Computed from every play, garbage time excluded. FBS rank among players with enough volume
| Defense | Value | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Havoc plays | 4 | 491st / 2573 |
| Tackles for loss | 4 | 209th / 1911 |
| Run stops | 15 | 234th / 3263 |
| Sacks | 1 | — |
| Pass breakups | 0 | — |
| Interceptions | 0 | — |
| Forced fumbles | 0 | — |
| Tackles | 31 | — |
Where Willich'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.
4 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 State#45 · 3-3 | 6 | 80% | 36 | 7 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 4 |
| 2025 | Iowa State#35 · 8-4 | 6 | 16% | 18 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2023 | Iowa State#34 · 7-6 | 11 | 33% | 16 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2022 * | Iowa State#50 · 4-8 | 3 | 8% | 6 | — | — | 0 | — | 0 |
Past seasons are summed from ESPN box scores; success rates and snap shares come from the play-by-play. Carson Willich's team rank is that season's final TDC rank. A dash means the stat wasn't recorded. * Defense rebuilt from the play-by-play (ESPN's box scores that season are missing it); about 10% below official totals.
Carson Willich'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
FBS rank among qualifying players
| Defense | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Tackles | 36 | 285th / 5408 |
| Solo | 20 | — |
| Tackles for loss | 7 | 41st / 2450 |
| Sacks | 1 | 489th / 1212 |
| QB hurries | 2 | 302nd / 1380 |
| Passes defended | 0 | — |
| Defensive TD | 0 | — |
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 · Southeast Missouri State | ✓ LB | 67 | ~52 (26–61) | 7 | 78% |
| Wk 2 · Iowa | ✓ LB | 59 | ~39 (4–59) | 4 | 66% |
| Wk 3 · Bowling Green | ✓ LB | 52 | ~43 (22–51) | 6 | 83% |
| Wk 4 · Utah | ✓ LB | 60 | ~49 (25–58) | 5 | 82% |
| Wk 5 · West Virginia | — | 63 | ~54 (27–63) | 7 | 86% |
| Wk 6 · BYU | ✓ LB | 61 | ~53 (27–61) | 5 | 87% |
| Season | 5 GS | 362 | 290 (243–348) | 34 | 80% |
11 LBs on the Iowa State roster, ordered by tkl
| # | Player | Pos | Class | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sullivan Schlimgen | LB | 56 | 3 | 1 | — | 2 | ||
| Carson Willich | LB | 36 | 7 | 1 | — | 0 | ||
| 11 | Willie Breland III | LB | JR | 18 | 1 | 0 | — | 1 |
| 34 | Beau Goodwin | LB | JR | 14 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 |
| 16 | Malcolm Jones | LB | SR | 6 | 2.5 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Montreze Smith | LB | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | ||
| 8 | Tristan Exline | LB | SR | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 36 | Bradley Esser | LB | FR | 3 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Connor Welsch | LB | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | ||
| 40 | Landon Kalsbeck | LB | FR | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Ethan Stecker | LB | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
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 State depth chart →