Zion Young: DE · Missouri · #9.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Zion Young
Collapses the pocket even when the sack doesn't come. Played for two head coaches at two programs in four seasons: Mel Tucker and Eli Drinkwitz. The first career honor came in 2025: All-SEC. A game that shows it: 4 tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss against Virginia — Bowl, 2025.
Play style
Collapses the pocket even when the sack doesn't come.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
42 tackles. 2 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 15.5 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.
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| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Missouri | 42 | 20 | 15.5 | 6.5 | 2 |
| 2024 | Missouri | 41 | 14 | 5.5 | 2.5 | 3 |
| 2023 | Michigan State | 26 | 8 | 4.5 | 1.5 | -- |
| 2022 | Michigan State | 21 | 8 | 2.0 | 1.0 | -- |
| Career | 130 | 50 | 27.5 | 11.5 | 5 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2025 season · 13 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 61-6vs Central Arkansas | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 42-31vs Kansas | 2 | 1 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 52-10vs Louisiana | 3 | 2 | 2.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 29-20vs South Carolina | 3 | 3 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 42-6vs Massachusetts | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 7 | L 24-27vs No. 8 Alabama | 5 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 1 | Season-high 5 tackles |
| Wk 8 | W 23-17@ Auburn | 5 | 3 | 2.5 | 2.0 | — | 0 | 2 sacks |
| Wk 9 | L 10-17@ No. 10 Vanderbilt | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | L 17-38vs No. 3 Texas A&M | 3 | 1 | 1.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | W 49-27vs Mississippi State | 4 | 2 | 2.0 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | L 6-17@ No. 8 Oklahoma | 5 | 2 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 14 | W 31-17@ Arkansas | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
 Bowl | L 7-13vs No. 20 Virginia | 4 | 1 | 1.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 42 | 20 | 15.5 | 6.5 | — | 2 |
Week 8 · 2025
W 23-17
at Auburn
2 sacks · 2.5 tackles for loss · 5 tackles
A close one, won by 6 on the road.
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Sack rate
15%6 sacksTFL rate
37%16 TFLHurry rate
33%14 hurriesPressure-to-sack conversion
32%6 of 20 pressures42 tackles · 15.5 for loss · 6.5 sacks.
Splits · Per-game
2025 season · 13 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home8g | 3.1 | 1.2 | 0.4 | 0.2 |
| Road4g | 3.2 | 1.1 | 0.8 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 3.1 | 1.1 | 0.4 | 0.3 |
| Weeks 8+6g | 3.3 | 1.3 | 0.6 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Eli Drinkwitz
Pass share
39.6%
360 pass / 550 run
Plays / game
70.0
13 games
Team sack rate
6.9%
379 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy.
Player standing · 2025
First team in his league at the position.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #22 at the position.
The No. 1,404 recruit in the country is starting on the defensive line in the SEC as a senior.
How it ended
Four seasons, at Michigan State and Missouri, 12 sacks, a first-team All-Conference season (2025) — drafted at #45 overall by the Baltimore Ravens.
A stat line in 42 games over four seasons.
The role got bigger.
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-SEC · 1ST TEAM
All-SEC 1st team (2025)
Weekly recognition
2 weekly honors (2025)
SEC Defensive Line Player of the Week
Coaching lineage · 2022–2025
3 coachesPlayed for 3 head coaches at 2 schools: Mel Tucker, Harlon Barnett and Eli Drinkwitz.
Next stop · NFL
Baltimore Ravens2026 NFL rookie season
Baltimore Ravens2026 NFL rookie season
