Kendall Smith: DB · Illinois · #7.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Kendall Smith
Erases the deep middle of the field. Played for three head coaches in five seasons at Illinois. On tape: 6 tackles against Northwestern, Week 13, 2022.
Play style
Single-high range who erases the deep middle of the field.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
34 tackles. 6 passes defended. 5 interceptions. 0 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.
LancasterOnline Oct 25
Yahoo Sports Oct 25Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
Game log · Week-by-week
2022 season · 12 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 20-23@ Indiana | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Wk 2 | W 24-3vs Virginia | 4 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 31-0vs Chattanooga | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 5 | W 34-10@ Wisconsin | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 9-6vs Iowa | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 7 | W 26-14vs Minnesota | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 26-9@ Nebraska | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | L 15-23vs Michigan State | 5 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | L 24-31vs Purdue | 4 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | L 17-19@ No. 3 Michigan | 6 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 6 tackles |
| Wk 13 | W 41-3@ Northwestern | 6 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 2 | |
 Bowl | L 10-19vs No. 24 Mississippi State | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Total | 34 | 21 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 5 | 6 |
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
18%6 pass breakupsInterceptions
5interceptionsTackle volume
34tackles this seasonTFL rate
0%0 TFL34 tackles · 6 pass breakups · 5 interceptions.
Splits · Per-game
2022 season · 12 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home6g | 3.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
| Road5g | 3.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.6 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 1.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.6 |
| Weeks 8+5g | 4.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.4 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Bret Bielema
Pass share
42.6%
393 pass / 530 run
Plays / game
71.0
13 games
Team sack rate
7.0%
388 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2022
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS defensive backs who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #19 at the position.
How it ended
Five seasons at Illinois, 65 tackles — the college career is complete.
Four or fewer games in the first season, then ten or more.
The role got bigger.
Coaching lineage · 2016–2022
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Lovie Smith → Bret Bielema. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
