Tayden Barnes
Tayden Barnes
Moves between deep coverage and the slot. Tayden Barnes has played for two head coaches across two seasons and two programs. His first career honor landed in 2024: All-Conference USA. The receipt: 7 tackles against Nebraska — Week 1, 2025.
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- positional archetype classification
- head-coach lineage
- recognition record
- game log
Career Arc
Trophy Case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-CONFERENCE
All-Conf mention (2024)
All-Conference USA
2025 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
Splits & context
Supporting Cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Scott Satterfield
Awards
Player Standing · 17 rungs
Tier 1 · 2-deepR04 · Rotational
Rotational. Tackle volume for the position in rotation-piece range.
Trophy Case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
ALL-CONFERENCE
All-Conf mention (2024)
All-Conference USA
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Cincinnati | 24 | 13 | 1.0 | 0.0 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2024 | New Mexico State | 57 | 38 | 1.5 | 0.0 | 6 | 1 | -- |
| Career | 81 | 51 | 2.5 | 0.0 | 6 | 1 | -- |
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 6 · 2025
W 38–30
vs Iowa State
3 TOT · 2 SOLO
Edged out Iowa State at home in a shootout.
How he plays
Play style
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Cincinnati
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Safety · Cincinnati
Returning around him
- 4 Cincinnati players drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -1 net (22 in / 23 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Cincinnati · Last season: 7-6 (AP #22) · Talent rank #73 · 2026 recruiting class #58
DNA match
Player DNA
Hybrid Nickel
Moves between deep coverage and the slot — the modern positionless DB.
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Elijah Palmer’s 2023 season.
Matches Elijah on
Differs from Elijah on
Not enough data yet for this comparison.
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Ben Egenolf's sophomore season at Ball State (2022).
Matches Ben on