Xavier Benson: LB · Oklahoma State · #1.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Xavier Benson
Is steady in every phase without a signature trait. Played for two head coaches across three seasons and two programs. The first one came in 2023: Big 12 Defensive Player of the Week. A game that shows it: 7 tackles and 3 tackles for loss against Oklahoma — Week 10, 2023.
Play style
Solid in every phase without a signature dimension.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
65 tackles. 1 pass defended. 0 interceptions. 7.5 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.
The New York Times Nov 1
Sports Illustrated Oct 29
Oklahoma State University Athletics Oct 22
The Oklahoman Oct 22Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | Oklahoma State | 65 | 37 | 7.5 | 1.5 | 1 |
| 2022 | Oklahoma State | 70 | 33 | 4.0 | 0.0 | 2 |
| 2019 | Texas Tech | 57 | 36 | 4.0 | 1.0 | -- |
| Career | 192 | 106 | 15.5 | 2.5 | 3 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2023 season · 14 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 27-13vs Central Arkansas | 4 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 2 | W 27-15@ Arizona State | 5 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 7-33vs South Alabama | 5 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 27-34@ Iowa State | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 29-21vs Kansas State | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | W 39-32vs No. 23 Kansas | 6 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 48-34@ West Virginia | 6 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 45-13vs Cincinnati | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | W 27-24vs No. 10 Oklahoma | 7 | 6 | 3.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 7 tackles |
| Wk 11 | L 3-45@ UCF | 6 | 2 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | W 43-30@ Houston | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | W 40-34vs BYU | 6 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 14 | L 21-49vs No. 7 Texas | 4 | 2 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
 Bowl | W 31-23vs Texas A&M | 5 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 65 | 37 | 7.5 | 1.5 | — | 1 |
Week 10 · 2023
W 27-24
vs Oklahoma
1 sack · 3 tackles for loss · 7 tackles
A close one, won by 3 at home.
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
65tackles this seasonTFL rate
12%8 TFLSack rate
2%2 sacksPD rate
2%1 pass breakups65 tackles · 7.5 for loss · 1.5 sacks.
Splits · Per-game
2023 season · 14 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home7g | 4.9 | 0.7 | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| Road5g | 4.4 | 0.4 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 4.4 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Weeks 8+7g | 4.9 | 0.7 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Mike Gundy
Pass share
56.9%
570 pass / 431 run
Plays / game
71.5
14 games
Team sack rate
2.2%
586 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Pass-leaning.
Player standing · 2023
About as many tackles a game as a typical FBS linebacker who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #213 at the position.
How it ended
Three seasons, at Texas Tech and Oklahoma State, 192 tackles — the college career is complete.
A stat line in 37 games over three seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2019–2023
2 coachesPlayed for 2 head coaches at 2 schools: Matt Wells and Mike Gundy.
