cfb zeitgeistZeitgeist
OFFSEASON · SUMMER 2026 · COMMITMENT SEASON
Heisman / Players / Gavin Shields /Army

Gavin Shields

S · Army · Sr · #14

Below the discourse floor — the honest stats-only state.

57 TACKLES · 1 SACKS

2026 RETURNINGReturning to Army for 2026

2026 Outlook

Returning to Army for 2026

2026 Depth chart

Projected starter

Safety · Army

Returning around him

  • 25% of 2024 offensive production back (Heavy turnover)
  • Transfer portal: -2 net (0 in / 2 out)

2026 Award watch

No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)

Army · Last season: 7-6 · Talent rank #134 · 2026 recruiting class #130

S · ARMY · AMERICAN ATHLETIC

Gavin Shields

  • 4
  • #14
  • 6-2 | 205 lb
  • Pitman, NJ

CFB Zeitgeist Score

74

Solid starter in the position cohort. Carried by interceptions at the 75th percentile.

Heisman Heat

#7872

<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 · Starter

R05 · Part-time starter

Part-time starter. Splitting first-team reps.

Not on team2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex

Career Arc

HS
Recruit
No recruit profile
CFB
College
Army
2022–2025
NFL
NFL Draft
Not drafted (yet)

Identity & Role

The durable bio layer: position, size, hometown, and roster role.

PositionS
Class4
Jersey14
Measurements6-2 | 205 lb
HometownPitman, NJ
Primary teamArmy

Recruiting Pedigree

How big the prospect was before college, and whether the later career arc beat that expectation.

Top pedigree Not on file No matched recruiting profile in the loaded archive
Composite rating -- Composite rating unavailable for this player
Signed with -- Commitment history unavailable
Origin -- Hometown and high school unavailable
Class Profile Context
No recruiting profile is on file for this player.

Transfer Arc

Portal movement changes role, context, and perception. This keeps that path in one place.

Portal moves 0 No portal entry on file
Latest destination -- --
Transfer stars -- CFBD transfer rating context
Eligibility -- Transfer date TBD
Season Move Context
No transfer portal moves on file for this player.

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 16
Current nowcast#7872Latest modeled ballot order
Season forecast#7958Where the full season sim points
Win probability0.0%Chance to actually win the trophy
Finalist probability0.0%Chance to make the finalist tier
Ballot probability0.0%Chance to appear anywhere on a ballot
Best official finish--Best completed Heisman placement on file

Heisman Futures

Not yet listed on major futures markets.

No achievements unlocked yet this season.

Selector Grid · 2025

AP
FWAA
AFCA
WCFF
SN
SI

Selector recognition fills in once the major honors lists (AP, FWAA, AFCA, Walter Camp, Sporting News, SI) are scraped and ingested.

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

PENDING

The 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 Gavin Shields

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 Gavin Shields

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.

A 3-act season arc returns once this player has six or more games on the ledger.

Season Pace · Projection

Where the defensive totals stand

projecting to 13-game
Through 12g
57Tackles
2.5Tackles for loss
1Sacks
Per game
5Tackles
0.2Tackles for loss
0.1Sacks
Projected (13g)
62Tackles
2.7Tackles for loss
1.1Sacks

To hit 80-tackle season (currently 57): needs 23/game over remaining 1.

To hit 100-tackle season (currently 57): needs 43/game over remaining 1.

To hit 6-sack season (currently 1): needs 5/game over remaining 1.

To hit 10-sack season (currently 1): needs 9/game over remaining 1.

Why this is a rare defensive case

The fast read on the thing that makes this player more than a generic stat line.

Gavin Shields is trying to climb the steepest award hill in college football: a defensive candidacy. The hook is the disruption profile on Army'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.

Current place #7872 0.0% win | 0.0% finalist
Role load -- Role share still loading
Profile quirk Defensive rarity 1.0 sacks | 2.5 TFL

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
Total tackles 57 36 solo | #449/4942 (91st pct)
TFL 2.5 Backfield disruption | #1236/4972 (75th pct)
Sacks 1.0 Pass-rush finish | #872/4972 (82nd pct)
Player identity What kind of player is this?

30-second read

What kind of player is this?

High-disruption defender | Coverage splash | High-volume tackler against FBS defenders.

High-disruption defenderCoverage splashHigh-volume tackler

2025 Season · Final

2025 season snapshot | final

Tackling & Disruption

TOT
57 91st
SOLO
36 93rd
TFL
2.5 75th
SACK
1.0 82nd
QBH
5 90th

Coverage & Takeaways

PD
3 76th
INT
2 87th

Game Log · Week-by-week

2025 season · 12 games

Box score · CFBD
WkOppTKLSOLOTFLSACKINTPDNote
Wk 1L 27-30vs Tarleton State210.00.00
Wk 2W 24-21@ Kansas State330.00.00
Wk 4L 38-45vs North Texas420.00.00
Wk 5L 6-28@ East Carolina861.51.00
Wk 6W 31-13@ UAB330.00.011
Wk 7W 24-7vs Charlotte110.00.00
Wk 10W 20-17@ Air Force431.00.010
Wk 11W 14-13vs Temple320.00.00
Wk 13L 25-26vs Tulsa960.00.00Season-high 9 tackles
Wk 14W 27-24@ UTSA860.00.01
Wk 16L 16-17@ Navy810.00.01
BowlW 41-16vs UConn420.00.00
Total57362.51.023
Season-by-season tables Career rows + per-season box score

Traditional history

Traditional Stats

Season rows up top, career context at the bottom.

Season rows Career row

Season context · Team result + system

2022Army6-6HC: Jeff Monken · Run-heavy, slow tempo
2023Army6-6HC: Jeff Monken · Run-heavy, slow tempo
2024Army12-2HC: Jeff Monken · Run-heavy
2025Army7-6HC: Jeff Monken · Run-heavy
SeasonTeam
2025Army57362.51.032--
2024Army1081.00.041--
2023Army110.00.0------
2022Army1--0.00.0------
Career4 loaded seasons69453.51.073--
Advanced layer Usage, value, and context

Advanced metrics second

Advanced Metrics

Usage, value, and opponent-adjusted context.

Usage Value Context
Disruption stats

TFL, sacks, and QB hurries are grouped together because defensive Heisman cases are usually built on visible havoc, not on tackle counts alone.

Coverage splash

Pass breakups, interceptions, and forced fumbles matter because national awards voters respond to plays that change possessions and highlight reels.

Peer percentile

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.

Traditional first

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.

INT 2 0 pick-six TD | #114/869 (87th pct)
Pass breakups 3 Coverage disruption | #521/2184 (76th pct)
QB pressures 5 Quarterback hurries | #188/1878 (90th pct)
Open full stat explorer
0 metrics visible Showing all metrics
Group Metric Value Rank Pct Why it matters
Defense Total tackles 57 #449/4942 91st 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 3 #521/2184 76th pct Coveragevs FBS DEF
Defense QB hurries 5 #188/1878 90th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense Solo tackles 36 #322/4584 93rd pct Volumevs FBS DEF
Defense INT return yards 21 #301/578 48th pct Takeawaysvs FBS DEF
Defense INT return avg 10.5 #354/578 39th pct Takeawaysvs FBS DEF

Player Standing

Universal 17-step ladder. Tier pills below; accolade streams nested.

AWAITING CLASSIFICATION

On-team2-deepStartingRecognizedEliteApex

AWAITING CLASSIFICATION · Rung None of 16

Why he’s here

Standing classification populates when honors, Heisman, and roster signals all align.

What moves him up

What moves him down

Accolade streams

StatusAwaiting 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 · 12 games

Home/Road · Win/Loss · Season halves

Home vs Road

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Home6g3.80.00.00.0
Road6g5.70.40.20.5

Win vs Loss

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Wins7g3.70.10.00.3
Losses5g6.20.30.20.2

First half vs Second half

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Weeks 1-77g3.60.20.10.1
Weeks 8+5g6.40.20.00.4

Pocket and defense-quality (clean vs. pressure) splits are coming soon.

Savant · Box-rate percentiles

Where this profile ranks vs the S cohort

74Solid starter
7 metrics · season cumulative

Elite: qb hurries (92nd). Strength: solo tackles (88th).

QB hurries#188 / 2975 · 92nd pct
5defe
Solo tackles#322 / 2975 · 89th pct
36defe
Tackles#449 / 2975 · 85th pct
57defe
Passes defended#517 / 2975 · 78th pct
3defe
Interceptions#114 / 817 · 75th pct
2inte
Sacks#847 / 2975 · 63rd pct
1.0defe
Tackles for loss#1222 / 2975 · 56th pct
2.5defe

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
EPA / dropback
awaiting
CPOE
awaiting
Success rate
awaiting
Explosive rate (20+)
awaiting
aDOT
awaiting
Deep-ball accuracy
awaiting
Pressure-to-sack
awaiting
3rd-down EPA
awaiting
Red-zone TD rate
awaiting
Play-action EPA
awaiting
Scramble EPA
awaiting
Turnover-worthy play rate
awaiting

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

3 peers · 7 metrics
Gavin ShieldsArmyAndon ThomasArmy· 87% simEli BlakeyMiami (OH)· 87% simMarsel McDuffieUNLV· 84% sim
QB hurries
92
Shields
82
Thomas
82
Blakey
72
McDuffie
Solo tackles
89
Shields
100
Thomas
99
Blakey
99
McDuffie
Tackles
85
Shields
99
Thomas
99
Blakey
99
McDuffie
Passes defended
78
Shields
91
Thomas
98
Blakey
78
McDuffie
Interceptions
75
Shields
75
Blakey
75
McDuffie
Sacks
63
Shields
51
Thomas
63
Blakey
80
McDuffie
Tackles for loss
56
Shields
73
Thomas
77
Blakey
83
McDuffie

Closest peers by overall box-score percentile profile at the same position.

Player DNA

The Hybrid Nickel

Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.

S

His 2025 production profile sits closest to Trevor Woods’s 2023 season.

Trevor Woods

91%match

Colorado · 2023

#2

Ja'von Hicks

Cincinnati · 2021

89%
#3

Tyjon Jones

UAB · 2024

87%
#4

Solo Barnes

UTEP · 2025

84%
#5

Desmond Igbinosun

Rutgers · 2022

83%

Matches Trevor on

PD rate
Height
Interceptions

Not enough data yet for this comparison.

As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Tyjon Jones's senior season at UAB (2024).

Tyjon Jones

91%match

UAB · 2024

#2

Ty'Ron Hopper

Missouri · 2023

NFL Rd 3 · Pk 28
90%
#3

Desmond Igbinosun

Rutgers · 2024

89%
#4

Demani Richardson

Texas A&M · 2023

86%
#5

Caleb Wooden

Arkansas · 2025

86%

Matches Tyjon on

Class year
Height
Tackle volume

Supporting Cast · Scheme

Staff and system around the player

2025 season

Head Coach

Jeff Monken

Pass share

14.5%

125 pass / 740 run

Plays / game

66.5

13 games

OL sack rate (allowed)

3.8%

104 dropbacks · PBP

Scheme: Run-heavy.

Coaching Lineage · 2022–2025

1 coach
2022
Jeff Monken
Army
2023
Jeff Monken
Army
2024
Jeff Monken
Army
2025
Jeff Monken
Army

Played his entire career under Jeff Monken.

Bio · Recruiting · Transfer · Roster

Off-field context — switch tabs to drill into recruit profile, transfer arc, or roster timeline.

HometownPitman, NJ
Height6'2"
Weight205 lb
Class4
PositionS
Jersey14

Trophy Case · Detail

Every honor on the ledger, broken out by stream and selector.

Honors

No formal honors on the ledger yet

All-America, all-conference, player-of-the-week, watch-list, and postseason awards land here when they're earned. The absence is the signal: most players never collect formal honors, and that's its own kind of context.

Honors Timeline

Season-end distinction and week-by-week recognition on one timeline.

Season Honor Scope Team / Selector Context
No formal honors on the ledger yet. All-America, all-conference, weekly awards, watch lists, and postseason trophies land here when they’re earned.

Heisman By Year

Modeled rank and official finish by season.

Season Team Role Latest Model Forecast Win Finalist Official Finish Points Context
2024 Army S4 #7872 #7958 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W16 snapshot | American Athletic
2023 Army S4 #13416 #13309 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W19 snapshot | FBS Independents
2022 Army S4 #12415 #12259 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W20 snapshot | FBS Independents

Roster Timeline

Team, conference, and class by season.

Season Team Conference Pos Class Bio
2025 Army American Athletic S 4 No. 14 | 6-2 | 205 lb | Pitman, NJ
2024 Army American Athletic S 4 No. 14 | 6-2 | 205 lb | Pitman, NJ
2023 Army FBS Independents S 4 No. 14 | 6-2 | 205 lb | Pitman, NJ
2022 Army FBS Independents S 4 No. 14 | 6-2 | 205 lb | Pitman, NJ