Last confirmed: Florida Atlantic, 2020. No 2026 box-score games on record.
6′3″ · 220 lb · Apopka, FL · Wekiva
Leighton McCarthy: LB · Florida Atlantic · #13.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Leighton McCarthy
Is steady in every phase without a signature trait. Leighton McCarthy has been at Florida Atlantic through two head coaches in four seasons. His first career honor landed in 2020: All-Conference USA. One game to point at: 10 tackles and 4 tackles for loss against Charlotte — Week 5, 2020.
Play style
Solid in every phase without a signature dimension.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
39 tackles. 0 passes defended. 0 interceptions. 11.5 TFL.
Counts only, never a rate — splash-event sample sizes this small (interceptions, pass breakups, TFL) are noise as a rate and signal only as a tally.
No outlet on our list has written about him by name this season.
The Roost Oct 20Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Florida Atlantic | 39 | 19 | 11.5 | 8.0 | -- | -- |
| 2019 | Florida Atlantic | 30 | 14 | 10.5 | 6.0 | -- | -- |
| 2018 | Florida Atlantic | 39 | 15 | 3.0 | 0.5 | 1 | -- |
| 2017 | Florida Atlantic | 51 | 28 | 9.0 | 4.5 | 1 | 1 |
| Career | 159 | 76 | 34.0 | 19.0 | 2 | 1 |
Game log · Week-by-week
2020 season · 8 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 5 | W 21-17vs Charlotte | 10 | 5 | 4.0 | 3.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 10 tackles |
| Wk 8 | L 9-20@ No. 22 Marshall | 2 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 24-3vs UTSA | 4 | 3 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 10 | W 10-6vs Western Kentucky | 3 | 1 | 1.5 | 0.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 11 | W 38-19@ Florida International | 4 | 2 | 1.5 | 1.5 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 12 | W 24-2vs Massachusetts | 2 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 14 | L 3-20@ Georgia Southern | 8 | 3 | 1.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 15 | L 31-45@ Southern Miss | 6 | 3 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Total | 39 | 19 | 11.5 | 8.0 | — | 0 |
Week 5 · 2020
W 21-17
vs Charlotte
3 sacks · 4 tackles for loss · 10 tackles
A wire-to-wire battle — won by 4 at home.
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
39tackles this seasonTFL rate
29%12 TFLSack rate
21%8 sacksPD rate
0%0 pass breakups39 tackles · 11.5 for loss · 8 sacks.
Splits · Per-game
2020 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 4.8 | 1.9 | 1.4 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 5.0 | 1.0 | 0.6 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-71g | 10.0 | 4.0 | 3.0 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+7g | 4.1 | 1.1 | 0.7 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Willie Taggart
Pass share
39.3%
232 pass / 358 run
Plays / game
73.8
8 games
Team sack rate
8.8%
240 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-heavy.
Player standing · 2020
Picked for an all-conference team by at least one selector.
How it ended
Four seasons at Florida Atlantic, 159 tackles — his college career is complete.
His career
Recruited as a two-star. He earned the honors anyway.
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-CONFERENCE USA · 2ND TEAM
All-Conference USA 2nd team (2020)
Weekly recognition
1 weekly honor (2020)
Conference USA Defensive Player of the Week
Coaching lineage · 2017–2020
2 coachesCoaching transition mid-career: Lane Kiffin → Willie Taggart. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
