“Lol you don't throw on Kelley Jones”
Mississippi State fan, r/CFB game thread · vs Oklahoma, Oct 24
7 stories in the last 60 days, from 5 outlets.
The Clarion-Ledger +1 Sep 16
Kelley Jones
Reads the quarterback's eyes and takes the ball away. Third year in the same secondary at Mississippi State. The first career honor came in 2025: All-SEC. On tape: 8 tackles and 1 tackle for loss against Missouri, Week 4, 2026.
27 tackles · 0 sacks
Play style
Reads the quarterback's eyes and takes the ball away.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
27 tackles. 7 passes defended. 0 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.
from 5 outlets
The Clarion-Ledger +1 Sep 16 · 2 outlets
from 8 outlets
Mississippi State CB Kelley Jones Earns Midseason All-American Recognition After Dominant Start
Sports Illustrated +1 Oct 20 · 2 outlets
247Sports +1Mississippi State CB Kelley Jones named 2nd Team AP All-AmericanAug 18Sports Illustrated +1Mississippi State CB Kelley Jones Earns Midseason All-American Recognition After Dominant StartOct 20247SportsKelley Jones earns first watch list of preseason as Bronko Nagurski Trophy nomineeAug 5247SportsKelley Jones lands on the Jim Thorpe preseason watch listAug 12
On3Mississippi State Corner Kelley Jones on Jim Thorpe WatchlistAug 12
SuperTalk Mississippi MediaSuper Bowl champion says Mississippi State DB Kelley Jones is the ‘Sauce Gardner of college football’Aug 4247SportsMississippi State corner Kelley Jones 'I feel like I can guard anybody in the country'Aug 8On3"I'm here to get it done": Mississippi State CB Kelley Jones speaks on his next big assignmentOct 30Sports Illustrated +1247Sports +1On3Each 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.
Fans first named Kelley Jones at Minnesota.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Mississippi State | 27 | 19 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 7 | -- |
| 2025 | Mississippi State | 34 | 20 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 11 | 2 |
| 2024 | Mississippi State | 28 | 13 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | -- |
| Career | 89 | 52 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 19 | 2 |
Last game (Wk 9): 3 tackles.
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 62-13vs UL Monroe | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 2 | W 38-13@ Minnesota | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 3 | W 41-34@ South Carolina | 4 | 2 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 31-24vs No. 19 Missouri | 8 | 5 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 4 | Season-high 8 tackles |
| Wk 5 | L 23-56vs No. 7 Alabama | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 0-31@ No. 22 LSU | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 15-23vs Oklahoma | 3 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 9 | L 3-31@ No. 11 Texas | 3 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 27 | 19 | 1.5 | 0.0 | — | 7 |
Oct. 31 · L 3-31 at Texas, play by play
3 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
His game this year: coverage — 7 passes defended in the 8 games with play by play.
How Mississippi State’s defense played that day
Texas’s 11 drives: 7 stopped (1 takeaway) · 4 scored. While the game was within a score they held 2 of 4.
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.
4 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
3 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 4 for him; the box score credits 3.
8 tackles, including 1 more for loss, 4 passes broken up, tied for 2nd-most passes broken up in FBS that week. His pass breakup on 3rd and 13 ended Missouri’s drive (end).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Broke up a pass on 3rd and 13. Fourth quarter, up 31-24. Ended Missouri’s drive (end).
4 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
2 tackles, including 1 pass broken up.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 1 of his 2, sacks included.
0 tackles, including 1 pass broken up.
Week 4 · 2026
W 31-24
vs Missouri
1 tackle for loss · 8 tackles · 4 pass breakups
A close one, won by 7 at home.
Ratings of the games shown run from -24 to +25 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
26%7 pass breakupsTackle volume
27tackles this season27 tackles · 1.5 for loss · 7 pass breakups.
3 seasons under Jeff Lebby, all run-leaning offenses — 11-22 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 3.5 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 1.5 |
| Road4g | 3.2 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.2 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 3.5 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 1.0 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 3.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Jeff Lebby
Pass share
45.5%
250 pass / 299 run
Plays / game
68.6
8 games
Team sack rate
10.3%
301 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2025
Picked for an all-conference team by at least one selector.
Recognition
2026 outlook
In the mix to repeat All-SEC
Based on 2025: #4 of 22 SEC CBs
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 blue-chip recruit with honors.
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-SEC
All-SEC mention (2025)
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Zach Arnett → Jeff Lebby. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
