Advanced
Computed from every play, garbage time excluded. FBS rank among players with enough volume
| Defense | Value | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Havoc plays | 2 | 1186th / 2573 |
| Tackles for loss | 1 | 1083rd / 1911 |
| Run stops | 9 | 659th / 3263 |
| Sacks | 0 | — |
| Pass breakups | 1 | — |
| Interceptions | 0 | — |
| Forced fumbles | 0 | — |
| Tackles | 35 | — |
Charting
Where Smith'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 at 2 schools 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 |  Ball State#133 · 2-5 | 6 | 81% | 37 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 2025 |  Purdue#100 · 2-10 | 3 | 1% | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | — |
Past seasons are summed from ESPN box scores; success rates and snap shares come from the play-by-play. Sterling Smith's team rank is that season's final TDC rank. A dash means the stat wasn't recorded.
Game Log
Sterling Smith'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 | @ Ohio State | L 3–56 | 6.2 | 6 | 5 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 2 |  Stony Brook | W 41–17 | 5.5 | 4 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 3 | @ Liberty | L 15–51 | 8.1 | 9 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | · | · |
| 4 | @ Kent State | L 13–26 | 6.6 | 9 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 5 |  Toledo | L 24–39 | 5.7 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 6 | @ Northwestern | L 14–45 | 5.3 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | · | · |
| 7 | @ Bowling Green | W 32–31 | — | no stats recorded | |||||||
| 2026 · 6 games | 6.2 | 37 | 21 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | · | · | ||
2026 Season Stats
FBS rank among qualifying players
| Defense | 2026 | FBS rank |
|---|---|---|
| Tackles | 37 | 256th / 5408 |
| Solo | 21 | — |
| Tackles for loss | 1 | 1347th / 2450 |
| Sacks | 0 | — |
| QB hurries | 0 | — |
| Passes defended | 1 | 704th / 1589 |
| 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 · Ohio State | ✓ DB | 72 | ~65 (26–69) | 5 | 90% |
| Wk 2 · Stony Brook | ✓ DB | 64 | ~62 (25–64) | 4 | 97% |
| Wk 3 · Liberty | ✓ DB | 64 | ~64 (26–64) | 10 | 100% |
| Wk 4 · Kent State | ✓ DB | 66 | ~66 (27–66) | 9 | 100% |
| Wk 5 · Toledo | — | 86 | ~81 (33–86) | 6 | 94% |
| Wk 6 · Northwestern | — | 55 | ~37 (0–55) | 3 | 67% |
| Season | 4 GS | 465 | 375 (284–417) | 37 | 81% |
Position Room
23 DBs on the Ball State roster, ordered by tkl
| # | Player | Pos | Class | Tkl | TFL | Sacks | INT | PD |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Sterling Smith | DB | SR | 37 | 1 | 0 | — | 1 |
| 14 | Anthony Pinnace | DB | SR | 30 | 4.5 | 1 | — | 3 |
| 2 | Quentavius Scandrett | DB | SR | 29 | 1.5 | 0 | — | 1 |
| Willizhuan Yates | DB | 28 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 1 | ||
| 5 | Chris Jackson | DB | SR | 13 | 0 | 0 | — | 1 |
| 12 | Deondre Shepherd | DB | JR | 12 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 13 | Kamron Chamble | DB | SO | 11 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 0 |
| 18 | Cedric Franklin II | DB | JR | 10 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 2 |
| 0 | Derek Fields | DB | SR | 9 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 28 | Stone Perkins | DB | FR | 9 | 0 | 0 | — | 2 |
| 21 | Gabe Aramboles | DB | SO | 5 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| Kamari Williams | DB | 2 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 | ||
| 20 | Cole Earlewine | DB | SR | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 23 | Jordan Suggs | DB | JR | 1 | 0 | 0 | — | 0 |
| 2 | Tobi Adewoyin | DB | SO | — | — | — | — | — |
| 8 | Avery Stuart | DB | SR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 19 | Zyon Hill | DB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 24 | Dianté Griffin | DB | SR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 29 | Micah Lillard | DB | JR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 30 | Donovan Lanier | DB | SO | — | — | — | — | — |
| 35 | Drew Bostic | DB | FR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 38 | Jayden Bernavil | DB | SR | — | — | — | — | — |
| 45 | Sebastian Moore | 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. Ball State depth chart →