Michael Dowell: DB · Miami (OH) · #21.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Michael Dowell
Hits like a linebacker and still takes the ball away. The five seasons span two programs and three head coaches: Mark Dantonio, Mel Tucker and Chuck Martin. The first one came in 2023: MAC Defensive Player of the Week. One game to point at: 8 tackles and 1 tackle for loss against Ball State — Week 13, 2023.
Play style
Hits like a linebacker and still takes the ball away.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
62 tackles. 5 passes defended. 2 interceptions. 3.5 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.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
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| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Miami (OH) | 62 | 34 | 3.5 | 0.0 | 5 | 2 |
| 2022 | Miami (OH) | 82 | 45 | 4.5 | 2.0 | 5 | -- |
| 2021 | Michigan State | 40 | 26 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 3 | -- |
| 2020 | Michigan State | 27 | 20 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1 | -- |
| 2019 | Michigan State | 15 | 7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | -- |
| Career | 226 | 132 | 10.5 | 2.5 | 15 | 2 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2023 season · 13 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 3-38@ Miami | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 41-28@ Massachusetts | 4 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 | |
| Wk 3 | W 31-24@ Cincinnati | 5 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 62-20vs Delaware State | 3 | 3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 23-3@ Kent State | 5 | 4 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 27-0vs Bowling Green | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 7 | W 34-21@ Western Michigan | 6 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 17-21vs Toledo | 6 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 9 | W 30-16@ Ohio | 7 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | W 19-0vs Akron | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | W 23-10vs Buffalo | 8 | 6 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 8 tackles |
| Wk 13 | W 17-15@ Ball State | 8 | 5 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 14 | W 23-14vs No. 23 Toledo | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Total | 62 | 34 | 3.5 | 0.0 | 2 | 5 |
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
8%5 pass breakupsInterceptions
2interceptionsTackle volume
62tackles this seasonTFL rate
6%4 TFL62 tackles · 3.5 for loss · 5 pass breakups · 2 interceptions.
Splits · Per-game
2023 season · 13 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home5g | 4.2 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.4 |
| Road7g | 5.3 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 3.9 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
| Weeks 8+6g | 5.8 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Chuck Martin
Pass share
38.3%
294 pass / 474 run
Plays / game
54.9
14 games
Team sack rate
7.5%
318 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy, slow tempo.
Player standing · 2023
62 tackles in 13 games, about as many tackles a game as a typical FBS defensive back who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #138 at the position.
How it ended
Five seasons, at Michigan State and Miami (OH), 226 tackles — the college career is complete.
A stat line in 49 games over five seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2019–2023
3 coachesPlayed for 3 head coaches at 2 schools: Mark Dantonio, Mel Tucker and Chuck Martin.
