Matt Salopek: LB · Miami (OH) · #15.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Matt Salopek
Is steady in every phase without a signature trait. Sixth year in the same linebacker corps at Miami (OH). All-MAC in 2024 made it two straight seasons on the honors list. A game that shows it: 13 tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss against Northern Illinois — Week 13, 2024.
Play style
Solid in every phase without a signature dimension.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
122 tackles. 3 passes defended. 3 interceptions. 8 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.
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| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Miami (OH) | 122 | 54 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 3 | 3 |
| 2023 | Miami (OH) | 137 | 75 | 8.5 | 3.0 | 3 | 1 |
| 2022 | Miami (OH) | 101 | 48 | 7.5 | 3.5 | 1 | -- |
| 2021 | Miami (OH) | 112 | 69 | 7.0 | 0.0 | 6 | -- |
| 2020 | Miami (OH) | 7 | 6 | 1.0 | 1.0 | -- | -- |
| 2019 | Miami (OH) | 8 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- |
| Career | 487 | 256 | 32.0 | 8.5 | 13 | 4 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2024 season · 14 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 6-13vs Northwestern | 10 | 4 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 3 | L 16-27vs Cincinnati | 9 | 5 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 3-28@ No. 17 Notre Dame | 7 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 23-20vs Massachusetts | 10 | 7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 20-30@ Toledo | 9 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | W 38-14@ Eastern Michigan | 8 | 6 | 1.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 30-20vs Ohio | 10 | 6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 46-7vs Central Michigan | 8 | 4 | 2.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | W 27-21@ Ball State | 9 | 4 | 1.5 | 1.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 12 | W 34-7vs Kent State | 6 | 0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | W 20-9vs Northern Illinois | 13 | 5 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 13 tackles |
| Wk 14 | W 28-12@ Bowling Green | 7 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 15 | L 3-38vs Ohio | 7 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
 Bowl | W 43-17vs Colorado State | 9 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 122 | 54 | 8.0 | 1.0 | 3 | 3 |
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
122tackles this seasonTFL rate
7%8 TFLSack rate
1%1 sackPD rate
2%3 pass breakups122 tackles · 8 for loss · 1 sack · 3 interceptions.
6 seasons under Chuck Martin — 43-28 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2024 season · 14 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home6g | 9.3 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Road5g | 8.0 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.4 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 8.9 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.1 |
| Weeks 8+7g | 8.6 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 0.3 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Chuck Martin
Pass share
49.9%
398 pass / 400 run
Plays / game
57.0
14 games
Team sack rate
5.9%
410 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced, slow tempo.
Player standing · 2024
First team in his league at the position.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #25 at the position.
How it ended
Six seasons at Miami (OH), 487 tackles, a first-team All-Conference season (2023) — the college career is complete.
Four or fewer games in the first season, then ten or more.
The role got bigger.
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-MAC · 1ST TEAM
All-MAC 1st team (2024)
Weekly recognition
2 weekly honors (2023)
MAC Defensive Player of the Week
Coaching lineage · 2019–2024
1 coachPlayed every college season under Chuck Martin.
