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Computed from every play, garbage time excluded. FBS rank among players with enough volume
| Defense | Value | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Havoc plays | 1 | 1749th / 2573 |
| Tackles for loss | 1 | 1083rd / 1911 |
| Run stops | 3 | 1916th / 3263 |
| Sacks | 0 | — |
| Pass breakups | 0 | — |
| Interceptions | 0 | — |
| Forced fumbles | 0 | — |
| Tackles | 11 | — |
Charting
Where Nilles'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 |  Texas State#61 · 3-3 | 5 | 27% | 14 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2025 | Texas State#62 · 7-6 | 10 | 35% | 29 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 5 |
Past seasons are summed from ESPN box scores; success rates and snap shares come from the play-by-play. Cole Nilles's team rank is that season's final TDC rank. A dash means the stat wasn't recorded.
Game Log
Cole Nilles'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 | @ Texas | L 7–59 | 4.5 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 2 |  UTSA | L 26–31 | — | no stats recorded | |||||||
| 3 |  North Texas | W 49–35 | 6.2 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 4 |  Incarnate Word | W 63–10 | 6.4 | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 5 | @ San Diego State | L 29–31 | 4.1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 7 |  Colorado State | W 66–27 | 5.6 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 2026 · 5 games | 5.4 | 14 | 10 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · | ||
2026 Season Stats
FBS rank among qualifying players
| Defense | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Tackles | 14 | 1509th / 5408 |
| Solo | 10 | — |
| Tackles for loss | 2 | 760th / 2450 |
| 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 · Texas | 70 | ~30 (3–54) | 2 | 43% |
| Wk 3 · North Texas | 85 | ~51 (26–60) | 5 | 60% |
| Wk 4 · Incarnate Word | 90 | ~30 (3–54) | 3 | 33% |
| Wk 5 · San Diego State | 52 | ~5 (0–29) | 1 | 10% |
| Wk 7 · Colorado State | 70 | ~3 (0–17) | 1 | 4% |
| Season | 441 | 119 (46–157) | 12 | 27% |
Position Room
10 LBs on the Texas State roster, ordered by tkl
| # | Player | Pos | Class | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 16 | Terrence Cooks II | LB | SR | 36 | 4 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 15 | Ayden Jones | LB | JR | 34 | 4 | 0 | — | 1 |
| 12 | Javante Mackey | LB | JR | 21 | 2 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 10 | Cole Nilles | LB | JR | 14 | 2 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 29 | Treylin Payne | LB | SR | 14 | 1.5 | 0 | — | 1 |
| 23 | Darius Davis | LB | FR | 10 | 1 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 11 | TJ Burkhalter | LB | FR | 8 | 1.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 |
| Tice Williams | LB | 4 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | ||
| 21 | Jordan Sample | LB | JR | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 49 | Blaine Carver | 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. Texas State depth chart →