Advanced
Computed from every play, garbage time excluded. FBS rank among players with enough volume
| Defense | Value | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Havoc plays | 4 | 736th / 2758 |
| Tackles for loss | 2 | 830th / 2112 |
| Run stops | 6 | 1448th / 3422 |
| Sacks | 0 | — |
| Pass breakups | 2 | — |
| Interceptions | 0 | — |
| Forced fumbles | 0 | — |
| Tackles | 24 | — |
Charting
Where Heckel'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 |  Illinois#42 · 5-3 | 7 | 62% | 24 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 4 |
| 2025 | Illinois#27 · 9-4 | 13 | 60% | 37 | 3 | 1.5 | 1 | 2 | 4 |
| 2024 | Illinois#37 · 10-3 | 3 | 2% | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Past seasons are summed from ESPN box scores; success rates and snap shares come from the play-by-play. Tanner Heckel's team rank is that season's final TDC rank. A dash means the stat wasn't recorded.
Game Log
Tanner Heckel'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 |  UAB | W 42–23 | — | no stats recorded | |||||||
| 2 |  Duke | L 27–31 | 4.0 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 3 |  Southern Illinois | W 48–10 | 6.3 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 4 | @ Ohio State | L 19–42 | 2.5 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 5 |  Purdue | L 17–24 | 6.5 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | · | · |
| 6 | @ Michigan State | W 38–37 | 6.3 | 7 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 8 |  Oregon | W 21–10 | 5.9 | 5 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 9 | @ Maryland | W 20–17 | 7.9 | 4 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | · |
| 2026 · 7 games | 5.6 | 24 | 16 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | · | ||
2026 Season Stats
FBS rank among qualifying players
| Defense | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Tackles | 24 | 1024th / 5664 |
| Solo | 16 | — |
| Tackles for loss | 2 | 966th / 2634 |
| Sacks | 0 | — |
| QB hurries | 0 | — |
| Passes defended | 1 | 898th / 1772 |
| Defensive TD | 0 | — |
| Interceptions | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Interceptions | 1 | 145th / 627 |
| Return yards | 2 | — |
| Pick-sixes | 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 | Special teams | Snap share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 2 · Duke | — | 56 | ~4 (0–12) | 1 | · | 7% |
| Wk 3 · Southern Illinois | — | 69 | ~67 (27–69) | 4 | · | 97% |
| Wk 4 · Ohio State | — | 68 | ~5 (0–15) | 1 | · | 7% |
| Wk 5 · Purdue | — | 60 | ~58 (23–60) | 3 | · | 97% |
| Wk 6 · Michigan State | — | 55 | ~55 (22–55) | 7 | · | 100% |
| Wk 8 · Oregon | ✓ DB | 73 | ~72 (29–73) | 5 | · | 99% |
| Wk 9 · Maryland | — | 58 | ~58 (23–58) | 5 | 1 | 100% |
| Season | 1 GS | 516 | 319 (242–355) | 26 | 1 | 62% |
Position Room
18 DBs on the Illinois roster, ordered by tkl
| # | Player | Pos | Class | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 7 | Matthew Bailey | DB | SR | 55 | 3.5 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 6 | Juice Clarke | DB | SR | 40 | 1 | 0 | — | 8 |
| 1 | Xavier Scott | DB | SR | 28 | 0.5 | 0 | — | 3 |
| 0 | Mac Resetich | DB | SR | 27 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 |
| 16 | Tanner Heckel | DB | JR | 24 | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 5 | Jakwon Morris | DB | JR | 15 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 |
| 32 | Tywan Cox | DB | SO | 12 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 |
| 22 | Deuce Fillmore | DB | SR | 8 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 3 | Nick Hankins Jr. | DB | FR | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 21 | Ben Clawson | DB | SR | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 13 | Xanai Scott | DB | SO | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 25 | Des Straughton | DB | SO | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 29 | James Finley IV | DB | SO | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Almirian Thomas | DB | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | ||
| 9 | RJ Jones III | DB | SO | — | — | — | — | — |
| 14 | Andre Lovett Jr. | DB | SO | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Kaedyn Cobbs | DB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 37 | Caden Considine | 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. Illinois depth chart →