cfb zeitgeistZeitgeist
OFFSEASON · SUMMER 2026 · COMMITMENT SEASON
Heisman / Players / TJ Dottery /Ole Miss

TJ Dottery

LB · Ole Miss · Jr · #6

Below the discourse floor — the honest stats-only state.

98 TACKLES · 1.5 SACKS

2026 TRANSFERTransferred Ole Miss → LSU for 2026

Where He Ended Up · Transfer

Transferred to LSU

2025Ole Miss
2026LSU

LB · OLE MISS · SEC

TJ Dottery

  • 3
  • #6
  • 6-1 | 225 lb
  • Montgomery, AL

CFB Zeitgeist Score

77

All-Conference in the position cohort. Carried by sacks at the 74th percentile.

Heisman Heat

#6751

<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 LB AWARD

Butkus

CONSENSUS

All-American

Player Standing · 17 rungs

Tier 2 · Starter

R07 · Impact starter

Impact starter. Producing measurable value above replacement.

Not on team2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex

Career Arc

HS
Recruit
★★★★
#227 national
CFB
College
Ole Miss
2025
NFL
NFL Draft
Not drafted (yet)

Identity & Role

The durable bio layer: position, size, hometown, and roster role.

PositionLB
Class3
Jersey6
Measurements6-1 | 225 lb
HometownMontgomery, AL
Primary teamOle Miss

Recruiting Pedigree

How big the prospect was before college, and whether the later career arc beat that expectation.

Top pedigree 4-star No. 227 recruit
Composite rating 0.9143 HighSchool
Signed with Clemson 2022
Origin Montgomery Catholic Preparatory Montgomery, AL, USA
Class Profile Context
2022 4-star | 0.9143 No. 227 recruit | HighSchool | Clemson

Transfer Arc

Portal movement changes role, context, and perception. This keeps that path in one place.

Portal moves 1 Programs changed on file
Latest destination LSU 2026
Transfer stars 4-star CFBD transfer rating context
Eligibility Immediate Jan 15, 2026
Season Move Context
2026 Ole Miss -> LSU 4-star | 0.9100 | Immediate

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 16
Current nowcast#6751Latest modeled ballot order
Season forecast#6652Where the full season sim points
Win probability0.0%Chance to actually win the trophy
Finalist probability0.0%Chance to make the finalist tier
Ballot probability0.0%Chance to appear anywhere on a ballot
Best official finish--Best completed Heisman placement on file

Heisman Futures

Not yet listed on major futures markets.

No achievements unlocked yet this season.

Selector Grid · 2025

AP
FWAA
AFCA
WCFF
SN
SI

Selector recognition fills in once the major honors lists (AP, FWAA, AFCA, Walter Camp, Sporting News, SI) are scraped and ingested.

NIL · Recruiting · NFL Draft

Market value, pedigree & pro outcome

Recruit stars

★★★★☆

to Clemson

Composite

0.9143

#227 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

PENDING

The 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 TJ Dottery

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 TJ Dottery

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.

A 3-act season arc returns once this player has six or more games on the ledger.

Season Pace · Projection

Where the defensive totals stand

final
Through 15g
98Tackles
5.5Tackles for loss
1.5Sacks
Per game
7Tackles
0.4Tackles for loss
0.1Sacks
Final
98Tackles
5.5Tackles for loss
1.5Sacks

✓ Hit 80-tackle season · finished with 98.

Why this is a rare defensive case

The fast read on the thing that makes this player more than a generic stat line.

TJ Dottery is trying to climb the steepest award hill in college football: a defensive candidacy. The hook is the disruption profile on Ole Miss's defense, with 1.5 sacks, 5.5 tackles for loss, and -- 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.

Current place #6751 0.0% win | 0.0% finalist
Role load -- Role share still loading
Profile quirk Blue-chip pedigree No. 227 recruit

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
Total tackles 98 48 solo | #55/4942 (99th pct)
TFL 5.5 Backfield disruption | #477/4972 (90th pct)
Sacks 1.5 Pass-rush finish | #724/4972 (85th pct)
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.

High-disruption defenderHigh-volume tackler

2025 Season · Final

2025 season snapshot | final

Tackling & Disruption

TOT
98 99th
SOLO
48 98th
TFL
5.5 90th
SACK
1.5 85th
QBH
1 44th

Coverage & Takeaways

PD
2 64th

Game Log · Week-by-week

2025 season · 15 games

Box score · CFBD
WkOppTKLSOLOTFLSACKINTPDNote
Wk 1W 63-7vs Georgia State950.50.01Season-high 11 tackles
Wk 2W 30-23@ Kentucky630.00.00
Wk 3W 41-35vs Arkansas820.00.01
Wk 4W 45-10vs Tulane310.00.00
Wk 5W 24-19vs LSU530.00.00
Wk 7W 24-21vs Washington State621.00.00
Wk 8L 35-43@ Georgia970.00.00
Wk 9W 34-26@ Oklahoma630.00.00
Wk 10W 30-14vs South Carolina421.00.50
Wk 11W 49-0vs The Citadel732.00.00
Wk 12W 34-24vs Florida540.00.00
Wk 14W 38-19@ Mississippi State910.00.00
BowlW 41-10vs Tulane620.00.00
BowlW 39-34@ Georgia410.00.00
BowlL 27-31vs Miami1191.01.00
Total98485.51.52
Season-by-season tables Career rows + per-season box score

Traditional history

Traditional Stats

Season rows up top, career context at the bottom.

Season rows Career row

Season context · Team result + system

2025Ole Miss13-2HC: Lane Kiffin · Balanced
SeasonTeam
2025Ole Miss98485.51.52----
Career1 loaded season98485.51.52----
Advanced layer Usage, value, and context

Advanced metrics second

Advanced Metrics

Usage, value, and opponent-adjusted context.

Usage Value Context
Disruption stats

TFL, sacks, and QB hurries are grouped together because defensive Heisman cases are usually built on visible havoc, not on tackle counts alone.

Coverage splash

Pass breakups, interceptions, and forced fumbles matter because national awards voters respond to plays that change possessions and highlight reels.

Peer percentile

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.

Traditional first

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.

INT -- -- pick-six TD
Pass breakups 2 Coverage disruption | #792/2184 (64th pct)
QB pressures 1 Quarterback hurries | #1051/1878 (44th pct)
Open full stat explorer
0 metrics visible Showing all metrics
Group Metric Value Rank Pct Why it matters
Defense Total tackles 98 #55/4942 99th pct Volumevs FBS DEF
Defense TFL 5.5 #477/4972 90th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense Sacks 1.5 #724/4972 85th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense Pass breakups 2 #792/2184 64th pct Coveragevs FBS DEF
Defense QB hurries 1 #1051/1878 44th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense Solo tackles 48 #90/4584 98th pct Volumevs FBS DEF

Player Standing

Universal 17-step ladder. Tier pills below; accolade streams nested.

AWAITING CLASSIFICATION

On-team2-deepStartingRecognizedEliteApex

AWAITING CLASSIFICATION · Rung None of 16

Why he’s here

Standing classification populates when honors, Heisman, and roster signals all align.

What moves him up

What moves him down

Accolade streams

StatusAwaiting tracker

The Butkus 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 · 15 games

Home/Road · Win/Loss · Season halves

Home vs Road

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Home10g6.40.60.10.2
Road5g6.80.00.00.0

Win vs Loss

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Wins13g6.00.30.00.2
Losses2g10.00.50.50.0

First half vs Second half

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Weeks 1-79g6.40.30.10.2
Weeks 8+6g6.70.50.10.0

Pocket and defense-quality (clean vs. pressure) splits are coming soon.

Savant · Box-rate percentiles

Where this profile ranks vs the LB cohort

77All-Conference
6 metrics · season cumulative

Elite: tackles (98th). Strength: solo tackles (96th).

Tackles#55 / 2975 · 98th pct
98defe
Solo tackles#90 / 2975 · 97th pct
48defe
Tackles for loss#477 / 2975 · 83rd pct
5.5defe
Sacks#707 / 2975 · 74th pct
1.5defe
Passes defended#777 / 2975 · 67th pct
2defe
QB hurries#1007 / 2975 · 55th pct
1defe

Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.

Advanced Savant · LB · 2024

Percentile Card

Advanced opponent-adjusted percentile bars are coming soon for this player.

P4G5All FBS
EPA / dropback
awaiting
CPOE
awaiting
Success rate
awaiting
Explosive rate (20+)
awaiting
aDOT
awaiting
Deep-ball accuracy
awaiting
Pressure-to-sack
awaiting
3rd-down EPA
awaiting
Red-zone TD rate
awaiting
Play-action EPA
awaiting
Scramble EPA
awaiting
Turnover-worthy play rate
awaiting

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

3 peers · 6 metrics
TJ DotteryOle MissKeaton ThomasBaylor· 93% simJordan CrookArizona State· 91% simMarsel McDuffieUNLV· 91% sim
Tackles
98
Dottery
98
Thomas
98
Crook
99
McDuffie
Solo tackles
97
Dottery
99
Thomas
98
Crook
99
McDuffie
Tackles for loss
83
Dottery
90
Thomas
93
Crook
83
McDuffie
Sacks
74
Dottery
63
Thomas
80
Crook
80
McDuffie
Passes defended
67
Dottery
78
Thomas
67
Crook
78
McDuffie
QB hurries
55
Dottery
55
Thomas
72
Crook
72
McDuffie

Closest peers by overall box-score percentile profile at the same position.

Player DNA

The Every-Down Linebacker

Leads the team in tackles and rarely leaves the field.

LB

His 2025 production profile sits closest to JD Bertrand’s 2021 season.

JD Bertrand

89%match

Notre Dame · 2021

NFL Rd 5
#2

Xavier Cullens

Memphis · 2022

All-AAC
88%
#3

Quae Drake

Jacksonville State · 2023

88%
#4

Dequan Jackson

Colorado State · 2022

88%
#5

Jahad Woods

Washington State · 2021

86%

Matches JD on

TFL rate
Sack rate
Weight

Not enough data yet for this comparison.

As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to JaQuez Jackson's sophomore season at Georgia Tech (2021).

JaQuez Jackson

91%match

Georgia Tech · 2021

#2

Ellis Brooks

Penn State · 2021

All-Big Ten
89%
#3

Keaton Thomas

Baylor · 2025

88%
#4

Demetrius Hill

Florida International · 2022

83%
#5

Kana'i Mauga

USC · 2021

81%

Matches JaQuez on

Class year
Sack rate
TFL rate

Supporting Cast · Scheme

Staff and system around the player

2025 season

Head Coach

Lane Kiffin

Pass share

48.2%

521 pass / 560 run

Plays / game

72.1

15 games

OL sack rate (allowed)

4.5%

330 dropbacks · PBP

Scheme: Balanced.

Coaching Lineage · 2025

1 coach
2025
Lane Kiffin
Ole Miss

Played his entire career under Lane Kiffin.

Bio · Recruiting · Transfer · Roster

Off-field context — switch tabs to drill into recruit profile, transfer arc, or roster timeline.

HometownMontgomery, AL
Height6'1"
Weight225 lb
Class3
PositionLB
Jersey6

Trophy Case · Detail

Every honor on the ledger, broken out by stream and selector.

Honors

No formal honors on the ledger yet

All-America, all-conference, player-of-the-week, watch-list, and postseason awards land here when they're earned. The absence is the signal: most players never collect formal honors, and that's its own kind of context.

Honors Timeline

Season-end distinction and week-by-week recognition on one timeline.

Season Honor Scope Team / Selector Context
No formal honors on the ledger yet. All-America, all-conference, weekly awards, watch lists, and postseason trophies land here when they’re earned.

Heisman By Year

Modeled rank and official finish by season.

Season Team Role Latest Model Forecast Win Finalist Official Finish Points Context
2024 Ole Miss LB3 #6751 #6652 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W16 snapshot | SEC

Roster Timeline

Team, conference, and class by season.

Season Team Conference Pos Class Bio
2025 Ole Miss SEC LB 3 No. 6 | 6-1 | 225 lb | Montgomery, AL
2024 Ole Miss SEC LB 3 No. 6 | 6-1 | 225 lb | Montgomery, AL