Missouri State · L 3-24
No tackles.
Groves has tackles in 7 of Sam Houston’s 8 games: none against Missouri State.
Elijah Groves
Came to Sam Houston by way of NC State. A game that shows it: 3 tackles and 1 tackle for loss against Western Kentucky — Week 7, 2026.
13 tackles · 2.5 sacks
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
The New York Times Oct 28Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Sam Houston | 13 | 6 | 3.5 | 2.5 |
| Career | 13 | 6 | 3.5 | 2.5 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 7 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 21-24@ Troy | 3 | 1 | 1.5 | 1.5 | — | 0 | Season-high 3 tackles |
| Wk 2 | L 17-23vs Tulsa | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 59-0vs Nicholls | 3 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | L 14-49@ No. 11 Texas Tech | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 3-35@ Liberty | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 3-16vs Western Kentucky | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 24-30vs New Mexico State | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 13 | 6 | 3.5 | 2.5 | — | 0 |
Oct. 21 · L 24-30 vs New Mexico State, play by play
1 tackle. He hurried the quarterback once.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
His game this year: disruption in the backfield — 3 tackles for loss, 2 of them sacks, in the 7 games with play by play.
How Sam Houston’s defense played that day
New Mexico State’s 14 drives: 9 stopped (2 takeaways) · 5 scored. While the game was within a score they held 8 of 13.
3 tackles, including 1 more for loss. He hurried the quarterback twice.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
1 tackle.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
1 tackle.
Forced a fumble on 3rd and 1. Second quarter, down 21-7.
3 tackles. He hurried the quarterback twice.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
1 tackle, including 1 sack.
Sacked the quarterback for a 4-yard loss. First quarter, up 7-0.
3 tackles, including 1 sack.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 2 of his 3, sacks included.
Sacked the quarterback for a 7-yard loss on 3rd and 15. Third quarter, down 17-14.
Ratings of the games shown run from -13 to +18 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 7 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 2.0 | 0.5 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| Road3g | 1.7 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 2.0 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+1g | 1.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Phil Longo
Pass share
55.6%
278 pass / 222 run
Plays / game
62.5
8 games
Team sack rate
6.0%
319 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Pass-leaning.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS linebackers who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Former four-star. Now #275 at the position.
2026 is in progress.
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
2 coachesPlayed for 2 head coaches at 2 schools: Dave Doeren and Phil Longo.
Next stop · Transfer
Transferred to Sam Houston
