Former safety at Mississippi State. Career stats, games and honors on CFB Zeitgeist.
5′11″ · 200 lb · Hoover, AL · Hoover HS (Rice)
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 projects
Erases the deep middle of the field.
Grades highest in play recognition and speed.
The full scouting readRecruiting
S recruit
No. 1895 nationally · Signed with Rice
Last played in 2026.
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Former safety at Mississippi State. Career stats, games and honors on CFB Zeitgeist.
Marcus Williams
Erases the deep middle of the field. Across six seasons and two programs, three head coaches: Mike Bloomgren, Scott Abell and Jeff Lebby. The receipt: 6 tackles against Minnesota — Week 2, 2026.
15 TACKLES · 0 SACKS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
How it ended
Six seasons at Mississippi State, 120 tackles — drafted at #42 overall by New Orleans.
His career
5 programs, one constant: he played.
Career arc
Coaching lineage · 2021–2026
3 coachesPlayed under 3 different head coaches: Mike Leach, Greg Knox, and Jeff Lebby. Multi-era developmental context.
Where He Ended Up · NFL
New OrleansEntering 10th NFL season
Game by game
Point color shows the opponent's defensive strength that week (red = weaker defense, blue = stronger) — dashed line is this player's own season average.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 3 games
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 62-13vs UL Monroe | 5 | 0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 38-13@ Minnesota | 6 | 6 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 6 tackles |
| Wk 3 | W 41-34@ South Carolina | 4 | 3 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Total | 15 | 9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 |
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 3 · 2026
W 41–34
4 tackles · 1 pass breakups · 3 solo tackles
Edged out South Carolina on the road in a shootout.
With K. Taylor — 251 yds · 4 TD · 1 INT · QBR 87.9 · 33 rush yds (8 car) · F. Bothwell — 115 rush yds (21 car)
Since week 2: +1 pass breakup, +4 tackles.
Season context · Team result + system
Where this defender ranks vs the field
Box-score production percentiles vs the position cohort
Concern: tackles for loss (16th percentile).
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.
Defender profile · Production by role
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
7%1 pass breakupsTackle volume
15tackles this seasonTFL rate
0%0 TFL15 tackles · 1 pass breakups.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 3 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home1g | 5.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Road2g | 5.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.5 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 5.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.3 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Jeff Lebby
Pass share
44.6%
91 pass / 113 run
Plays / game
68.0
3 games
Team sack rate
4.8%
105 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2026
Tackle volume for the position at the early end of the ladder.
Play style
Single-high range who erases the deep middle of the field.
CFB Index positional classification
Player DNA
Single-high range who erases the deep middle of the field.
His 2026 production profile sits closest to Christian Bertrand’s 2016 season.
Matches Christian on
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
Player DNA
Career Honors 2025 American Conference All-Academic Team 2024 American Conference All-Academic Team 2022 C-USA Commissioner's Honor Roll Career Notes Has appeared in 31 career games with 15 starts. Before Mississippi State (2021-25) Attended Rice from 2021-25 earning a redshirt in his fourth…
20 more on the roster · Mississippi State team page