Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 3 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 20-13vs Liberty | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 3 tackles |
| Wk 2 | W 87-3vs Wagner | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Wk 3 | W 26-13@ San Diego State | 1 | 1 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 5 | 4 | 2.0 | 1.0 | — | 1 |
#88
Kells Bush
5th-year defensive lineman for James Madison. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
6′2″ · 305 lb · New Orleans, LA · Edna Karr
The numbers
1
sack · 2026 · through week 3
3 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 1 sacks, 1 TFL, 1 tackles, at San Diego State
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
5th-year defensive lineman for James Madison. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
- Transferred from Louisiana Tech to James Madison in 2025.
Kells Bush
Controls the point of attack and doesn't move. Across four seasons and two programs, three head coaches: Sonny Cumbie, Bob Chesney and Billy Napier. The receipt on tape: 3 tackles against Liberty, Week 1, 2026.
5 TACKLES · 1 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- game log
His career
2023
- Entered the portal
20255 games
The role got bigger.
- Entered the portal
Career arc
HS
Recruit
—
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
3 coaches2023
Damian Wroblewski
James Madison
2024–2025era →
Bob Chesney
James Madison
Played under 3 different head coaches: Damian Wroblewski, Bob Chesney, and Billy Napier. Multi-era developmental context.
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | James Madison | 5 | 4 | 2.0 | 1.0 | 1 | -- | -- |
| 2025 | James Madison | 7 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2024 | Louisiana Tech | 11 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2023 | Louisiana Tech | 1 | -- | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 24 | 10 | 2.0 | 1.0 | 1 | -- | -- |
Game log
Game by game
Kells Bush'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 87–3
vs Wagner
2026 snapshot
Since week 2: +1 sack, +1 tackle for loss, +1 tackle.
Season context · Team result + system
2023Louisiana Tech3-9HC: Sonny Cumbie · Balanced
2024Louisiana Tech5-8HC: Sonny Cumbie · Run-leaning
2025James Madison12-2HC: Bob Chesney · Run-heavy
2026James Madison3-0HC: Billy Napier · Run-heavy, slow tempo
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Elite: sacks (84th percentile). Strength: tackles for loss (80th percentile). Concern: tackles (0th 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.
Splits & context
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 3 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home2g | 2.0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
| Road1g | 1.0 | 1.0 | 1.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 1.7 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.3 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Billy Napier
Pass share
39.6%
72 pass / 110 run
Plays / game
60.7
3 games
Team sack rate
5.0%
80 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy, slow tempo.
Awards
Player standing · 2024
Backup
Tackle volume for the position at the early end of the ladder.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
How he plays
Play style
The heaviest frame on the interior. Sack production is intentionally not the point of this profile.
CFB Index positional classification
DNA match
Player DNA
Nose Anchor
The heaviest frame on the interior. Sack production is intentionally not the point of this profile.
IDL
His 2024 production profile sits closest to Caden Haws’s 2020 season.
Matches Caden on
Sack rate
TFL rate
Weight
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Cameron Roetherford's sophomore season at Cincinnati (2024).
89%match
Matches Cameron on
Class year
Height
Hurry rate
Player DNA
Players who play like Kells Bush
Background
2025: Played in eight games Had seven tackles (three solo) Season-high three tackles vs. Weber State (Aug. 30) 2024 at Louisiana Tech: Played in 12 games Had 11 tackles (three solo) LT career-high four tackles vs. Jacksonville State (Nov. 9) Also made pair of tackles in two other games 2023 at…
The defensive line · James Madison
- #8Amar Thomas6.5 tackles for loss · 2025
- #93Mychal Mcmullin2.5 tackles for loss · 2025
- #88Kells Bush0 tackles for loss · 2025
- #10Chukwunedu Okeke0 tackles for loss · 2025
- #98Turner Schmidt0 tackles for loss · 2025
12 more on the roster · James Madison team page
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology