North Carolina · W 38-35
1 tackle, 1 for loss
The other 7 games average 3 tackles. This one was 2 below.
Omar Thornton
Plays like an extra linebacker near the line. Played for two head coaches at two programs in three seasons: Bill O'Brien and Mario Cristobal. The first career honor came in 2025: ACC Defensive Back Player of the Week. On tape: 7 tackles and 1 sack against Clemson, Week 5, 2026.
25 tackles · 3 sacks
Play style
Lives near the line of scrimmage as a de facto extra linebacker.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
25 tackles. 1 pass defended. 0 interceptions. 6.5 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.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Fans first named Omar Thornton at Stanford.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Miami | 25 | 17 | 6.5 | 3.0 | 1 | -- |
| 2025 | Boston College | 82 | 56 | 8.0 | 2.0 | 1 | 1 |
| 2024 | Boston College | 28 | 20 | 3.5 | 0.0 | -- | -- |
| Career | 135 | 93 | 18.0 | 5.0 | 2 | 1 |
Last game (Wk 9): 1 tackle, 1 tackle for loss.
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 45-6@ Stanford | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 2 | W 77-7vs Florida A&M | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 33-20@ Wake Forest | 2 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 52-3vs Central Michigan | 5 | 4 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 41-13@ Clemson | 7 | 6 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 7 tackles |
| Wk 7 | W 43-35vs Florida State | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 52-23vs Pittsburgh | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 38-35@ North Carolina | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 25 | 17 | 6.5 | 3.0 | — | 1 |
Oct. 31 · W 38-35 at North Carolina, play by play
1 tackle, including 1 more for loss.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
His game this year: disruption in the backfield — 6 tackles for loss, 3 of them sacks, in the 8 games with play by play.
How Miami’s defense played that day
1 tackle.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
3 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 6-yard loss. Overtime quarter, up 43-35.
7 tackles, including 1 sack. He hurried the quarterback once.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
5 tackles, including 1 more for loss, 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 2-yard loss. Third quarter, up 42-3.
2 tackles. He hurried the quarterback twice.
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.
3 tackles, including 1 more for loss, 1 pass broken up. He hurried the quarterback twice.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 4 for him; the box score credits 3.
Week 5 · 2026
W 41-13
at Clemson
1 sack · 1 tackle for loss · 7 tackles
Dominant 28-point win on the road against Clemson.
Ratings of the games shown run from -17 to +12 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
4%1 pass breakupsTackle volume
25tackles this seasonTFL rate
26%6 TFL25 tackles · 6.5 for loss · 3 sacks · 1 pass breakup.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 3.0 | 0.8 | 0.5 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 3.2 | 0.9 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 3.8 | 0.9 | 0.5 | 0.2 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 1.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Mario Cristobal
Pass share
47.3%
259 pass / 289 run
Plays / game
68.5
8 games
Team sack rate
3.5%
285 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS defensive backs who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #106 at the position.
2026 is in progress.
A stat line in 30 games over three seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
2 coachesPlayed for 2 head coaches at 2 schools: Bill O'Brien and Mario Cristobal.
Next stop · Transfer
Transferred to Miami
