Advanced
Computed from every play, garbage time excluded. FBS rank among players with enough volume
| Defense | Value | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Havoc plays | 4 | 493rd / 2575 |
| Tackles for loss | 3 | 376th / 1913 |
| Run stops | 10 | 551st / 3263 |
| Sacks | 1 | — |
| Pass breakups | 1 | — |
| Interceptions | 0 | — |
| Forced fumbles | 0 | — |
| Tackles | 28 | — |
Charting
Where II'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 |  USC#24 · 6-1 | 6 | 63% | 28 | 2 | 0.5 | 0 | 1 | 4 |
| 2025 | USC#13 · 9-4 | 13 | 87% | 89 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 |
| 2024 | USC#18 · 7-6 | 8 | 15% | 13 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 2 |
Past seasons are summed from ESPN box scores; success rates and snap shares come from the play-by-play. Desman Stephens II's team rank is that season's final TDC rank. A dash means the stat wasn't recorded.
Game Log
Desman Stephens II'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 |  San José State | W 42–26 | 6.0 | 2 | 2 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 1 |  Fresno State | W 39–0 | 5.2 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 2 |  Louisiana | W 49–30 | 5.9 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 3 | @ Rutgers | W 42–35 | 7.7 | 7 | 4 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0 | 1 | · | · |
| 4 |  Oregon | L 27–41 | 5.1 | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 5 |  Washington | W 25–21 | — | no stats recorded | |||||||
| 6 | @ Penn State | W 31–23 | 6.8 | 9 | 4 | 0.5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 2026 · 6 games | 6.1 | 28 | 16 | 2 | 0.5 | 0 | 1 | · | · | ||
2026 Season Stats
FBS rank among qualifying players
| Defense | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Tackles | 28 | 522nd / 5410 |
| Solo | 16 | — |
| Tackles for loss | 2 | 760th / 2452 |
| Sacks | 0.5 | 979th / 1213 |
| QB hurries | 0 | — |
| Passes defended | 1 | 707th / 1591 |
| 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 | Start | Opp. plays | Est. snaps | Plays made | Snap share |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 · San José State | ✓ LB | 56 | ~30 (3–54) | 2 | 54% |
| Wk 1 · Fresno State | ✓ LB | 45 | ~27 (3–45) | 3 | 60% |
| Wk 2 · Louisiana | ✓ LB | 52 | ~47 (24–52) | 5 | 90% |
| Wk 3 · Rutgers | — | 69 | ~66 (34–69) | 8 | 96% |
| Wk 4 · Oregon | ✓ LB | 68 | ~26 (3–47) | 2 | 38% |
| Wk 6 · Penn State | ✓ LB | 63 | ~63 (32–63) | 9 | 100% |
| Season | 5 GS | 413 | 259 (217–311) | 29 | 63% |
Position Room
13 LBs on the USC roster, ordered by tkl
| # | Player | Pos | Class | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 17 | Deven Bryant | LB | JR | 39 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 |
| 8 | Desman Stephens II | LB | JR | 28 | 2 | 0.5 | — | 1 |
| 14 | Ta'Mere Robinson | LB | JR | 12 | 1 | 1 | — | 0 |
| Jadyn Walker | LB | 11 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | ||
| 22 | Talanoa Ili | LB | FR | 7 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 26 | Elijah Newby | LB | SO | 3 | 1 | 1 | — | 1 |
| 41 | Ryan O'Connell | LB | SR | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 58 | GianCarlo Rufo | LB | SR | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 24 | Shaun Scott | LB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 46 | Nick De Fina | LB | SR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 47 | Austin Engroff | LB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 50 | Taylor Johnson | LB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 57 | Roman Marchetti | LB | SR | — | — | — | — | — |
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. USC depth chart →