Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 1 game
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 21-17vs UAlbany | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | Season-high 0 tackles |
| Total | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 |
#23
Xavier Leonard
Junior safety on Buffalo's 2026 roster.
5′11″ · 200 lb · Atlanta, GA · Langston Hughes
Returning to Buffalo for 2026
Recruiting
3★
LB recruit
No. 2609 nationally · Signed with Buffalo
No college snaps yet.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
3 safety on Buffalo's 2026 roster.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Buffalo in 2024.
Xavier Leonard
Three seasons at Buffalo, two different head coaches: Maurice Linguist and Pete Lembo.
0 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- head-coach lineage
His career
2024
- Signed with Buffalo3-star out of Langston Hughes
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
Buffalo
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
2 coaches2024
Buffalo
Coaching transition mid-career: Maurice Linguist → Pete Lembo. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2024Buffalo9-4HC: Maurice Linguist · Run-heavy
2025Buffalo5-7HC: Pete Lembo · Balanced
2026Buffalo1-1HC: Pete Lembo · 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: 0.0 TKL/g, 0.0 TFL/g, 0.0 SACK/g, 1.0 PD/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Pete Lembo
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 21–17
vs UAlbany
Game log
How he plays
2026 Outlook
Buffalo
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Safety · Buffalo
Returning around him
- 1 Buffalo player drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: +0 net (16 in / 16 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Buffalo · Last season: 5-7 · Talent rank #120 · 2026 recruiting class #101
Background
Hoof Prints: Safety from Atlanta... major is exploratory. Redshirt-Freshman (2025): Appeared in 10 games, primarily on special teams. Freshman (2024): Redshirted in his first season at Buffalo... Did appear in five games, primarily on special teams… had a tackle against Toledo (10/12). Previous S...
The secondary · Buffalo
- #6Miles Greer74 tackles · 2025
- #9Keontez Bradley28 tackles · 2025
- Kobi Blackwell20 tackles · 2025
- #7John Keough14 tackles · 2025
- #23Xavier Leonard0 tackles · 2025
17 more on the roster · Buffalo team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology