Nicholas Rodriguez
Is steady in every phase without a signature trait. Third year in the same linebacker corps at Missouri. One game to point at: 13 tackles against Ole Miss — Week 7, 2026.
81 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
81 tackles. 0 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 4 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.
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Last game (Wk 9): 9 tackles.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 8 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 54-14vs Arkansas-Pine Bluff | 3 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 38-21@ Kansas | 8 | 8 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 27-17vs Troy | 11 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 24-31@ No. 24 Mississippi State | 13 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 13 tackles |
| Wk 5 | W 45-17vs No. 8 Florida | 11 | 5 | 1.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 27-6vs Texas A&M | 13 | 8 | 1.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 3-31@ No. 9 Ole Miss | 13 | 8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 34-10@ Arkansas | 9 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 81 | 37 | 4.0 | 1.5 | — | 0 |
Oct. 31 · W 34-10 at Arkansas, play by play
9 tackles. The fumble he forced ended Arkansas’s drive (fumble).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 8 of his 9, sacks included.
Forced a fumble. Third quarter, up 20-7. Ended Arkansas’s drive (fumble).
His game this year: disruption in the backfield — 4 tackles for loss, 1 of them a sack, in the 8 games with play by play.
How Missouri’s defense played that day
Arkansas’s 10 drives: 8 stopped (4 takeaways) · 2 scored. While the game was within a score they held 3 of 3. His forced fumble came with Missouri up 13.
A big game: 13 tackles. He hurried the quarterback once.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
A big game: 13 tackles, including 1 more for loss. He hurried the quarterback once.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 14 for him; the box score credits 13.
11 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. It places 14 for him; the box score credits 13.
11 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
8 tackles, including 1 sack. His sack on 4th and 18 ended Kansas’s drive (downs).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Sacked the quarterback for a 4-yard loss on 4th and 18. Fourth quarter, up 38-21. Ended Kansas’s drive (downs).
3 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 4 for him; the box score credits 3.
Week 6 · 2026
W 27-6
vs Texas A&M
0.5 sacks · 1.5 tackles for loss · 13 tackles
Dominant 21-point win at home against Texas A&M.
Ratings of the games shown run from -10 to +15 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
81tackles this seasonTFL rate
5%4 TFLSack rate
2%2 sacksPD rate
0%0 pass breakups81 tackles · 4 for loss · 1.5 sacks.
3 seasons under Eli Drinkwitz — 24-10 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 9.5 | 0.8 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 10.8 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 10.3 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+1g | 9.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Eli Drinkwitz
Pass share
47.4%
255 pass / 283 run
Plays / game
67.2
8 games
Team sack rate
3.0%
269 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2026
81 tackles in 8 games, more tackles a game than nearly every FBS linebacker who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #117 at the position.
2026 outlook
Outside shot for All-SEC
Based on 2025: #26 of 76 SEC 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%).
2026 is in progress.
A stat line in 26 games over three seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coachPlayed every college season under Eli Drinkwitz.
