Rocco Nicholl
Fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge. Played for four head coaches at two programs in five seasons: Sean Lewis, Kenni Burns, Kevin Patrick and Mark Carney. A game that shows it: 7 tackles and 1 sack against South Carolina — Week 1, 2026.
40 tackles · 3 sacks
Play style
Downhill striker who fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
40 tackles. 2 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 5.5 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.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Kent State | 40 | 24 | 5.5 | 3.0 | 2 |
| 2025 | South Florida | 7 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- |
| 2024 | Kent State | 61 | 30 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 2 |
| 2023 | Kent State | 17 | 6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 |
| 2022 | Kent State | 8 | 6 | 2.0 | 0.0 | -- |
| Career | 133 | 69 | 8.0 | 3.0 | 5 |
Last game (Wk 9): 4 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 1 pass breakup.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 9 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 0-57@ South Carolina | 7 | 6 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 7 tackles |
| Wk 2 | W 36-15vs Wofford | 6 | 3 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 3-59@ No. 6 Ohio State | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 26-13vs Ball State | 3 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | L 10-13vs Ohio | 3 | 1 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 7-38@ Western Michigan | 4 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 2-29@ South Florida | 5 | 4 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 8 | W 35-20vs Akron | 5 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | L 10-31@ Sacramento State | 4 | 4 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Total | 40 | 24 | 5.5 | 3.0 | — | 2 |
Oct. 30 · L 10-31 at Sacramento State, play by play
4 tackles, including 1 more for loss, 1 pass broken up.
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 — 5 tackles for loss, 3 of them sacks, in the 9 games with play by play.
How Kent State’s defense played that day
Sacramento State’s 12 drives: 9 stopped (4 takeaways) · 3 scored. While the game was within a score they held 5 of 8. His pbu came with Kent State up 7.
5 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
5 tackles, including 1 pass broken up.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
4 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 5 for him; the box score credits 4.
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 7-yard loss. First quarter, tied 0-0.
3 tackles. 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.
3 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
6 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.
Sacked the quarterback for a 3-yard loss on 3rd and 16. Fourth quarter, up 36-15.
Ratings of the games shown run from -29 to +29 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
40tackles this seasonTFL rate
14%6 TFLSack rate
8%3 sacksPD rate
5%2 pass breakups40 tackles · 5.5 for loss · 3 sacks.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 9 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 4.2 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 0.0 |
| Road5g | 4.6 | 0.6 | 0.2 | 0.4 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 4.4 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.1 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 4.5 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Mark Carney
Pass share
48.2%
271 pass / 291 run
Plays / game
62.4
9 games
Team sack rate
4.8%
310 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2026
About as many tackles a game as a typical FBS linebacker who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #78 at the position.
The No. 2,000 recruit in the country is starting at linebacker in the Mid-American as a redshirt senior.
2026 is in progress.
Played for two programs.
Coaching lineage · 2022–2026
4 coachesPlayed for 4 head coaches at 2 schools: Sean Lewis, Kenni Burns, Alex Golesh and Mark Carney.
Next stop · Transfer
Transferred to Kent State
