Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 3 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 41-38vs Louisville | 8 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 8 tackles |
| Wk 2 | W 41-9vs Charlotte | 4 | 2 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 32-24vs LSU | 4 | 3 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 16 | 8 | 2.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 |
#11
Keaton Thomas
New school, new number, same question — and Keaton Thomas's early answer at Ole Miss is No.63 3★, national recruit.
6′1″ · 240 lb · Jacksonville, FL · Trinity Christian
CFB Index 73 · #104 of 583 LBsHigh confidenceTransferred Baylor → Ole Miss for 2026
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.
How he plays
Fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge.
QB hurries: 93rd percentile.
The full scouting readThe numbers
16
tackles · 2026 · through week 3
3 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 8 tackles, 0.5 TFL, vs Louisville
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Senior linebacker for Ole Miss. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Baylor in 2024.
- Transferred from Baylor to Ole Miss in 2026.
Keaton Thomas
On Trialas of 2026-09-22
Keaton Thomas arrives at Ole Miss with a new fit to prove and an old chapter behind him.
16TACKLES0SACKS
3★ · NATIONAL RECRUIT
No.63
recruiting national rank
Ole Miss fans keep putting his case on trial, week to week.
medium confidence8 sources
Minority viewA vocal minority sees it the other way.
Read the story so far
AI-generated narrative · may contain errors · not journalism · updated 2026-09-22
His career
He was winning awards before he was old enough to be a story.
202413 games
- Signed with Baylor3-star out of Northeast Mississippi C.C.
- All-Big 12first
202512 games
- All-Big 12second
20263 games
- Entered the portal
- Entered the portal
- Entered the portal
- Entered the portal
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
🎖
ALL-BIG 12 · 2ND TEAM
All-Big 12 2nd team (2025)
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
2 coaches2024–2025
Ole Miss
2026era →
Pete Golding
Ole Miss
Coaching transition mid-career: Lane Kiffin → Pete Golding. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Where He Ended Up · Transfer
Transferred to Ole Miss
2025Baylor
2026Ole Miss
Career stats
Game log
Game by game
Keaton Thomas'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 3 · 2026
W 32–24
vs LSU
1 tackles for loss · 4 tackles · 2 hurries
With T. Chambliss — 363 yds · 2 TD · 1 INT · QBR 89.8 · 2 rush yds (9 car) · 1 TD · O. Bird — 42 yards per punt · 2 punts · 49 long
2026 snapshot
Since week 2: +4 tackles, +1 tackle for loss.
Season context · Team result + system
2024Baylor8-5HC: Dave Aranda · Run-leaning
2025Baylor5-7HC: Dave Aranda · Pass-leaning, fast tempo
2026Ole Miss3-0HC: Pete Golding · Pass-leaning
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
High confidence
Elite: qb hurries (93rd percentile). Strength: tackles for loss (80th percentile). Concern: passes defended (28th percentile).
Box-score production (6)
Percentiles are versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score production. There are no play-by-play efficiency bars here: CFBD's play-value model credits offensive players only, so no defensive EPA exists to rank.
Defensive profile
Defender profile · Production by role
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
16tackles this seasonTFL rate
12%2 TFLSack rate
0%0 sacksPD rate
0%0 pass breakups16 tackles · 2 for loss.
Splits & context
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 3 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home3g | 5.3 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 5.3 | 0.7 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Pete Golding
Pass share
57.6%
118 pass / 87 run
Plays / game
68.3
3 games
Team sack rate
2.4%
127 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Pass-leaning.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
Tackle volume for the position at the early end of the ladder.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
How he plays
Play style
Fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge.
CFB Index positional classification
DNA match
Player DNA
Thumper
Downhill striker who fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge.
LB
His 2026 production profile sits closest to Lamont Bishop’s 2022 season.
Matches Lamont on
Tackle volume
TFL rate
Height
Differs from Lamont on
Weight (higher)
Hurry rate (higher)
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a junior, his production profile tracks closest to D'Andre Ragin's junior season at Toledo (2022).
86%match
Matches D'Andre on
TFL rate
Hurry rate
Solo tackle rate
Player DNA
Players who play like Keaton Thomas
Background
CAREER HIGHLIGHTS • 2026 Butkus Award Watch List • 2026 Chuck Bednarik Award Watch List • 2026 Preseason All-America Third Team (On3) • 2026 Preseason All-America Fourth Team (Phil Steele) • 2026 Preseason All-SEC Second Team (Athlon, Phil Steele, PFN) • 2026 Senior Bowl Top 300 ACADEMIC…
The linebacker corps · Ole Miss
- #11Keaton Thomas99 tackles · 2025
- #12Luke Ferrelli91 tackles · 2025
- #4Suntarine Perkins81 tackles · 2025
- #49Tah'j Butler34 tackles · 2025
- #44Tony Mitchell25 tackles · 2025
8 more on the roster · Ole Miss team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology