Senior defensive back on UCF's 2023 roster.
6′0″ · 193 lb · Ocala, FL
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The story
4 defensive back on UCF's roster.
Decorian Patterson
Moves between deep coverage and the slot. Decorian Patterson has played for two head coaches across six seasons and two programs. His first career honor landed in 2022: All-Conference USA. The receipt: 7 tackles, 1 TFL against Georgia Tech — Bowl, 2023.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
How it ended
Six seasons at UCF, 204 tackles — his college career is complete.
His career
Nobody recruited him. He earned the honors anyway.
Career arc
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-CONFERENCE USA
All-Conference USA mention (2022)
Coaching lineage · 2018–2023
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Josh Heupel → Gus Malzahn. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Season context · Team result + system
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Concern: sacks (24th percentile).
Percentiles are versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score production. There are no play-by-play efficiency bars here: CFBD's play-value model credits offensive players only, so no defensive EPA exists to rank.
Splits · Per-game
2023 season · 7 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 3.5 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
| Road3g | 3.0 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 3.0 | 0.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+4g | 3.5 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Scott Frost
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Player standing · 2023
Tackle volume for the position in rotation-piece range.
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2023 | UCF | 23 | 20 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 2 | -- | -- |
| 2022 | Middle Tennessee | 63 | 44 | 2.0 | 0.0 | 12 | 7 | -- |
| 2021 | Middle Tennessee | 27 | 18 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 7 | 1 | -- |
| 2020 | Middle Tennessee | 43 | 27 | 5.0 | 2.5 | 5 | 1 | -- |
| 2019 | Middle Tennessee | 39 | 31 | 3.0 | 0.0 | 6 | -- | -- |
| 2018 | Middle Tennessee | 9 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 204 | 144 | 11.5 | 2.5 | 32 | 9 | -- |
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 3 · 2023
W 48–14
vs Villanova
1 TOT
Dominant 34-point win at home against Villanova.
With T. McClain — 321 yds · 2 TD · 0 INT · QBR 67.7 · 44 rush yds (9 car) · M. McCarthy — 48 AVG · 1 IN 20 · 52 LONG
Game log · Week-by-week
2023 season · 7 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 3 | W 48-14vs Villanova | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | L 35-36vs Baylor | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 29-31@ Oklahoma | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | W 28-26@ Cincinnati | 2 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | W 45-3vs Oklahoma State | 5 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 2 | |
| Wk 12 | L 23-24@ Texas Tech | 5 | 4 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Bowl | L 17-30vs Georgia Tech | 7 | 7 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 23 | 20 | 1.5 | 0.0 | — | 2 |
Play style
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
CFB Index positional classification
Player DNA
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
His 2023 production profile sits closest to Kevin Knowles II’s 2021 season.
Matches Kevin on
Differs from Kevin on
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
Player DNA