Kennesaw State · L 28-44
7 tackles, 0.5 for loss, 0 sacks
The other 7 games average 9 tackles. This one was 2 below.
Korey Smith
Is steady in every phase without a signature trait. Three seasons in the Middle Tennessee linebacker corps to date. On tape: 13 tackles against Jacksonville State, Week 4, 2026.
68 tackles · 1.5 sacks
Play style
Solid in every phase without a signature dimension.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
68 tackles. 1 pass defended. 1 interception. 3 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.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Middle Tennessee | 68 | 32 | 3.0 | 1.5 | 1 | 1 |
| 2025 | Middle Tennessee | 38 | 19 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 2 | 1 |
| 2024 | Middle Tennessee | 4 | -- | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- |
| Career | 110 | 51 | 3.5 | 1.5 | 3 | 2 |
Last game (Wk 9): 7 tackles, 0.5 tackles for loss, 0.5 sacks.
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 38-14vs Murray State | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 26-28@ Marshall | 13 | 4 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 13 tackles |
| Wk 3 | W 27-20vs Nevada | 10 | 6 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 13-23@ Jacksonville State | 13 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | L 0-55@ Kansas | 7 | 6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | W 33-30vs Delaware | 10 | 5 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 26-23@ Florida International | 5 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 9 | L 28-44vs Kennesaw State | 7 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 68 | 32 | 3.0 | 1.5 | 1 | 1 |
Oct. 28 · L 28-44 vs Kennesaw State, play by play
7 tackles, including 1 interception. His interception on 3rd and 2 ended Kennesaw State’s drive (int).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Intercepted on 3rd and 2. Third quarter, down 27-17. Ended Kennesaw State’s drive (int).
Sacked the quarterback for a 2-yard loss. Third quarter, down 27-20.
His game this year: disruption in the backfield — 3 tackles for loss, 1 of them a sack, in the 8 games with play by play.
How Middle Tennessee’s defense played that day
Kennesaw State’s 12 drives: 7 stopped (2 takeaways) · 5 scored. While the game was within a score they held 4 of 7. His interception came with Middle Tennessee down 10.
5 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.
10 tackles, including 1 sack.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Sacked the quarterback for a 9-yard loss. Fourth quarter, down 30-26.
7 tackles.
A big game: 13 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
10 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.
A big game: 13 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. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
No game thread archived for this game yet.
Week 7 · 2026
W 33-30
vs Delaware
1 sack · 1 tackle for loss · 10 tackles
Edged out Delaware at home in a shootout.
Conference ranks count every player in the conference with a row in that stat, any position. Career ranks count current FBS players, from the games in our log.
Ratings of the games shown run from -14 to +3 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
68tackles this seasonTFL rate
4%3 TFLSack rate
2%2 sacksPD rate
1%1 pass breakups68 tackles · 3 for loss · 1.5 sacks · 1 interception.
3 seasons under Derek Mason — 10-22 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 7.5 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 9.5 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.2 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 9.3 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 6.0 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Derek Mason
Pass share
53.0%
259 pass / 230 run
Plays / game
61.1
8 games
Team sack rate
2.8%
283 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced, slow tempo.
Player standing · 2026
68 tackles in 8 games, more tackles a game than most FBS linebackers who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #82 at the position.
2026 outlook
Outside shot for All-Conference USA
Based on 2025: #30 of 45 Conference USA LBs
A base rate for the rank, not a forecast of this player: 15% of returning players who ranked #21 or lower at their position in their conference made an all-conference team the next season (95% confidence interval 13–17%).
The No. 1,535 recruit in the country is starting at linebacker in the Conference USA as a junior.
2026 is in progress.
A stat line in 20 games over three seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coachPlayed every college season under Derek Mason.
CBS Sports College Football
