Matthew Smith
One game to point at: 2 tackles against Oregon — Week 9, 2026.
10 tackles · 1 sack
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
10 tackles. 0 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 1 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.
OregonLive Oct 29Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Northwestern | 10 | 5 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
| Career | 10 | 5 | 1.0 | 1.0 |
Last game (Wk 9): 2 tackles.
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 34-18vs South Dakota State | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 41-7vs Colorado | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 23-29@ No. 5 Indiana | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 2 tackles |
| Wk 5 | W 34-13vs Penn State | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 45-14vs Ball State | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | W 24-21@ Michigan State | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 42-14vs Rutgers | 2 | 1 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | L 26-34@ Oregon | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 10 | 5 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 |
Oct. 31 · L 26-34 at Oregon, play by play
2 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 1 of his 2, sacks included.
Forced a fumble on 3rd and 3. First quarter, up 3-0.
How Northwestern’s defense played that day
Oregon’s 10 drives: 4 stopped (1 takeaway) · 6 scored. While the game was within a score they held 4 of 6. His forced fumble came with Northwestern up 3.
2 tackles, including 1 sack.
Sacked the quarterback for a 6-yard loss. Second quarter, up 28-3.
1 tackle. He hurried the quarterback once.
1 tackle. He hurried the quarterback once.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
1 tackle.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
2 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 3 for him; the box score credits 2.
1 tackle.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
0 tackles. He hurried the quarterback once.
Week 8 · 2026
W 42-14
vs Rutgers
1 sack · 1 tackle for loss · 2 tackles
Dominant 28-point win at home against Rutgers.
Ratings of the games shown run from -20 to +24 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 1.0 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| Road3g | 1.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 2.0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
David Braun
Pass share
40.2%
204 pass / 303 run
Plays / game
63.4
8 games
Team sack rate
7.4%
231 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS linebackers who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #430 at the position.
The No. 2,364 recruit in the country is starting at linebacker in the Big Ten.
2026 is in progress.
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coachPlayed every college season under David Braun.
