Taj Ward: DB · Cincinnati · #15.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Taj Ward
Plays like an extra linebacker near the line. The five seasons at Cincinnati span two head coaches: Luke Fickell and Scott Satterfield. One game to point at: 9 tackles and 2 tackles for loss against Oklahoma — Week 4, 2023.
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
55 tackles. 2 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 3.5 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.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Yahoo Sports Oct 24
Front Office Sports Oct 22Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Cincinnati | 55 | 32 | 3.5 | 0.5 | 2 | -- |
| 2022 | Cincinnati | 17 | 9 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 4 | 1 |
| 2021 | Cincinnati | 7 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- |
| 2020 | Cincinnati | 7 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- |
| 2019 | Cincinnati | 12 | 8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- |
| Career | 98 | 59 | 5.0 | 0.5 | 6 | 1 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2023 season · 12 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 66-13vs Eastern Kentucky | 6 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 27-21@ Pittsburgh | 4 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 24-31vs Miami (OH) | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 4 | L 6-20vs No. 16 Oklahoma | 9 | 6 | 2.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 9 tackles |
| Wk 5 | L 27-35@ BYU | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 10-30vs Iowa State | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 29-32vs Baylor | 4 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | L 13-45@ Oklahoma State | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 10 | L 26-28vs UCF | 5 | 5 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | W 24-14@ Houston | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | L 21-42@ West Virginia | 7 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | L 16-49vs Kansas | 7 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 55 | 32 | 3.5 | 0.5 | — | 2 |
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
4%2 pass breakupsTackle volume
55tackles this seasonTFL rate
6%4 TFL55 tackles · 3.5 for loss · 0.5 sacks · 2 pass breakups.
Splits · Per-game
2023 season · 12 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home7g | 5.4 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Road5g | 3.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.2 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 4.5 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.2 |
| Weeks 8+6g | 4.7 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.2 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Scott Satterfield
Pass share
41.2%
360 pass / 513 run
Plays / game
72.8
12 games
Team sack rate
6.8%
380 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2023
About as many tackles a game as a typical FBS defensive back who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #321 at the position.
How it ended
Five seasons at Cincinnati, 98 tackles — the college career is complete.
A stat line in 35 games over five seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2019–2023
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Luke Fickell → Scott Satterfield. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
