Advanced
Computed from every play, garbage time excluded. FBS rank among players with enough volume
| Defense | Value | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Havoc plays | 9 | 81st / 2758 |
| Tackles for loss | 9 | 30th / 2112 |
| Run stops | 34 | 20th / 3422 |
| Sacks | 3 | — |
| Pass breakups | 0 | — |
| Interceptions | 0 | — |
| Forced fumbles | 0 | — |
| Tackles | 63 | — |
Charting
Where Buffington'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.
Career
2 seasons since 2014 · box-score totals, snap share estimated from play-by-play
| Season | Team | G | Snaps | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT | PD | Havoc |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 so far |  Iowa#16 · 6-2 | 8 | 94% | 70 | 8 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 9 |
| 2025 | Iowa#14 · 9-4 | 3 | 12% | 7 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | — |
Past seasons are summed from ESPN box scores; success rates and snap shares come from the play-by-play. Cam Buffington's team rank is that season's final TDC rank. A dash means the stat wasn't recorded.
Game Log
Cam Buffington'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 |  Northern Illinois | W 40–0 | 6.7 | 6 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 2 |  Iowa State | W 16–13 | 8.0 | 15 | 9 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 3 |  Northern Iowa | W 55–0 | 7.7 | 6 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 0 | · | · |
| 4 | @ Michigan | W 20–19 | 6.9 | 11 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 5 |  Ohio State | L 14–31 | 6.3 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 | · | · |
| 6 | @ Washington | W 41–24 | 8.9 | 8 | 6 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 8 | @ Minnesota | L 10–13 | 8.1 | 10 | 8 | 1.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 9 |  Wisconsin | W 30–0 | 8.1 | 8 | 3 | 1.5 | 1 | 1 | 0 | · | · |
| 2026 · 8 games | 7.6 | 70 | 39 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 0 | · | · | ||
2026 Season Stats
FBS rank among qualifying players
| Rushing | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Carries | 1 | — |
| Yards | 4 | 1235th / 1519 |
| Yards / carry | 4 | — |
| Touchdowns | 0 | — |
| Long | 4 | — |
| Defense | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Tackles | 70 | 30th / 5664 |
| Solo | 39 | — |
| Tackles for loss | 8 | 48th / 2634 |
| Sacks | 3 | 147th / 1383 |
| QB hurries | 4 | 123rd / 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 involved | Plays made | Snap share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 · Northern Illinois | ✓ LB | 55 | ~44 (22–52) | · | 5 | 80% |
| Wk 2 · Iowa State | ✓ LB | 53 | ~53 (27–53) | · | 15 | 100% |
| Wk 3 · Northern Iowa | ✓ LB | 57 | ~49 (25–57) | · | 6 | 86% |
| Wk 4 · Michigan | ✓ LB | 68 | ~68 (35–68) | · | 11 | 100% |
| Wk 5 · Ohio State | ✓ LB | 74 | ~67 (34–74) | · | 6 | 91% |
| Wk 6 · Washington | ✓ LB | 76 | ~71 (36–76) | · | 8 | 93% |
| Wk 8 · Minnesota | — | 61 | ~61 (31–61) | 1 | 9 | 100% |
| Wk 9 · Wisconsin | — | 50 | ~50 (25–50) | · | 8 | 100% |
| Season | 6 GS | 494 | 463 (388–494) | 1 | 68 | 94% |
Position Room
13 LBs on the Iowa roster, ordered by tkl
| # | Player | Pos | Class | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 33 | Cam Buffington | LB | JR | 70 | 8 | 3 | — | 0 |
| 36 | Jayden Montgomery | LB | SR | 46 | 7 | 2.5 | — | 0 |
| 23 | Landyn Van Kekerix | LB | SR | 25 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 |
| 46 | Preston Ries | LB | JR | 9 | 2.5 | 2.5 | — | 1 |
| 4 | Julian Manson | LB | FR | 7 | 1.5 | 1 | — | 0 |
| 31 | Nolan DeLong | LB | SR | 6 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Derek Weisskopf | LB | 6 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | ||
| 10 | Burke Gautcher | LB | SO | 4 | 0.5 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 15 | Carson Cooney | LB | SO | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 47 | Jack Laughlin | LB | SR | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Billy Weivoda | LB | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | ||
| 9 | Kasen Thomas | LB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 37 | Brayton Alford | LB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
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. Iowa depth chart →