Advanced
Computed from every play, garbage time excluded. FBS rank among players with enough volume
| Defense | Value | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Havoc plays | 3 | 1078th / 2758 |
| Tackles for loss | 0 | — |
| Run stops | 19 | 232nd / 3422 |
| Sacks | 0 | — |
| Pass breakups | 3 | — |
| Interceptions | 0 | — |
| Forced fumbles | 0 | — |
| Tackles | 35 | — |
Charting
Where Pierce'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
3 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 |  Ohio State#2 · 6-2 | 8 | 85% | 43 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0 | 3 | 3 |
| 2025 | Ohio State#2 · 12-2 | 13 | 46% | 44 | 1.5 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 |
| 2024 | Ohio State#1 · 14-2 | 3 | 3% | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Past seasons are summed from ESPN box scores; success rates and snap shares come from the play-by-play. Payton Pierce's team rank is that season's final TDC rank. A dash means the stat wasn't recorded.
Game Log
Payton Pierce'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 |  Ball State | W 56–3 | 6.5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 1 | · | · |
| 2 | @ Texas | L 23–24 | 6.7 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 3 |  Kent State | W 59–3 | 6.7 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 4 |  Illinois | W 42–19 | 6.6 | 6 | 2 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 5 | @ Iowa | W 31–14 | 6.1 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 6 |  Maryland | W 45–16 | 5.3 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 7 | @ Indiana | W 19–15 | 6.7 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | · | · |
| 9 | @ USC | L 18–30 | 6.7 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | · | · |
| 2026 · 8 games | 6.4 | 43 | 16 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 2 | 3 | · | · | ||
2026 Season Stats
FBS rank among qualifying players
| Defense | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Tackles | 43 | 307th / 5664 |
| Solo | 16 | — |
| Tackles for loss | 0.5 | 2222nd / 2634 |
| Sacks | 0.5 | 1127th / 1383 |
| QB hurries | 2 | 418th / 1549 |
| Passes defended | 3 | 237th / 1772 |
| Defensive TD | 0 | — |
| Fumbles | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Fumbles | 0 | — |
| Lost | 0 | — |
| Recovered | 1 | — |
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 | Penalties | Snap share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 · Ball State | ✓ LB | 60 | ~35 (4–60) | 4 | · | 58% |
| Wk 2 · Texas | ✓ LB | 78 | ~74 (38–78) | 8 | · | 95% |
| Wk 3 · Kent State | ✓ LB | 55 | ~23 (2–42) | 2 | 1 | 42% |
| Wk 4 · Illinois | ✓ LB | 71 | ~64 (33–71) | 6 | · | 90% |
| Wk 5 · Iowa | ✓ LB | 52 | ~52 (26–52) | 6 | · | 100% |
| Wk 6 · Maryland | ✓ LB | 53 | ~47 (24–53) | 4 | · | 89% |
| Wk 7 · Indiana | — | 69 | ~68 (35–69) | 8 | · | 99% |
| Wk 9 · USC | ✓ LB | 50 | ~50 (25–50) | 7 | · | 100% |
| Season | 7 GS | 488 | 413 (347–488) | 45 | 1 | 85% |
Position Room
14 LBs on the Ohio State roster, ordered by tkl
| # | Player | Pos | Class | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26 | Payton Pierce | LB | JR | 43 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 3 |
| 5 | Riley Pettijohn | LB | SO | 27 | 4.5 | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| 14 | Christian Alliegro | LB | SR | 25 | 2.5 | 0 | — | 2 |
| 17 | Tarvos Alford | LB | SO | 21 | 1.5 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 20 | Cincere Johnson | LB | FR | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 41 | Braxton Rembert | LB | FR | 3 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 36 | CJ Sanna | LB | FR | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Garrett Stover | LB | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | ||
| 33 | Eli Lee | LB | SO | — | — | — | — | — |
| 37 | Zach Hayes | LB | JR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 38 | Eli Riggs | LB | JR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 50 | Alec DelSignore | LB | SR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 52 | Ty Howard | LB | SR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 54 | Na'il Diggs Jr. | 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. Ohio State depth chart →