cfb zeitgeistZeitgeist
OFFSEASON · SUMMER 2026 · COMMITMENT SEASON
Heisman / Players / Joshua Pierce /North Texas

Joshua Pierce

DL · North Texas · So · #97

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

14 TACKLES · 2 SACKS

2026 RETURNINGReturning to North Texas for 2026

2026 Outlook

Returning to North Texas for 2026

2026 Depth chart

Projected starter

Defensive line · North Texas

Returning around him

  • 56% of 2024 offensive production back (Solid continuity)
  • Transfer portal: +11 net (49 in / 38 out)

2026 Award watch

No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)

North Texas · Last season: 12-2 (AP #23) · Talent rank #96 · 2026 recruiting class #112

DL · NORTH TEXAS · AMERICAN ATHLETIC

Joshua Pierce

  • 2
  • #97
  • 6-4 | 250 lb
  • Detroit, MI

CFB Zeitgeist Score

42

Mid-pack in the position cohort. Carried by sacks at the 80th percentile.

Heisman Heat

Awaiting

Not on the live Heisman board this week.

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

TOP DEFENSE AWARD

Nagurski

CONSENSUS

All-American

Player Standing · 17 rungs

Tier 1 · 2-deep

R03 · Backup

Backup. On the two-deep, pushing for snaps.

Not on team2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex

Career Arc

HS
Recruit
No recruit profile
CFB
College
North Texas
2025
NFL
NFL Draft
Not drafted (yet)

Identity & Role

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

PositionDL
Class2
Jersey97
Measurements6-4 | 250 lb
HometownDetroit, MI
Primary teamNorth Texas

Recruiting Pedigree

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

Top pedigree Not on file No matched recruiting profile in the loaded archive
Composite rating -- Composite rating unavailable for this player
Signed with -- Commitment history unavailable
Origin -- Hometown and high school unavailable
Class Profile Context
No recruiting profile is on file for this player.

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 North Texas 2025
Transfer stars 2-star CFBD transfer rating context
Eligibility Immediate Dec 23, 2024
Season Move Context
2025 Campbell -> North Texas 2-star | Immediate

Heisman Lens

Where the model places this player relative to the rest of the Heisman field.

Current nowcast--Latest modeled ballot order
Season forecast--Where the full season sim points
Win probability--Chance to actually win the trophy
Finalist probability--Chance to make the finalist tier
Ballot probability--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.

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 Joshua Pierce

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 Joshua Pierce

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

projecting to 13-game
Through 6g
14Tackles
2Tackles for loss
2Sacks
Per game
2Tackles
0.3Tackles for loss
0.3Sacks
Projected (13g)
30Tackles
4.3Tackles for loss
4.3Sacks

To hit 80-tackle season (currently 14): needs 9.4/game over remaining 7.

To hit 100-tackle season (currently 14): needs 12.3/game over remaining 7.

To hit 6-sack season (currently 2): needs 0.6/game over remaining 7.

To hit 10-sack season (currently 2): needs 1.1/game over remaining 7.

Why this is a rare defensive case

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

Joshua Pierce is trying to climb the steepest award hill in college football: a defensive candidacy. The hook is the disruption profile on North Texas's defense, with 2.0 sacks, 2.0 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 -- -- win | -- finalist
Role load -- Role share still loading
Profile quirk Defensive rarity 2.0 sacks | 2.0 TFL

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 14 4 solo | #2476/4942 (50th pct)
TFL 2.0 Backfield disruption | #1443/4972 (71st pct)
Sacks 2.0 Pass-rush finish | #491/4972 (90th pct)
Player identity What kind of player is this?

30-second read

What kind of player is this?

High-disruption defender against FBS defenders.

High-disruption defender

2025 Season · Final

2025 season snapshot | final

Tackling & Disruption

TOT
14 50th
SOLO
4 34th
TFL
2.0 71st
SACK
2.0 90th
QBH
1 44th

Game Log · Week-by-week

2025 season · 6 games

Box score · CFBD
WkOppTKLSOLOTFLSACKINTPDNote
Wk 1W 51-0vs Lamar110.00.00
Wk 3W 59-10vs Washington State111.01.00
Wk 7L 36-63vs South Florida500.00.00Season-high 5 tackles
Wk 8W 55-17vs UTSA211.01.00
Wk 13W 56-24@ Rice200.00.00
Wk 14W 52-25vs Temple310.00.00
Total1442.02.00
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

2025North Texas12-2HC: Eric Morris · Balanced
SeasonTeam
2025North Texas1442.02.0------
Career1 loaded season1442.02.0------
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 0 Coverage disruption
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 14 #2476/4942 50th pct Volumevs FBS DEF
Defense TFL 2.0 #1443/4972 71st pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense Sacks 2.0 #491/4972 90th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense QB hurries 1 #1051/1878 44th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense Solo tackles 4 #3005/4584 34th 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 Lombardi 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 · 6 games

Home/Road · Win/Loss · Season halves

Home vs Road

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Home5g2.40.40.40.0
Road1g2.00.00.00.0

Win vs Loss

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Wins5g1.80.40.40.0
Losses1g5.00.00.00.0

First half vs Second half

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Weeks 1-73g2.30.30.30.0
Weeks 8+3g2.30.30.30.0

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

Savant · Box-rate percentiles

Where this profile ranks vs the DL cohort

42Mid-pack
6 metrics · season cumulative

Concern: solo tackles (4th).

Sacks#487 / 2975 · 80th pct
2.0defe
QB hurries#1007 / 2975 · 55th pct
1defe
Tackles for loss#1424 / 2975 · 47th pct
2.0defe
Passes defended#1916 / 2975 · 18th pct
0defe
Tackles#2476 / 2975 · 16th pct
14defe
Solo tackles#2803 / 2975 · 4th pct
4defe

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

Advanced Savant · DL · 2025

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
Joshua PierceNorth TexasMarcAnthony ParkerNavy· 46% simMichael MontgomerySouthern Miss· 45% simJackson KuwatchMiami (OH)· 44% sim
Sacks
80
Pierce
80
Parker
89
Montgomery
96
Kuwatch
QB hurries
55
Pierce
88
Parker
22
Montgomery
55
Kuwatch
Tackles for loss
47
Pierce
87
Parker
85
Montgomery
96
Kuwatch
Passes defended
18
Pierce
18
Parker
67
Montgomery
48
Kuwatch
Tackles
16
Pierce
98
Parker
99
Montgomery
98
Kuwatch
Solo tackles
4
Pierce
96
Parker
82
Montgomery
95
Kuwatch

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

Player DNA

The 3-Tech Penetrator

Disruptive interior rusher who lives in the backfield.

IDL

His 2025 production profile sits closest to Keshawn Hayden’s 2025 season.

Keshawn Hayden

86%match

Central Michigan · 2025

#2

Armondo Blount

Miami · 2025

84%
#3

Cameron Williams

Miami · 2021

82%
#4

Jaxon Howard

Minnesota · 2025

81%
#5

Jason Abbey

Virginia Tech · 2025

81%

Matches Keshawn on

Class year
Weight
TFL rate

Differs from Keshawn on

Height (higher)

Not enough data yet for this comparison.

As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Armondo Blount's sophomore season at Miami (2025).

Armondo Blount

89%match

Miami · 2025

#2

Taje McCoy

Colorado · 2024

82%
#3

Amadou Fofana

Coastal Carolina · 2022

80%
#4

Brenton Williams

Liberty · 2025

80%
#5

Ira Singleton

South Florida · 2025

80%

Matches Armondo on

Class year
Height
TFL rate

Supporting Cast · Scheme

Staff and system around the player

2025 season

Head Coach

Eric Morris

Pass share

48.5%

475 pass / 504 run

Plays / game

69.9

14 games

OL sack rate (allowed)

5.9%

321 dropbacks · PBP

Scheme: Balanced.

Coaching Lineage · 2025

1 coach
2025
Eric Morris
North Texas

Played his entire career under Eric Morris.

Bio · Recruiting · Transfer · Roster

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

HometownDetroit, MI
Height6'4"
Weight250 lb
Class2
PositionDL
Jersey97

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
This player hasn’t appeared on a Heisman ballot tracked by the model.

Roster Timeline

Team, conference, and class by season.

Season Team Conference Pos Class Bio
2025 North Texas American Athletic DL 2 No. 97 | 6-4 | 250 lb | Detroit, MI