Senior defensive tackle for Kansas. 2025: 1 sack, 6.5 tackles for loss, 19 tackles.
6′3″ · 325 lb · Oak Grove, LA
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.
How he plays
Controls the point of attack and doesn't move.
Tackles for loss: 87th percentile.
The full scouting readThe numbers
sack · 2025
6.5 TFL · 19 tackles
Best game: 1 sacks, 1 TFL, 2 tackles, at Missouri
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
4 defensive tackle for Kansas. 2025: 1 sack, 6.5 tackles for loss, 19 tackles.
Kenean Caldwell
Controls the point of attack and doesn't move. He has spent four seasons in the Kansas defensive front. One game to point at: 3 tackles, 1 TFL against Texas Tech — Week 7, 2025.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
His career
He was on the field for 4 seasons. That is rarer than it sounds.
Career arc
Coaching lineage · 2021–2025
1 coachPlayed his entire career under Lance Leipold.
Season context · Team result + system
4 seasons under Lance Leipold — 21-28 over that span.
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Elite: tackles for loss (87th percentile). Concern: passes defended (18th percentile).
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 · Per-game
2025 season · 9 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 2.0 | 0.9 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 2.2 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 2.2 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+3g | 2.0 | 0.8 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Lance Leipold
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Player standing · 2025
Tackle volume for the position in rotation-piece range.
Recognition
Production · CFB Index Score
Three-star recruit. Now #201 at the position.
2026 outlook
Outside shot for All-Big 12
Based on 2025: #14 of 22 Big 12 DTs
22% estimated, 95% confidence interval 19–25%. 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.
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2025
W 46–7
vs Wagner
1 SOLO · 2 TOT
Dominant 39-point win at home against Wagner.
With J. Daniels — 280 yds · 4 TD · 1 INT · QBR 80.7 · 18 rush yds (3 car) · T. Nagy — 2 rec · 20 yds
Game log · Week-by-week
2025 season · 9 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 31-7vs Fresno State | 2 | 1 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 1 | W 46-7vs Wagner | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 31-42@ Missouri | 2 | 1 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | L 34-37vs Cincinnati | 2 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 27-20@ UCF | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 17-42@ Texas Tech | 3 | 3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 3 tackles |
| Wk 9 | L 17-42vs Kansas State | 2 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | W 38-21vs Oklahoma State | 2 | 1 | 1.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | L 14-38@ Iowa State | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 19 | 12 | 6.5 | 1.0 | — | 0 |
Play style
The heaviest frame on the interior. Sack production is intentionally not the point of this profile.
CFB Index positional classification
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
19 tackles. 0 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 6.5 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.
2026 Outlook
Kansas
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Defensive tackle · Kansas
Returning around him
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Kansas · Last season: 5-7 · Talent rank #62 · 2026 recruiting class #61
Player DNA
The heaviest frame on the interior. Sack production is intentionally not the point of this profile.
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Tre Williams’s 2025 season.
Matches Tre on
Differs from Tre on
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Deandre Jules's senior season at Pittsburgh (2023).
Matches Deandre on
Differs from Deandre on
Player DNA