Advanced
Computed from every play, garbage time excluded. FBS rank among players with enough volume
| Defense | Value | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Havoc plays | 7 | 214th / 2758 |
| Tackles for loss | 7 | 71st / 2112 |
| Run stops | 20 | 205th / 3422 |
| Sacks | 1 | — |
| Pass breakups | 0 | — |
| Interceptions | 0 | — |
| Forced fumbles | 0 | — |
| Tackles | 33 | — |
Charting
Where Jr.'s plays went: throw and catch spots, air yards and yards after the catch, read from the play-by-play
The play-by-play names the defender on breakups, interceptions and tackles, but not the man in coverage on every throw, so true times-targeted isn't in the text. Coverage plays is the closest stand-in; exact targets come from hand charting.
Game Log
Brian Bates Jr.'s box score, game by game, from ESPN, with a 0–10 game score for each (hover it for how it works). Click a result for the full game
| Defense | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk | Opponent | Result | Game score | Tkl | Solo | TFL | Sacks | Hur | PD | INT | TD |
| 1 | @ Troy | L 21–24 | 6.6 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 2 |  Tulsa | L 17–23 | 7.6 | 9 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | · | · |
| 3 |  Nicholls | W 59–0 | 6.0 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 4 | @ Texas Tech | L 14–49 | 5.7 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 6 | @ Liberty | L 3–35 | 6.1 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 7 |  Western Kentucky | L 3–16 | 6.1 | 5 | 2 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 8 |  New Mexico State | L 24–30 | 5.4 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | · | · |
| 9 | @ Missouri State | L 3–24 | 6.9 | 7 | 1 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 2026 · 8 games | 6.3 | 36 | 15 | 6 | 1 | 2 | 0 | · | · | ||
2026 Season Stats
FBS rank among qualifying players
| Defense | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Tackles | 36 | 477th / 5664 |
| Solo | 15 | — |
| Tackles for loss | 6 | 155th / 2634 |
| Sacks | 1 | 620th / 1383 |
| QB hurries | 2 | 418th / 1549 |
| Passes defended | 0 | — |
| Defensive TD | 0 | — |
Snaps by Game
Estimated snaps from a model trained on real NFL snap counts. Ranges in brackets are where the real number lands 80% of the time: wide for a single game, tighter over the season. How it works
| Game | Start | Opp. plays | Est. snaps | Plays made | Snap share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 · Troy | — | 66 | ~53 (27–62) | 3 | 80% |
| Wk 2 · Tulsa | — | 73 | ~72 (37–73) | 9 | 99% |
| Wk 3 · Nicholls | ✓ LB | 58 | ~33 (3–58) | 3 | 57% |
| Wk 4 · Texas Tech | ✓ LB | 65 | ~56 (28–65) | 4 | 86% |
| Wk 6 · Liberty | ✓ LB | 52 | ~42 (21–49) | 3 | 81% |
| Wk 7 · Western Kentucky | ✓ LB | 74 | ~60 (30–71) | 5 | 81% |
| Wk 8 · New Mexico State | ✓ LB | 71 | ~30 (3–54) | 2 | 42% |
| Wk 9 · Missouri State | ✓ LB | 59 | ~59 (30–59) | 7 | 100% |
| Season | 6 GS | 518 | 405 (340–486) | 36 | 78% |
Position Room
12 LBs on the Sam Houston roster, ordered by tkl
| # | Player | Pos | Class | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 21 | Dean Ford | LB | JR | 48 | 4.5 | 1 | — | 1 |
| 33 | Brian Bates Jr. | LB | SR | 36 | 6 | 1 | — | 0 |
| 23 | Mike King Jr. | LB | JR | 15 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 1 |
| 26 | Tokyo Gordon | LB | SR | 15 | 1 | 0 | — | 1 |
| 12 | Elijah Groves | LB | JR | 13 | 3.5 | 2.5 | — | 0 |
| 18 | Stacy Bey | LB | SO | 13 | 1 | 0 | — | 1 |
| 42 | Ca'lub Holloway | LB | SR | 3 | 2.5 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 45 | Eli Wallace | LB | SR | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Cole Worthington | LB | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | ||
| 32 | Kade Houston | LB | SR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 37 | Ryan Mallory | LB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 44 | Ray Chatham | LB | JR | — | — | — | — | — |
Stats, EPA and usage come from CollegeFootballData.com and refresh daily. FBS ranks only count players with enough volume for the stat to mean something. Qualifying for EPA takes —+ plays per team game. Sam Houston depth chart →