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Computed from every play, garbage time excluded. FBS rank among players with enough volume
| Defense | Value | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Havoc plays | 0 | — |
| Tackles for loss | 0 | — |
| Run stops | 0 | — |
| Sacks | 0 | — |
| Pass breakups | 0 | — |
| Interceptions | 0 | — |
| Forced fumbles | 0 | — |
| Tackles | 11 | — |
Charting
Where Smith'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
Mekhai Smith'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 |  Eastern Illinois | W 59–7 | 5.3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 2 |  Mississippi State | L 13–38 | 6.5 | 7 | 4 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 3 |  Akron | W 41–7 | 5.2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 4 | @ Washington | W 27–24 | — | no stats recorded | |||||||
| 5 |  Michigan | W 20–14 | — | no stats recorded | |||||||
| 6 | @ Purdue | L 13–41 | 6.1 | 6 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 8 |  Iowa | W 13–10 | 4.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 9 | @ Indiana | L 16–23 | 4.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 2026 · 6 games | 5.2 | 21 | 13 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · | ||
2026 Season Stats
FBS rank among qualifying players
| Defense | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Tackles | 21 | 1232nd / 5664 |
| Solo | 13 | — |
| Tackles for loss | 0.5 | 2222nd / 2634 |
| Sacks | 0 | — |
| QB hurries | 0 | — |
| 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 | Opp. plays | Est. snaps | Plays made | Snap share |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 · Eastern Illinois | 43 | ~42 (17–43) | 3 | 98% |
| Wk 2 · Mississippi State | 68 | ~68 (27–68) | 7 | 100% |
| Wk 3 · Akron | 60 | ~45 (18–48) | 3 | 75% |
| Wk 6 · Purdue | 71 | ~67 (27–71) | 6 | 94% |
| Wk 8 · Iowa | 66 | ~· | 1 | 0% |
| Wk 9 · Indiana | 69 | ~2 (0–6) | 1 | 3% |
| Season | 480 | 224 (99–245) | 21 | 47% |
Position Room
19 DBs on the Minnesota roster, ordered by tkl
| # | Player | Pos | Class | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 14 | Kerry Brown | DB | SR | 47 | 2 | 0 | — | 3 |
| 4 | Zack Harden | DB | SO | 45 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 3 |
| 17 | John Nestor | DB | SR | 35 | 5 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| Aydan West | DB | 31 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 6 | ||
| 22 | Mekhai Smith | DB | JR | 21 | 0.5 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 7 | Aidan Gousby | DB | SR | 13 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 |
| 21 | Naiim Parrish | DB | SO | 9 | 1 | 0 | — | 2 |
| 9 | Garrison Monroe | DB | SR | 8 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 28 | Trason Richardson | DB | FR | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 8 | Mike Gerald | DB | JR | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 18 | Rhyland Kelly | DB | SR | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 13 | Zahir Rainer | DB | JR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 15 | Samuel Madu | DB | JR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 20 | Parker Knutson | DB | SR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 23 | Lamont Hamilton | DB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 24 | Chance Payne | DB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 25 | Justin Hopkins | DB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 27 | Simon Seidl | DB | JR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 31 | Jordan Lampkins | DB | 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. Minnesota depth chart →