CFB Zeitgeist Score
69
Solid starter in the position cohort. Carried by sacks at the 85th percentile.
James Smith
Below the discourse floor — the honest stats-only state.
26 TACKLES · 2.5 SACKS
2026 Outlook
Returning to Alabama for 2026
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Defensive line · Alabama
Returning around him
- 43% of 2024 offensive production back (Moderate turnover)
- 10 Alabama players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -7 net (17 in / 24 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Alabama · Last season: 11-4 (AP #11) · Talent rank #2 · 2026 recruiting class #3
DL · ALABAMA · SEC
James Smith
- 3
- #23
- 6-3 | 297 lb
- Montgomery, AL
Heisman Heat
#3774
<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 DEFENSE AWARD
Nagurski
—
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
HS
Recruit
★★★★★
CFB
College
Alabama
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Heisman futures · live sportsbook odds
#8 in market ▼ from #6 · 4 books
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2023 | 5-star | 0.9842 | No. 28 recruit | HighSchool | Alabama |
Transfer Arc
Portal movement changes role, context, and perception. This keeps that path in one place.
| 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 16Heisman 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.
NIL · Recruiting · NFL Draft
Market value, pedigree & pro outcome
Recruit stars
★★★★★
to Alabama
Composite
0.9842
#28 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 James Smith
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 James Smith
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 11g
26Tackles
6.5Tackles for loss
2.5Sacks
Per game
2Tackles
0.6Tackles for loss
0.2Sacks
Projected (13g)
31Tackles
7.7Tackles for loss
3.0Sacks
To hit 80-tackle season (currently 26): needs 27/game over remaining 2.
To hit 100-tackle season (currently 26): needs 37/game over remaining 2.
To hit 6-sack season (currently 2.5): needs 1.8/game over remaining 2.
To hit 10-sack season (currently 2.5): needs 3.8/game over remaining 2.
Why this is a rare defensive case
The fast read on the thing that makes this player more than a generic stat line.
James Smith is trying to climb the steepest award hill in college football: a defensive candidacy. The hook is the disruption profile on Alabama's defense, with 2.5 sacks, 6.5 tackles for loss, and -- 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?
High-disruption defender against FBS defenders.
2025 Season · Final
2025 season snapshot | final
Tackling & Disruption
TOT
26 67th
SOLO
16 71st
TFL
6.5 93rd
SACK
2.5 92nd
QBH
2 66th
Coverage & Takeaways
PD
1 43rd
Game Log · Week-by-week
2025 season · 11 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 17-31@ Florida State | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 73-0vs UL Monroe | 4 | 4 | 3.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | 3.0 TFL |
| Wk 6 | W 30-14vs Vanderbilt | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | W 27-24@ Missouri | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | W 37-20vs Tennessee | 7 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 7 tackles |
| Wk 9 | W 29-22@ South Carolina | 2 | 2 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | W 20-9vs LSU | 1 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | L 21-23vs Oklahoma | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 14 | W 27-20@ Auburn | 5 | 5 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 15 | L 7-28vs Georgia | 1 | 0 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Bowl | W 34-24@ Oklahoma | 0 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Total | 26 | 16 | 6.5 | 2.5 | — | 1 |
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
2023Alabama12-2HC: Nick Saban · Run-heavy
2024Alabama9-4HC: Kalen DeBoer · Run-leaning
2025Alabama11-4HC: Kalen DeBoer · Balanced
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 | 26 | #1609/4942 | 67th pct | Volumevs FBS DEF |
| Defense | TFL | 6.5 | #340/4972 | 93rd pct | Disruptionvs FBS DEF |
| Defense | Sacks | 2.5 | #393/4972 | 92nd pct | Disruptionvs FBS DEF |
| Defense | Pass breakups | 1 | #1241/2184 | 43rd pct | Coveragevs FBS DEF |
| Defense | QB hurries | 2 | #647/1878 | 66th pct | Disruptionvs FBS DEF |
| Defense | Solo tackles | 16 | #1348/4584 | 71st pct | Volumevs 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
Status—Awaiting tracker
The Lombardi 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 · 11 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home6g | 2.5 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| Road5g | 2.2 | 0.4 | 0.2 | 0.2 |
Win vs Loss
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wins8g | 2.6 | 0.8 | 0.2 | 0.1 |
| Losses3g | 1.7 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-75g | 1.8 | 0.6 | 0.0 | 0.2 |
| Weeks 8+6g | 2.8 | 0.6 | 0.4 | 0.0 |
Pocket and defense-quality (clean vs. pressure) splits are coming soon.
Savant · Box-rate percentiles
Where this profile ranks vs the DL cohort
69Solid starter
Elite: tackles for loss (87th). Strength: sacks (85th).
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Advanced Savant · DL · 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
James SmithAlabamaMaverick BaranowskiMinnesota· 71% simTreylin PayneTexas State· 71% simJackson KuwatchMiami (OH)· 71% sim
Tackles for loss
Sacks
QB hurries
Solo tackles
Passes defended
Tackles
Closest peers by overall box-score percentile profile at the same position.
Player DNA
The 3-Tech Penetrator
Disruptive interior rusher who lives in the backfield.
IDL
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Anthony Holmes Jr.’s 2025 season.
Anthony Holmes Jr.
92%match
#2
Tommy Dunn
92%
#3
DJ Hicks
92%
#4
Tyler Onyedim
NFL Rd 3 · Pk 2
90%
#5
DJ Dale
88%
Matches Anthony on
Class year
Height
TFL rate
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a junior, his production profile tracks closest to DJ Hicks's junior season at Texas A&M (2025).
DJ Hicks
92%match
#2
Anthony Holmes Jr.
89%
#3
Jalen Carter
Consensus All-AmericanNFL Rd 1 · Pk 9
88%
#4
Ansel Din-Mbuh
88%
#5
Jer'Zhan Newton
NFL Rd 2 · Pk 4
85%
Matches DJ on
Class year
Height
TFL rate
Supporting Cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Kalen DeBoer
Pass share
53.4%
523 pass / 456 run
Plays / game
65.3
15 games
OL sack rate (allowed)
6.8%
384 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Coaching Lineage · 2023–2025
2 coaches2023
Nick Saban
Alabama
2024era →
Kalen DeBoer
Alabama
2025
Kalen DeBoer
Alabama
Coaching transition mid-career: Nick Saban → Kalen DeBoer. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Bio · Recruiting · Transfer · Roster
Off-field context — switch tabs to drill into recruit profile, transfer arc, or roster timeline.
HometownMontgomery, AL
Height6'3"
Weight297 lb
Class3
PositionDL
Jersey23
No fields populated yet.
No fields populated yet.
Current teamAlabama
ConferenceSEC
Joined2025
Career arc3 season(s)
Trophy Case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
🎖
ALL-CONFERENCE
All-Conf mention (2020)
All-AAC
Trophy Case · Detail
Every honor on the ledger, broken out by stream and selector.
1 all-conference honor
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | All-AAC | all_conference | Cincinnati | AAC | P |
Heisman By Year
Modeled rank and official finish by season.
Roster Timeline
Team, conference, and class by season.