CFB Zeitgeist Score
70
Solid starter in the position cohort. Carried by passes defended at the 91st percentile.
Devin Lafayette
Below the discourse floor — the honest stats-only state.
113 TACKLES · 1 SACKS
2026 Outlook
Returning to Troy for 2026
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Safety · Troy
Returning around him
- 33% of 2024 offensive production back (Moderate turnover)
- Transfer portal: -13 net (14 in / 27 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Troy · Last season: 8-6 · Talent rank #99 · 2026 recruiting class #82
S · TROY · SUN BELT
Devin Lafayette
- 4
- #3
- 6-2 | 210 lb
- Brunswick, GA
Heisman Heat
#12796
<1% win probability
Fan Belief
Awaiting
Player-specific FI not yet ingested. Falls back to team mood below.
Respect Gap
Awaiting
Coming online with player-level FI.
Reality Gap
Awaiting
Coming online with player-level FI.
ACCOLADE PROBABILITY
Heisman
<1%
TOP DB AWARD
Jim Thorpe
—
CONSENSUS
All-American
—
Player Standing · 17 rungs
Tier 2 · StarterR07 · Impact starter
Impact starter. Producing measurable value above replacement.
Not on team2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career arc · Season-by-season Standing
5 seasons on the ladder
2021
Northern Illinois · S
—
2022
Northern Illinois · S
—
2023
Northern Illinois · S
—
2024
Troy · S
—
★
2025
Troy · S
R09 · All-Conference HM / 2nd team
Recognized
Career Arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Identity & Role
The durable bio layer: position, size, hometown, and roster role.
Recruiting Pedigree
How big the prospect was before college, and whether the later career arc beat that expectation.
| Class | Profile | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | 3-star | 0.8107 | No. 2481 recruit | HighSchool | Northern Illinois |
Transfer Arc
Portal movement changes role, context, and perception. This keeps that path in one place.
| Season | Move | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Northern Illinois -> Troy | 3-star | 0.8400 | Immediate |
Heisman Lens · 2024 Season · Final
Where the player landed at the end of the listed season — final nowcast rank, win/finalist/ballot probabilities, and the cleanest official Heisman placement on file.
HIGH CONFIDENCE· through week 16Heisman Futures
Not yet listed on major futures markets.
No achievements unlocked yet this season.
Selector Grid · 2025
AP—
FWAA—
AFCA—
WCFF—
SN—
SI—
NIL · Recruiting · NFL Draft
Market value, pedigree & pro outcome
Recruit stars
★★★☆☆
to Northern Illinois
Composite
0.8107
#2481 national
Today’s Hot-Take
The Hot-Take engine fires when this player’s percentile profile crosses a defensible threshold (top 10% in a cohort, 100+ snap sample). When it’s quiet, the model is honoring its “must be defensible” rule.
Anti-Take
PENDINGThe contrarian read fires when the rules-engine detects a stat that complicates the Hot-Take. Quiet here means the model hasn’t found a defensible counter yet — not that one doesn’t exist.
The Room on Devin Lafayette
Fan sentiment · Awaiting signal
The Room reads fan conversation around a player — who’s talking, what they believe, and how that shifts. It publishes once weekly volume rebuilds; for most players that’s in-season, when game-week chatter spikes.
Cohort divergence map
Cohort divergence reads how different fanbases talk about this player. Returns once weekly mentions clear the publish floor.
Rival Radar
How rival fanbases talk about Devin Lafayette
No rival-bucket mentions in the current season.
Signature Story
Awaiting candidate metric
He hasn't written his page yet — we'll start filling it in when there are enough snaps to rank against his peers.
Signature Moment
No signature moment on the ledger yet.
Returns once this player puts together a multi-game body of work — single-game flashes alone don't clear the bar.
Season Pace · Projection
Where the defensive totals stand
Through 14g
113Tackles
2.5Tackles for loss
1Sacks
Per game
8Tackles
0.2Tackles for loss
0.1Sacks
Final
113Tackles
2.5Tackles for loss
1Sacks
✓ Hit 80-tackle season · finished with 113.
✓ Hit 100-tackle season · finished with 113.
Why this is a rare defensive case
The fast read on the thing that makes this player more than a generic stat line.
Devin Lafayette is trying to climb the steepest award hill in college football: a defensive candidacy. The hook is the disruption profile on Troy's defense, with 1.0 sacks, 2.5 tackles for loss, and 2 interceptions through the current loaded season. For a defender, the question is never just production; it is whether elite disruption and team context can become nationally undeniable.
2025 Season · Final
Traditional stats first. Advanced context underneath.
Last season
DEF season snapshot
2025 season snapshot | final
2025 season snapshot | finalData: CFBD player stats + local Heisman modelPeer context: same position + same level
Player identity What kind of player is this?
30-second read
What kind of player is this?
Coverage splash | High-volume tackler against FBS defenders.
2025 Season · Final
2025 season snapshot | final
Tackling & Disruption
TOT
113 100th
SOLO
52 99th
TFL
2.5 75th
SACK
1.0 82nd
Coverage & Takeaways
PD
5 90th
INT
2 87th
Game Log · Week-by-week
2025 season · 14 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 38-20vs Nicholls | 7 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 16-27@ Clemson | 7 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 3 | L 7-28vs Memphis | 9 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 4 | W 21-17@ Buffalo | 9 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 31-24vs South Alabama | 19 | 9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 19 tackles |
| Wk 7 | W 48-41@ Texas State | 8 | 6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 37-14@ UL Monroe | 4 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 35-23vs Louisiana | 9 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 10 | L 10-23vs Arkansas State | 5 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | L 0-33@ Old Dominion | 9 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 13 | W 31-19vs Georgia State | 6 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 14 | W 28-18@ Southern Miss | 7 | 3 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 15 | L 14-31@ James Madison | 5 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Bowl | L 13-17@ Jacksonville State | 9 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Total | 113 | 52 | 2.5 | 1.0 | 2 | 5 |
Season-by-season tables Career rows + per-season box score
Traditional history
Traditional Stats
Season rows up top, career context at the bottom.
Season context · Team result + system
2021Northern Illinois9-4HC: Thomas Hammock · Run-heavy, fast tempo
2022Northern Illinois3-9HC: Thomas Hammock · Run-leaning
2023Northern Illinois7-6HC: Thomas Hammock · Run-leaning
2024Troy4-8HC: Gerad Parker · Run-leaning
2025Troy8-6HC: Gerad Parker · Balanced
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Troy | 113 | 52 | 2.5 | 1.0 | 5 | 2 | -- |
| 2024 | Troy | 50 | 28 | 6.0 | 0.0 | 1 | -- | -- |
| 2023 | Northern Illinois | 39 | 23 | 2.0 | 0.5 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2022 | Northern Illinois | 38 | 15 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 1 | 1 | -- |
| 2021 | Northern Illinois | 6 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 5 loaded seasons | 246 | 122 | 11.0 | 2.0 | 7 | 3 | -- |
Advanced layer Usage, value, and context
Advanced metrics second
Advanced Metrics
Usage, value, and opponent-adjusted context.
TFL, sacks, and QB hurries are grouped together because defensive Heisman cases are usually built on visible havoc, not on tackle counts alone.
Pass breakups, interceptions, and forced fumbles matter because national awards voters respond to plays that change possessions and highlight reels.
Every percentile is compared against players at the same position and level, so an FBS quarterback is judged against FBS quarterbacks, not the whole sport.
The top tables stick to the stats fans already know from broadcasts and box scores. Advanced context is pushed underneath instead of replacing the basics.
Open full stat explorer
| Group | Metric | Value | Rank | Pct | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Defense | Total tackles | 113 | #20/4942 | 100th pct | Volumevs FBS DEF |
| Defense | TFL | 2.5 | #1236/4972 | 75th pct | Disruptionvs FBS DEF |
| Defense | Sacks | 1.0 | #872/4972 | 82nd pct | Disruptionvs FBS DEF |
| Defense | Interceptions | 2 | #114/869 | 87th pct | Takeawaysvs FBS DEF |
| Defense | Pass breakups | 5 | #218/2184 | 90th pct | Coveragevs FBS DEF |
| Defense | Solo tackles | 52 | #54/4584 | 99th pct | Volumevs FBS DEF |
| Defense | INT return yards | 31 | #209/578 | 64th pct | Takeawaysvs FBS DEF |
| Defense | INT return avg | 15.5 | #276/578 | 52nd pct | Takeawaysvs FBS DEF |
Player Standing
Universal 17-step ladder. Tier pills below; accolade streams nested.
ALL-CONF HM
On-team2-deepStartingRecognizedEliteApex
ALL-CONF HM · Rung 9 of 16
Why he’s here
All-Conference honorable mention / 2nd team — the recognition has started.
What moves him up
A best-at-position run lifts to 1st team.
What moves him down
A back-end conference finish drops out of the honor list.
Accolade streams
Status—Awaiting tracker
The Thorpe award tracker integrates per-week probability once a dedicated scraper for this award lands. Confirmed past winners and finalists for this player will surface here.
Splits · Per-game
2025 season · 14 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home6g | 9.2 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.3 |
| Road8g | 7.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.4 |
Win vs Loss
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wins8g | 8.6 | 0.3 | 0.1 | 0.1 |
| Losses6g | 7.3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.7 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 9.7 | 0.1 | 0.1 | 0.4 |
| Weeks 8+7g | 6.4 | 0.2 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
Pocket and defense-quality (clean vs. pressure) splits are coming soon.
Savant · Box-rate percentiles
Where this profile ranks vs the S cohort
70Solid starter
Elite: tackles (99th). Strength: solo tackles (98th). Concern: qb hurries (22nd).
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Advanced Savant · S · 2024
Percentile Card
Advanced opponent-adjusted percentile bars are coming soon for this player.
P4G5All FBS
Advanced Savant
Opponent-adjusted advanced metrics with a cohort filter.
Advanced opponent-adjusted metrics are coming soon for this player. Selected cohort: P4.
Peer Comparator · Fingerprint match
Three closest profiles by box-rate percentile
Devin LafayetteTroyDalton JohnsonArizona· 91% simOwen LongColorado State· 88% simAhmaad MosesSMU· 86% sim
Tackles
Solo tackles
Passes defended
Interceptions
Sacks
Tackles for loss
QB hurries
Closest peers by overall box-score percentile profile at the same position.
Player DNA
The Box Safety
Lives near the line of scrimmage as a de facto extra linebacker.
S
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Tahj Ra-El’s 2025 season.
Tahj Ra-El
93%match
#2
Eli Blakey
All-MAC
84%
#3
Hunter Wohler
All-Big TenNFL Rd 7
80%
#4
Dean Clark
75%
#5
Tra Fluellen
76%
Matches Tahj on
Class year
Height
PD rate
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
Supporting Cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Gerad Parker
Pass share
47.1%
431 pass / 484 run
Plays / game
65.4
14 games
OL sack rate (allowed)
17.0%
342 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Coaching Lineage · 2021–2025
3 coaches2021
Chip Lindsey
Troy
2022era →
Jon Sumrall
Troy
2023
Jon Sumrall
Troy
2024era →
Gerad Parker
Troy
2025
Gerad Parker
Troy
Played under 3 different head coaches: Chip Lindsey, Jon Sumrall, and Gerad Parker. Multi-era developmental context.
Bio · Recruiting · Transfer · Roster
Off-field context — switch tabs to drill into recruit profile, transfer arc, or roster timeline.
HometownBrunswick, GA
Height6'2"
Weight210 lb
Class4
PositionS
Jersey3
No fields populated yet.
No fields populated yet.
Current teamTroy
ConferenceSun Belt
Joined2025
Career arc5 season(s)
Trophy Case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
🎖
ALL-CONFERENCE
All-Conf mention (2025)
All-Sun Belt
Trophy Case · Detail
Every honor on the ledger, broken out by stream and selector.
2 all-conference honors
Conference-level recognition helps anchor whether a player is merely statistically loud or actually viewed as elite within his competitive lane.
Honors Timeline
Season-end distinction and week-by-week recognition on one timeline.
| Season | Honor | Scope | Team / Selector | Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | All-Sun Belt | all_conference | Troy | Sun Belt | DB |
| 2020 | All-MAC | all_conference | Northern Illinois | MAC | DB |
Heisman By Year
Modeled rank and official finish by season.
| Season | Team | Role | Latest Model | Forecast | Win | Finalist | Official Finish | Points | Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Troy | S4 | #12796 | #13066 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W16 snapshot | Sun Belt |
| 2023 | Northern Illinois | S4 | #11955 | #11868 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W19 snapshot | Mid-American |
| 2022 | Northern Illinois | S4 | #14470 | #14660 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W20 snapshot | Mid-American |
| 2021 | Northern Illinois | S4 | #13675 | #13646 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W20 snapshot | Mid-American |
Roster Timeline
Team, conference, and class by season.
| Season | Team | Conference | Pos | Class | Bio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Troy | Sun Belt | S | 4 | No. 3 | 6-2 | 210 lb | Brunswick, GA |
| 2024 | Troy | Sun Belt | S | 4 | No. 3 | 6-2 | 210 lb | Brunswick, GA |
| 2023 | Northern Illinois | Mid-American | S | 4 | No. 3 | 6-2 | 210 lb | Brunswick, GA |
| 2022 | Northern Illinois | Mid-American | S | 4 | No. 3 | 6-2 | 210 lb | Brunswick, GA |
| 2021 | Northern Illinois | Mid-American | S | 4 | No. 3 | 6-2 | 210 lb | Brunswick, GA |