2026 games, tackles for loss per game. W and L: the team’s results.
Xavier Slayton
Disrupts the pocket from the interior. Came to New Mexico by way of Idaho. A game that shows it: 4 tackles and 2 sacks against New Mexico State — Week 4, 2026.
10 tackles · 2 sacks
Play style
Disruptive interior rusher who lives in the backfield.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
KOB 4 Oct 15Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | New Mexico | 10 | 5 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 1 |
| 2025 | New Mexico | 20 | 10 | 3.0 | 1.5 | 1 |
| Career | 30 | 15 | 5.5 | 3.5 | 2 |
Last game (Wk 9): 1 tackle.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 7 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 38-7vs Central Michigan | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 6-14@ No. 24 Oklahoma | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 42-18@ New Mexico State | 4 | 3 | 2.0 | 2.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 4 tackles |
| Wk 5 | W 61-7vs UTEP | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | W 21-10@ Hawai'i | 1 | 0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 21-16vs North Dakota State | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 21-16@ San José State | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 10 | 5 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 1 | 0 |
Oct. 31 · W 21-16 at San José State, play by play
1 tackle.
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 — 2 tackles for loss, 2 of them sacks, in the 7 games with play by play.
How New Mexico’s defense played that day
San José State’s 10 drives: 7 stopped (2 takeaways) · 3 scored. While the game was within a score they held 5 of 7.
0 tackles. He hurried the quarterback once.
1 tackle. He hurried the quarterback once.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
2 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
4 tackles, including 2 sacks, tied for 9th-most sacks in FBS that week. His sack on 4th and 7 ended New Mexico State’s drive (downs).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 5 for him; the box score credits 4.
Sacked the quarterback for a 10-yard loss on 4th and 7. Fourth quarter, up 35-5. Ended New Mexico State’s drive (downs).
1 tackle. He hurried the quarterback once.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
1 tackle, including 1 interception. His interception ended Central Michigan’s drive (int).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Intercepted. Second quarter, up 20-0. Ended Central Michigan’s drive (int).
Week 4 · 2026
W 42-18
2 sacks · 2 tackles for loss · 4 tackles
Dominant 24-point win on the road against New Mexico State.
Ratings of the games shown run from -24 to +10 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
TFL rate
25%2 TFLSack rate
20%2 sacksHurry rate
30%3 hurries10 tackles · 2.5 for loss · 2 sacks · 1 interception.
2 seasons under Jason Eck — 16-5 over that span.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 7 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home3g | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 1.8 | 0.6 | 0.5 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-75g | 1.8 | 0.5 | 0.4 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Jason Eck
Pass share
28.9%
142 pass / 349 run
Plays / game
61.4
8 games
Team sack rate
10.6%
180 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy, slow tempo.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS defensive linemen who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Two-star recruit. Now #37 at the position.
2026 outlook
In the mix for All-Mountain West
Based on 2025: #7 of 13 Mountain West DTs
A base rate for the rank, not a forecast of this player: 35% of returning players who ranked #4–10 at their position in their conference made an all-conference team the next season (95% confidence interval 31–38%).
The No. 3,143 recruit in the country is starting on the defensive line in the Mountain West.
2026 is in progress.
