Georgia State · L 14-35
No tackles.
Wyoming · L 23-41
No tackles.
Nelson has tackles in 6 of Northern Illinois’s 8 games: none against Georgia State and Wyoming.
Kimar Nelson
Is steady in every phase without a signature trait. Played for two head coaches at Northern Illinois: Thomas Hammock and Rob Harley. A game that shows it: 10 tackles against Air Force — Week 6, 2026.
46 tackles · 1.5 sacks
Play style
Solid in every phase without a signature dimension.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
No outlet on our list has written about this player by name this season.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Northern Illinois | 46 | 23 | 3.0 | 1.5 | 2 |
| 2025 | Northern Illinois | 5 | 5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | -- |
| Career | 51 | 28 | 3.0 | 1.5 | 2 |
Last game (Wk 9): 9 tackles, 1 pass breakup.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 6 games
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| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 0-40@ No. 22 Iowa | 10 | 7 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | Season-high 10 tackles |
| Wk 2 | L 24-28vs Illinois State | 9 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 17-42@ Arizona | 7 | 4 | 1.5 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | L 7-28vs Air Force | 10 | 6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 21-56vs Hawai'i | 1 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | L 24-31@ UNLV | 9 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Total | 46 | 23 | 3.0 | 1.5 | — | 2 |
Oct. 31 · L 24-31 at UNLV, play by play
9 tackles, including 1 pass broken up.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 10 for him; the box score credits 9.
His game this year: disruption in the backfield — 3 tackles for loss, 1 of them a sack, in the 6 games with play by play.
How Northern Illinois’s defense played that day
UNLV’s 10 drives: 5 stopped (2 takeaways) · 5 scored. While the game was within a score they held 5 of 10. His pbu came with Northern Illinois down 7.
1 tackle.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
10 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
7 tackles, including 1 sack.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 5 of his 7, sacks included.
9 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. It places 10 for him; the box score credits 9.
10 tackles, including 1 more for loss, 1 pass broken up.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Ratings of the games shown run from -10 to +16 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
46tackles this seasonTFL rate
7%3 TFLSack rate
3%2 sacksPD rate
4%2 pass breakups46 tackles · 3 for loss · 1.5 sacks.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 6 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home3g | 6.7 | 0.2 | 0.2 | 0.0 |
| Road3g | 8.7 | 0.8 | 0.3 | 0.7 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-74g | 9.0 | 0.8 | 0.4 | 0.2 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 5.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Rob Harley
Pass share
53.1%
266 pass / 235 run
Plays / game
62.6
8 games
Team sack rate
8.0%
301 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Player standing · 2026
More tackles a game than most FBS linebackers who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #211 at the position.
The No. 1,965 recruit in the country is starting at linebacker in the Mountain West.
2026 is in progress.
Coaching lineage · 2025–2026
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Thomas Hammock → Rob Harley. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
