Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 3 games
| Wk | Opp | CAR | YDS | AVG | TD | LONG | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 12-13@ Michigan | 19 | 62 | 3.3 | 0 | 11 | |
| Wk 2 | W 49-14vs Monmouth | 10 | 28 | 2.8 | 3 | 11 | 3 rushing TDs |
| Wk 3 | W 28-21@ Rice | 13 | 117 | 9.0 | 1 | 66 | Season-high 117 yds |
| Total | 42 | 207 | 5.0 | 4 | 66 |
#6
Jalen Buckley
Senior running back for Western Michigan. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
5′11″ · 225 lb · Aurora, IL
CFB Index 59 · #83 of 326 RBsHigh confidence
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 numbers
207
rushing yards · 2026 · through week 3
3 games into 2026 so far -- Backed by 10 car · 28 yds · 3 TD -- top 1% rushing TDs game. -- Best game: 28 rush yds, 3 TD, 9 rec yds, vs Monmouth
The play that turned itSwung Western Michigan from 49% to 83% to win.Ohio at Western Michigan · 17-13
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Senior running back for Western Michigan. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
- Named MAC Freshman Player of the Year in 2023.
Jalen Buckley
Wears you down at the goal line. Jalen Buckley has played for two head coaches in five seasons at Western Michigan. All-MAC in 2025 was the second honor of his career. The receipt on tape: 117 rush yds, 1 rush TD against Rice, Week 3, 2026.
207 RUSH YDS · 4 RUSH TD · 42 CARRIES
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- recognition record
- game log
His career
Nobody recruited him. He earned the honors anyway.
202311 games
- MAC Freshman Player of the Yearwinner
- All-MACthird
202513 games
- All-MACthird
Career arc
HS
Recruit
—
CFB
College
Western Michigan
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
🎖
ALL-MAC
All-MAC mention (2025)
Coaching lineage · 2022–2026
2 coaches2022
Western Michigan
Coaching transition mid-career: Tim Lester → Lance Taylor. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Western Michigan | 42 | 207 | 4.9 | 4 | -- |
| 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 | 547 | 2,917 | 5.3 | 32 | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Western Michigan | 1 | 9 | 9.0 | 0 | -- |
| 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 | 46 | 357 | 7.8 | 1 | -- |
Game log
Game by game
Jalen Buckley's 2026 production
Point color shows the opponent's defensive strength that week (red = weaker defense, blue = stronger) — dashed line is this player's own season average.
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 2 · 2026
W 49–14
vs Monmouth
28 rush yds (10 car) · 3 TD
Dominant 35-point win at home against Monmouth.
With B. Lowry — 212 yds · 3 TD · 0 INT · QBR 56.4 · 40 rush yds (4 car) · R. Millmore — 48.8 yards per punt · 4 punts · 56 long
Signature plays
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
- Week 3 · Rice · 2&10 · Q1 · EPA +4.40(04:09) Shotgun #6 J.Buckley rush middle for 66 yards gain to the Rice14 (#3 K.Akui; #12 J.Benjamin), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Monmouth · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA +2.52#6 J.Buckley rush middle for 11 yards gain to the MON00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 14:03, 1ST DOWN #32 D.Kelly kick attempt good (H: #25 R.Millmore, LS: #46 D.Doyle)
- Week 3 · Rice · 3&1 · Q4 · EPA +2.45(14:19) #6 J.Buckley rush left for 1 yard gain to the Rice00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 14:19 #32 D.Kelly kick attempt good (H: #25 R.Millmore, LS: #46 D.Doyle)
- Week 1 · Michigan · 3&6 · Q4 · EPA +2.26(08:20) Shotgun #6 J.Buckley rush middle for 11 yards gain to the WMU43 (#18 T.Bowles), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Monmouth · 2&1 · Q2 · EPA +1.90Shotgun #6 J.Buckley rush left for 1 yard gain to the MON00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 04:47 #32 D.Kelly kick attempt good (H: #25 R.Millmore, LS: #46 D.Doyle)
- Week 3 · Rice · 2&10 · Q1 · EPA +1.52(11:29) Shotgun #6 J.Buckley rush middle for 13 yards gain to the WMU33 (#3 K.Akui), 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Michigan · 1&10 · Q4 · EPA -1.52(05:31) Shotgun #6 J.Buckley rush middle for 2 yards loss to the UOM49 (#18 T.Bowles)
- Week 1 · Michigan · 3&15 · Q2 · EPA -1.25(06:03) Shotgun #6 J.Buckley rush middle for 2 yards loss to the UOM37 (#8 D.Nichols)
- Week 3 · Rice · 2&9 · Q4 · EPA -1.08(08:45) #6 J.Buckley rush middle for 1 yard loss to the WMU43 (#98 R.Rooks; #13 T.May)
- Week 1 · Michigan · 2&12 · Q4 · EPA -0.97(04:46) Shotgun #6 J.Buckley rush middle for 0 yards to the UOM49 (#95 T.Pierce)
2026 snapshot
Since week 2: +117 rushing yards, +1 rushing TD.
Season context · Team result + system
2022Western Michigan5-7HC: Tim Lester · Run-leaning
2023Western Michigan4-8HC: Lance Taylor · Run-leaning
2024Western Michigan6-7HC: Lance Taylor · Run-leaning, slow tempo
2025Western Michigan10-4HC: Lance Taylor · Run-heavy
2026Western Michigan2-1HC: Lance Taylor · Run-heavy
Where this profile ranks vs the RB cohort
Box-score + play-by-play EPA percentiles
High confidence
Elite: td rate (88th percentile). Strength: rush tds (88th percentile). Concern: success rate (12th percentile).
Real play-by-play efficiency
Box-score rates (8)
Season trend
Last seasonThis season
EPA / carry
36th → 68th percentile
Success rate
58th → 12th percentile
Explosive rate
28th → 15th percentile
Yards / carry
42nd → 50th percentile
TD rate
13th → 88th percentile
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season. Most bars are box-score rates; EPA / success-rate bars are computed from real play-by-play (offense only — no defensive EPA model exists yet).
Rushing profile
Rush profile · Shape, efficiency, and ball security
How he gets his yards, and how often it works
42 of 42 carries matched to play-by-play
Success rate
36%42 carriesFumble rate
2.4%1 of 42 carriesStuffed
0 or fewer yds19%of carries
8 carries
Grind
1–3 yds38%of carries
16 carries
Chunk
4–9 yds29%of carries
12 carries
Explosive
10+ yds14%of carries
6 carries
3 of 5 (60%) converted on 3rd/4th & short (≤2 to go) · 3 of 3 (100%) scored from inside the 5-yard line
4.9 yds/carry on 42 carries · 14% explosive (10+ yds) · 36% success rate.
Splits & context
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 3 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Home1g | 28.0 | 2.8 | 3.0 |
| Road2g | 89.5 | 6.2 | 0.5 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | YPC | TD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 69.0 | 5.0 | 1.3 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Lance Taylor
Pass share
30.1%
66 pass / 153 run
Plays / game
73.0
3 games
Team sack rate
6.5%
77 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
2026 outlook
In the mix to repeat All-MAC
Based on 2025: #4 of 30 Mid-American RBs
How the All-MAC estimate is computed
35% estimated, 95% confidence interval 31–38%. Base rate measured from players who finished at a comparable rank in their conference and came back the next season. It is an estimate from a small sample, not a forecast of this player.
How he plays
Play style
Short-yardage and goal-line specialist. Carries the load, owns the red zone.
CFB Index positional classification
Starter
Returning starter at running back for a 10-4 Western Michigan team that went +1 in the portal.
DNA match
Player DNA
Power Back
Short-yardage and goal-line specialist. Carries the load, owns the red zone.
RB
His 2026 production profile sits closest to Chip Trayanum’s 2021 season.
Matches Chip on
Total rush EPA (college ability)
Yards / carry
Rush TD rate
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a graduate, his production profile tracks closest to D.J. Williams's graduate season at Arizona (2023).
71%match
Matches D.J. on
Yards / carry
EPA / carry (adj)
Height
Differs from D.J. on
Rush TD rate (higher)
Player DNA
Players who play like Jalen Buckley
Heisman trajectory
Heisman Trajectory · 2026
Peak #153
Peaked at #153 this season.
The backfield · Western Michigan
- #6Jalen Buckley207 rushing yards · 2026
- #26Tre' Hartwell164 rushing yards · 2026
- #24Ofa Mataele106 rushing yards · 2026
- #4Cole Cabana12 rushing yards · 2026
- #22Donovan Triplett3 rushing yards · 2026
4 more on the roster · Western Michigan team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology