6′1″ · 250 lb · Charlotte, NC
He has 7 sacks, the most among FBS linebackers.
Xavier Esquillien
Fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge. On tape: 5 tackles and 3 sacks against Old Dominion, Week 5, 2026.
21 tackles · 7 sacks
Play style
Downhill striker who fills the run lane and blitzes off the edge.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
No outlet on our list has written about him by name this season.
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| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Georgia State | 21 | 12 | 9.5 | 7.0 | 1 |
| Career | 21 | 12 | 9.5 | 7.0 | 1 |
Last game (Wk 7): 3 tackles, 1 tackle for loss, 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 | W 59-10vs North Carolina A&T | 4 | 2 | 2.5 | 1.0 | — | 0 | 2.5 TFL |
| Wk 2 | W 31-17@ Kennesaw State | 3 | 2 | 1.0 | 1.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | L 30-44@ UCF | 2 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 4 | W 35-14vs Northern Illinois | 4 | 2 | 2.0 | 2.0 | — | 0 | 2 sacks |
| Wk 5 | W 42-10vs Old Dominion | 5 | 4 | 3.0 | 3.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 5 tackles |
| Wk 7 | L 22-49@ James Madison | 3 | 1 | 1.0 | 0.0 | — | 1 | |
| Total | 21 | 12 | 9.5 | 7.0 | — | 1 |
Oct. 17 · L 22-49 at James Madison, play by play
3 tackles, including 1 more for loss, 1 pass broken up.
His game this year: disruption in the backfield — 9 tackles for loss, 7 of them sacks, in the 6 games with play by play.
How Georgia State’s defense played that day
James Madison’s 13 drives: 6 stopped (1 takeaway) · 7 scored. While the game was within a score they held 1 of 4.
5 tackles, including 3 sacks, tied for the most sacks in FBS that week. He hurried the quarterback once.
Sacked the quarterback for a 5-yard loss on 3rd and 11. Second quarter, up 28-3.
4 tackles, including 2 sacks, tied for 9th-most sacks in FBS that week.
Sacked the quarterback for a 10-yard loss. Fourth quarter, up 35-14.
2 tackles.
3 tackles, including 1 sack. He hurried the quarterback 3 times.
Sacked the quarterback for a 4-yard loss. Fourth quarter, up 31-11.
4 tackles, including 1 more for loss, 1 sack, tied for 9th-most tackles for loss in FBS that week.
Sacked the quarterback for a 6-yard loss. Second quarter, up 28-7.
Week 5 · 2026
W 42-10
vs Old Dominion
3 sacks · 3 tackles for loss · 5 tackles
Dominant 32-point win at home against Old Dominion.
Conference ranks count every player in the conference with a row in that stat, any position. Career ranks count current FBS players, from the games in our log.
Ratings of the games shown run from -25 to +12 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
Tackle volume
21tackles this seasonTFL rate
45%10 TFLSack rate
33%7 sacksPD rate
5%1 pass breakups21 tackles · 9.5 for loss · 7 sacks.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 6 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home3g | 4.3 | 2.5 | 2.0 | 0.0 |
| Road3g | 2.7 | 0.7 | 0.3 | 0.3 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 3.5 | 1.6 | 1.2 | 0.2 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Dell McGee
Pass share
43.9%
180 pass / 230 run
Plays / game
68.3
6 games
Team sack rate
3.0%
197 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2026
Fewer tackles a game than most FBS linebackers who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Sun Belt Conference
