Zyeir Gamble
Plays like an extra linebacker near the line. The three seasons span two programs and three head coaches: Shawn Clark, Dowell Loggains and Blake Harrell. A game that shows it: 8 tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss against Old Dominion — Week 3, 2026.
38 tackles · 0 sacks
Play style
Lives near the line of scrimmage as a de facto extra linebacker.
Activity vs finishing · season enumeration
What the box score actually says
38 tackles. 0 passes defended. 1 interception. 0.5 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.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Season | Team | ||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | East Carolina | 38 | 25 | 0.5 | 0.0 | -- | 1 |
| 2025 | App State | 72 | 36 | 3.5 | 0.0 | 4 | 2 |
| 2024 | App State | 17 | 9 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 1 |
| Career | 127 | 70 | 4.0 | 0.0 | 5 | 4 |
Last game (Wk 9): 6 tackles.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 8 games
Swipe the table sideways for more columns.
| Wk | Opp | TKL | SOLO | TFL | SACK | INT | PD | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 10-48@ No. 13 Alabama | 4 | 1 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 2 | L 24-27vs App State | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 3 | W 20-17@ Old Dominion | 8 | 3 | 0.5 | 0.0 | — | 0 | Season-high 8 tackles |
| Wk 4 | W 42-9vs North Carolina Central | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 6 | W 28-12vs Rice | 3 | 2 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 7 | L 17-30@ UAB | 4 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 8 | L 34-41@ Memphis | 7 | 7 | 0.0 | 0.0 | — | 0 | |
| Wk 9 | W 17-9vs Temple | 6 | 4 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 | |
| Total | 38 | 25 | 0.5 | 0.0 | 1 | 0 |
Oct. 31 · W 17-9 vs Temple, play by play
6 tackles, including 1 interception. His interception ended Temple’s drive (int).
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
Intercepted. Fourth quarter, up 17-9. Ended Temple’s drive (int).
His game this year: taking the ball away — 1 interception, 1 forced fumble in the 8 games with play by play.
How East Carolina’s defense played that day
Temple’s 9 drives: 6 stopped (3 takeaways) · 3 scored. While the game was within a score they held 5 of 6. His interception came with East Carolina up 8.
7 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
4 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
3 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
3 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
No game thread archived for this game yet.
8 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play. His sacks are drawn as sacks.
3 tackles.
Each small tick is one of his tackles on the play-by-play: 2 of his 3, sacks included.
No game thread archived for this game yet.
Forced a fumble. Third quarter, down 24-17.
4 tackles.
Ratings of the games shown run from -15 to +21 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Where his impact shows up on the stat sheet
PD rate
0%0 pass breakupsInterceptions
1interceptionsTackle volume
38tackles this seasonTFL rate
1%0 TFL38 tackles · 0.5 for loss · 1 interception.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 8 games
Home vs Road
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home4g | 3.8 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Road4g | 5.8 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| TKL/g | TFL/g | SACK/g | PD/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 4.2 | 0.1 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
| Weeks 8+2g | 6.5 | 0.0 | 0.0 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Blake Harrell
Pass share
45.5%
245 pass / 294 run
Plays / game
67.4
8 games
Team sack rate
6.1%
277 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Run-leaning.
Player standing · 2026
38 tackles in 8 games, about as many tackles a game as a typical FBS defensive back who plays every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #229 at the position.
The No. 1,862 recruit in the country is starting in the secondary in the American Athletic.
2026 is in progress.
A stat line in 23 games over three seasons.
Coaching lineage · 2023–2026
3 coachesPlayed for 3 head coaches at 2 schools: Shawn Clark, Dowell Loggains and Blake Harrell.
Next stop · Transfer
Transferred to East Carolina
