CFB Zeitgeist Score
61
Solid starter in the position cohort. Carried by sacks at the 95th percentile.
Kemari Copeland
Below the discourse floor — the honest stats-only state.
48 TACKLES · 4.5 SACKS
2026 Outlook
Returning to Virginia Tech for 2026
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Defensive line · Virginia Tech
Returning around him
- 50% of 2024 offensive production back (Moderate turnover)
- Transfer portal: +0 net (27 in / 27 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Virginia Tech · Last season: 3-9 · Talent rank #40 · 2026 recruiting class #39
DL · VIRGINIA TECH · ACC
Kemari Copeland
- 3
- #13
- 6-3 | 283 lb
- Virginia Beach, VA
Heisman Heat
#10393
<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 · Season-by-season Standing
2 seasons on the ladder
2022
Army · DL
—
★
2025
Virginia Tech · DL
R09 · All-Conference HM / 2nd team
Recognized
Career Arc
HS
Recruit
★★
CFB
College
2 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
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 |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | 3-star | 0.8892 | No. 12 recruit | JUCO | Virginia Tech |
| 2021 | 2-star | 0.7683 | No. 2698 recruit | HighSchool | Army |
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—
NIL · Recruiting · NFL Draft
Market value, pedigree & pro outcome
Recruit stars
★★★☆☆
to Virginia Tech
Composite
0.8892
#12 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 Kemari Copeland
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 Kemari Copeland
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 12g
48Tackles
8Tackles for loss
4.5Sacks
Per game
4Tackles
0.7Tackles for loss
0.4Sacks
Projected (13g)
52Tackles
8.7Tackles for loss
4.9Sacks
To hit 80-tackle season (currently 48): needs 32/game over remaining 1.
To hit 100-tackle season (currently 48): needs 52/game over remaining 1.
To hit 6-sack season (currently 4.5): needs 1.5/game over remaining 1.
To hit 10-sack season (currently 4.5): needs 5.5/game over remaining 1.
Why this is a rare defensive case
The fast read on the thing that makes this player more than a generic stat line.
Kemari Copeland is trying to climb the steepest award hill in college football: a defensive candidacy. The hook is the disruption profile on Virginia Tech's defense, with 4.5 sacks, 8.0 tackles for loss, and 1 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 | High-volume tackler against FBS defenders.
2025 Season · Final
2025 season snapshot | final
Tackling & Disruption
TOT
48 87th
SOLO
12 62nd
TFL
8.0 96th
SACK
4.5 97th
QBH
1 44th
Coverage & Takeaways
INT
1 65th
Game Log · Week-by-week
2025 season · 12 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 11-24@ South Carolina | 5 | 1 | 1.0 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 20-44vs Vanderbilt | 4 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 26-45vs Old Dominion | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 38-6vs Wofford | 5 | 1 | 1.0 | 0.5 | 1 | 0 | |
| Wk 5 | W 23-21@ NC State | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 23-30vs Wake Forest | 4 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 20-35@ Georgia Tech | 2 | 1 | 1.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 42-34vs California | 7 | 4 | 3.0 | 3.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 7 tackles |
| Wk 10 | L 16-28vs Louisville | 4 | 0 | 1.0 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | L 14-34@ Florida State | 4 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 13 | L 17-34vs Miami | 6 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 14 | L 7-27@ Virginia | 3 | 0 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 48 | 12 | 8.0 | 4.5 | 1 | 0 |
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
2022Army6-6HC: Jeff Monken · Run-heavy, slow tempo
2025Virginia Tech3-9HC: Brent Pry · Run-leaning
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Virginia Tech | 48 | 12 | 8.0 | 4.5 | -- | 1 | -- |
| 2022 | Army | 2 | 1 | 0.5 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 2 loaded seasons | 50 | 13 | 8.5 | 4.5 | -- | 1 | -- |
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 | 48 | #649/4942 | 87th pct | Volumevs FBS DEF |
| Defense | TFL | 8.0 | #198/4972 | 96th pct | Disruptionvs FBS DEF |
| Defense | Sacks | 4.5 | #136/4972 | 97th pct | Disruptionvs FBS DEF |
| Defense | Interceptions | 1 | #308/869 | 65th pct | Takeawaysvs FBS DEF |
| Defense | QB hurries | 1 | #1051/1878 | 44th pct | Disruptionvs FBS DEF |
| Defense | Solo tackles | 12 | #1735/4584 | 62nd pct | Volumevs FBS DEF |
Player Standing
Universal 17-step ladder. Tier pills below; accolade streams nested.
ALL-CONF HM
On-team2-deepStartingRecognizedEliteApex
ALL-CONF HM · Rung 9 of 16
Why he’s here
All-Conference honorable mention / 2nd team — the recognition has started.
What moves him up
A best-at-position run lifts to 1st team.
What moves him down
A back-end conference finish drops out of the honor list.
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 · 12 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home7g | 4.6 | 0.7 | 0.6 | 0.0 |
| Road5g | 3.2 | 0.6 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
Win vs Loss
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wins3g | 4.7 | 1.3 | 1.2 | 0.0 |
| Losses9g | 3.8 | 0.4 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-77g | 3.4 | 0.5 | 0.1 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+5g | 4.8 | 0.9 | 0.7 | 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
61Solid starter
Elite: sacks (94th). Strength: tackles for loss (92nd). Concern: passes defended (17th).
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
Kemari CopelandVirginia TechMarcAnthony ParkerNavy· 74% simBryun ParhamUConn· 73% simJackson KuwatchMiami (OH)· 73% sim
Sacks
Tackles for loss
Tackles
QB hurries
Solo tackles
Interceptions
Passes defended
Closest peers by overall box-score percentile profile at the same position.
Player DNA
The Two-Gap Base
Stout at the point of attack; controls his gap and stacks blocks.
IDL
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Toby McBride’s 2021 season.
Toby McBride
92%match
#2
Jayson Ademilola
91%
#3
Kennedy Roberts
90%
#4
Moro Ojomo
NFL Rd 7
89%
#5
Jayson Ademilola
89%
Matches Toby on
TFL rate
Weight
Height
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a junior, his production profile tracks closest to J'Mond Tapp's junior season at Southern Miss (2025).
J'Mond Tapp
89%match
#2
Emmanuel Waller
80%
#3
Bodie Schoonover
80%
#4
Michael Kilbane
78%
#5
Dallas Afalava
78%
Matches J'Mond on
Class year
Height
TFL rate
Supporting Cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Brent Pry
Pass share
42.0%
319 pass / 441 run
Plays / game
63.3
12 games
OL sack rate (allowed)
9.5%
296 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Coaching Lineage · 2022–2025
1 coach2022
Brent Pry
Virginia Tech
2025
Brent Pry
Virginia Tech
Played his entire career under Brent Pry.
Bio · Recruiting · Transfer · Roster
Off-field context — switch tabs to drill into recruit profile, transfer arc, or roster timeline.
HometownVirginia Beach, VA
Height6'3"
Weight283 lb
Class3
PositionDL
Jersey13
No fields populated yet.
No fields populated yet.
Current teamVirginia Tech
ConferenceACC
Joined2025
Career arc3 season(s)
Trophy Case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
🎖
ALL-CONFERENCE
All-Conf mention (2025)
All-ACC
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 |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | All-ACC | all_conference | Virginia Tech | ACC | DT |
Heisman By Year
Modeled rank and official finish by season.
| Season | Team | Role | Latest Model | Forecast | Win | Finalist | Official Finish | Points | Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Virginia Tech | DL3 | #10393 | #10323 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W16 snapshot | ACC |
| 2022 | Army | DL3 | #12595 | #12383 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W20 snapshot | FBS Independents |
Roster Timeline
Team, conference, and class by season.
| Season | Team | Conference | Pos | Class | Bio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Virginia Tech | ACC | DL | 3 | No. 13 | 6-3 | 283 lb | Virginia Beach, VA |
| 2024 | Virginia Tech | ACC | DL | 3 | No. 13 | 6-3 | 283 lb | Virginia Beach, VA |
| 2022 | Army | FBS Independents | DL | 3 | No. 13 | 6-3 | 283 lb | Virginia Beach, VA |