Jalen Buckley
Jalen Buckley
Does a little of everything without one standout trait. Jalen Buckley has played for two head coaches in four seasons at Western Michigan. All-MAC in 2025 was the second honor of his career. The receipt on tape: 193 rush yds, 2 rec yds against Miami (OH), Week 15, 2025.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- recognition record
- game log
Career Arc
Trophy Case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-CONFERENCE
All-Conf mention (2025)
All-MAC
Coaching Lineage · 2022–2025
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Tim Lester → Lance Taylor. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
2025 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
Splits & context
Supporting Cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Lance Taylor
Awards
Player Standing · 17 rungs
Tier 3 · RecognizedR09 · All-Conference HM / 2nd team
All-Conference HM / 2nd team. Conference recognition has started.
Recognition
Production
Trophy Case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-CONFERENCE
All-Conf mention (2025)
All-MAC
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Western Michigan | 179 | 1,003 | 5.6 | 9 | -- |
| 2024 | Western Michigan | 128 | 683 | 5.3 | 9 | -- |
| 2023 | Western Michigan | 189 | 997 | 5.3 | 10 | -- |
| 2022 | Western Michigan | 9 | 27 | 3.0 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 505 | 2,710 | 5.4 | 28 | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Western Michigan | 12 | 75 | 6.2 | 1 | -- |
| 2024 | Western Michigan | 15 | 112 | 7.5 | 0 | -- |
| 2023 | Western Michigan | 18 | 161 | 8.9 | 0 | -- |
| 2022 | Western Michigan | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 45 | 348 | 7.7 | 1 | -- |
How he plays
Play style
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Western Michigan
2026 Depth chart
Returning starter
Running back · Western Michigan
Returning around him
- 100% of 2024 offensive production back (Strong continuity)
- Transfer portal: +1 net (14 in / 13 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Western Michigan · Last season: 10-4 · Talent rank #105 · 2026 recruiting class #112
DNA match
Player DNA
Balanced Back
Plays within the scheme — consistent production without a dominant dimension.
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Avery Morrow’s 2024 season.
Matches Avery on
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Zylan Perry's senior season at Louisiana (2025).
Matches Zylan on
Development
Development Trajectory · rushing yards
2022–2025+3615%
Up 3615% from first season to most-recent.