Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 1 game
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 59-7vs Eastern Illinois | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 1 tackles |
| Total | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#18
Rhyland Kelly
Senior defensive back on Minnesota's 2026 roster.
6′1″ · 200 lb · Winnipeg, MB · Clearwater Academy International
Returning to Minnesota for 2026
Recruiting
3★
CB recruit
No. 1090 nationally · Signed with Minnesota
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
4 defensive back on Minnesota's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Minnesota in 2022.
Rhyland Kelly
This is his third year in the same secondary at Minnesota. One game to point at: 1 tackles against Eastern Illinois — Week 1, 2026.
1 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- seasons on the roster
- game log
His career
2022
- Signed with Minnesota3-star out of Clearwater Academy International
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
Minnesota
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coach2024–2026
Minnesota
Played his entire career under P.J. Fleck.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
3 seasons under P.J. Fleck — 17-11 over that span.
2024Minnesota8-5HC: P.J. Fleck · Balanced
2025Minnesota8-5HC: P.J. Fleck · Balanced, slow tempo
2026Minnesota1-1HC: P.J. Fleck · Pass-leaning
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Concern: tackles (0th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
Percentiles are versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score production. There are no play-by-play efficiency bars here: CFBD's play-value model credits offensive players only, so no defensive EPA exists to rank.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 1 game: 1.0 TKL/g, 0.0 TFL/g, 0.0 SACK/g, 0.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
P.J. Fleck
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 59–7
1 TOT · 1 SOLO
Dominant 52-point win at home against Eastern Illinois.
With J. Tracy — 5 rec · 98 yds · D. Lindsey — 264 yds · 1 TD · 0 INT · QBR 86.2 · 6 rush yds (2 car)
Game log
How he plays
2026 Outlook
Minnesota
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Defensive back · Minnesota
Returning around him
- 1 Minnesota player drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -1 net (19 in / 20 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Minnesota · Last season: 8-5 · Talent rank #41 · 2026 recruiting class #28
Background
PRONUNCIATION Your browser does not support HTML5 audio. 2025 • JUNIOR SEASON: Played in all 13 games, mostly on special teams • made one tackle. Game-by-Game: Competed against Buffalo • recorded one tackle against Northwestern State • saw action at Cal and against Rutgers • played at Ohio State...
The secondary · Minnesota
- #14Kerry Brown56 tackles · 2025
- #17John Nestor50 tackles · 2025
- #7Aidan Gousby27 tackles · 2025
- #5Aydan West19 tackles · 2025
- #18Rhyland Kelly1 tackle · 2025
16 more on the roster · Minnesota team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology