Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 1 game
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 51-0vs UTEP | 3 | 0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | Season-high 3 tackles |
| Total | 3 | 0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 |
#10
Kip Lewis
Kip Lewis led Oklahoma in tackles, calls the defense, and wears the captain's stripe. He's back for a final season to anchor a Sooners defense built to make noise in the SEC.
6′1″ · 226 lb · Carthage, TX · Carthage HS
CFB Index 79 · #64 of 583 LBsHigh confidenceReturning to Oklahoma for 2026
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.
The numbers
3
tackles · 2026
0.5 TFL · 0.5 sacks
1 game into 2026 so far -- Backed by 12 tackles · 1.5 TFL -- top 1% tackles game. -- Best game: 3 tackles, 0.5 TFL, 0.5 sacks, vs UTEP
The play that turned itSwung Oklahoma from 16% to 75% to win.Oklahoma at Auburn · 27-21
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Kip Lewis led Oklahoma in tackles, calls the defense, and wears the captain's stripe. He's back for a final season to anchor a Sooners defense built to make noise in the SEC.
- Signed as a 4-star recruit to Oklahoma in 2022.
Buzz vs Tape
Country hotter than the fans
The wider college football conversation reads him warmer than his own fans do — a gap of 35.1 points in belief.
34.9own fans
70national conversation
Can the Oklahoma Sooners stun Michigan with a defensive masterclass? Brent Venables' impressive 21-5 record against freshman quarterbacks sets the stage as the Sooners face a blue blood program in a pivotal College Football matchup. John…
The story
Lewis was the heartbeat of Oklahoma's defense in 2025 -- a team-leading 76 tackles, 10.5 tackles for loss, four sacks and five pass breakups, the every-down signal-caller and captain who's started since the middle of 2024. He returns for a final season already on the Bronko Nagurski preseason watch list. The forward stakes ride with the program's: Oklahoma enters its second SEC year with a defense built to contend, and Lewis is the experienced voice in the middle who sets the front and makes the calls. He's not the flashiest name, but he's the kind of veteran anchor good defenses are organized around.
His career
He was on the field for 5 seasons. That is rarer than it sounds.
Lewis is a balanced, do-everything middle linebacker -- the on-field quarterback of the defense. The stat line is well-rounded rather than spiky: a team-leading tackle count, 10.5 tackles for loss as a downhill run defender, four sacks on timed pressures, and five pass breakups that show real range in coverage. As a captain and multi-year starter, his value is as much in the pre-snap communication and alignment as in the production. He's a steady, instinctive, every-down linebacker who diagnoses plays quickly and is rarely out of position -- the reliable core a contending defense leans on.
Written by our staff.
2022
- Signed with Oklahoma4-star out of Carthage
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★★
CFB
College
Oklahoma
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2022–2026
1 coach2022–2026
Oklahoma
Played his entire career under Brent Venables.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
5 seasons under Brent Venables — 33-21 over that span.
2022Oklahoma6-7HC: Brent Venables · Run-leaning, fast tempo
2023Oklahoma10-3HC: Brent Venables · Balanced
2024Oklahoma6-7HC: Brent Venables · Run-leaning
2025Oklahoma10-3HC: Brent Venables · Balanced
2026Oklahoma1-1HC: Brent Venables · Run-leaning, slow tempo
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
High confidenceSustained Ascent
Concern: tackles (0th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
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 & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 1 game: 3.0 TKL/g, 0.5 TFL/g, 0.5 SACK/g, 0.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Brent Venables
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2025
Part-time starter
Tackle volume for the position in part-time-starter range.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Production · CFB Index Score
79 · #64 of 583 LBs
Former four-star. Now #64 at the position.
2026 outlook
In the mix for All-SEC
Based on 2025: #9 of 76 SEC LBs
How the All-SEC estimate is computed
35% estimated, 95% confidence interval 31–38%. 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.
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 51–0
vs UTEP
3 TOT · 0 SACKS · 0 TFL
Dominant 51-point win at home against UTEP.
With I. Sategna — 4 rec · 76 yds · 1 TD · J. Mateer — 225 yds · 3 TD · 0 INT · QBR 91.5 · 7 rush yds (3 car)
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Lewis is a balanced, do-everything middle linebacker -- the on-field quarterback of the defense. The stat line is well-rounded rather than spiky: a team-leading tackle count, 10.5 tackles for loss as a downhill run defender, four sacks on timed pressures, and five pass breakups that show real range in coverage. As a captain and multi-year starter, his value is as much in the pre-snap communication and alignment as in the production. He's a steady, instinctive, every-down linebacker who diagnoses plays quickly and is rarely out of position -- the reliable core a contending defense leans on.
Our classifier reads him the same way: carries tight ends down the field in coverage.
2026 Outlook
Oklahoma
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Linebacker · Oklahoma
Returning around him
- 7 Oklahoma players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -13 net (16 in / 29 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Oklahoma · Last season: 10-3 (AP #8) · Talent rank #17 · 2026 recruiting class #15
DNA match
Player DNA
Coverage 'Backer
Carries tight ends and patrols the middle of the field in coverage.
LB
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Owen Heinecke’s 2025 season.
84%match
All-SEC
Matches Owen on
Tackle volume
Sack rate
TFL rate
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Chris Paul Jr.'s senior season at Ole Miss (2024).
78%match
NFL Rd 5
Matches Chris on
Weight
Sack rate
Solo tackle rate
Differs from Chris on
Hurry rate (lower)
Player DNA
Players who play like Kip Lewis
Background
Season GP-GS UT AT Total TFL Sacks INT FF FR PBU QBH 2022 5-0 1 1 2 0.5-2 0.0-0 0-0 0 0 0 0 2023 13-5 38 28 66 3.5-11 1.0-7 0-0 0 1 0 1 2024 13-12 34 31 65 4.0-5 0.0-0 2-112 0 0 1 1 2025 13-13 38 38 76 10.5-42 4.0-32 0-0 0 0 4 5 Career 44-30 111 98 209 18.5-60 5.0-39 2-112 0 1 5 7 2025 (OKLAHOMA)...
The linebacker corps · Oklahoma
- #10Kip Lewis76 tackles · 2025
- #38Owen Heinecke74 tackles · 2025
- #18Cole Sullivan44 tackles · 2025
- #7Taylor Heim12 tackles · 2025
- #47James Nesta4 tackles · 2025
7 more on the roster · Oklahoma team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology