Senior defensive back on Ohio's 2026 roster.
6′0″ · 199 lb · Westerville, OH
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
Recruiting
S recruit
No. 714 nationally · Signed with Westerville Central
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
4 defensive back on Ohio's 2025 roster.
Rickey Hyatt Jr.
Moves between deep coverage and the slot. Across five seasons and three programs, four head coaches: Mark Stoops, Kane Wommack, Major Applewhite and Brian Smith. The receipt on tape: 1 tackles against Eastern Michigan, Week 9, 2025.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
His career
He was on the field for 5 seasons. That is rarer than it sounds.
Career arc
Coaching lineage · 2021–2025
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Tim Albin → Brian Smith. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Season context · Team result + system
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Concern: tackles (0th percentile).
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 · Per-game
2025 season · 5 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home3g | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Road2g | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
John Hauser
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Player standing · 2024
Tackle volume for the position in rotation-piece range.
Recognition
Production · CFB Index Score
Three-star recruit. Now #497 at the position.
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Ohio | 5 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | -- | -- |
| 2024 | South Alabama | 29 | 14 | 2.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2023 | South Alabama | 9 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2022 | South Alabama | 10 | 7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2021 | Kentucky | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 54 | 25 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 1 | -- | -- |
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 4 · 2025
W 52–35
vs Gardner-Webb
1 TOT
Edged out Gardner-Webb at home in a shootout.
With P. Navarro — 290 yds · 1 TD · 0 INT · QBR 70.7 · 72 rush yds (9 car) · C. Hendricks — 8 rec · 144 yds · 1 TD
Game log · Week-by-week
2025 season · 5 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 31-34@ Rutgers | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 1 tackles |
| Wk 4 | W 52-35vs Gardner-Webb | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 35-20vs Bowling Green | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 48-21vs Northern Illinois | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 28-21@ Eastern Michigan | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Total | 5 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 |
Play style
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Ohio
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Defensive back · Ohio
Returning around him
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Ohio · Last season: 9-4 · Talent rank #129 · 2026 recruiting class #107
Player DNA
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
His 2024 production profile sits closest to Jordan Grier’s 2023 season.
Matches Jordan on
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to McKel Broussard's senior season at UTEP (2023).
Matches McKel on
Player DNA
27 more on the roster · Ohio team page