broken up, tied for 7th-most passes broken up in FBS that week. He hurried the quarterback once.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Against his own season: tied for his best passes defended game of the season so far.
His game this year: coverage — 5 passes defended in the 7 games with play by play.
How BYU’s defense played that day
Arizona State’s 11 drives: 7 stopped (1 takeaway) · 4 scored. While the game was within a score they held 5 of 7. His pbu came with BYU up 7.
2 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.
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, 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. 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.
1 tackle.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
3 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 7-yard loss. Fourth quarter, up 28-17.
Ratings of the games shown run from -8 to +25 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
TFL rate
22%4 TFLSack rate
3%0 sacksHurry rate
6%1 hurry16 tackles · 3.5 for loss · 0.5 sacks.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 7 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 2.8 | 0.9 | 0.1 | 1.0 |
| Road3g | 1.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-75g | 2.4 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 0.4 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 2.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Kalani Sitake
Pass share
47.3%
248 pass / 276 run
Plays / game
65.5
8 games
Team sack rate
2.6%
230 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS defensive linemen who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #35 at the position.
2026 outlook
In the mix for All-Big 12
Based on 2025: #2 of 22 Big 12 DTs
A base rate for the rank, not a forecast of this player: 49% of returning players who ranked #1–3 at their position in their conference made an all-conference team the next season (95% confidence interval 43–54%).
2026 is in progress.
A stat line in 40 games over five seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2022–2026
2 coachesPlayed for 2 head coaches at 2 schools: Kyle Whittingham and Kalani Sitake.
