cfb zeitgeistZeitgeist
OFFSEASON · SUMMER 2026 · COMMITMENT SEASON
Heisman / Players / Shane Whitter /North Texas

Shane Whitter

LB · North Texas · Sr · #7

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

58 TACKLES · 0 SACKS

2026 RETURNINGReturning to North Texas for 2026

2026 Outlook

Returning to North Texas for 2026

Updated May 27

2026 Depth chart

Returning starter

Linebacker · 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

LB · NORTH TEXAS · AMERICAN ATHLETIC

Shane Whitter

  • 4
  • #7
  • 6-0 | 222 lb
  • Burlington, NC

CFB Zeitgeist Score

51

Mid-pack in the position cohort. Carried by qb hurries at the 95th percentile.

Heisman Heat

#12090

<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

R05 · Part-time starter

Part-time starter. Splitting first-team reps.

Not on team2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex

Career Arc

HS
Recruit
★★★★
#394 national
CFB
College
2 teams
2021–2025
NFL
NFL Draft
Not drafted (yet)

Identity & Role

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

PositionLB
Class4
Jersey7
Measurements6-0 | 222 lb
HometownBurlington, NC
Primary teamNorth Texas

Recruiting Pedigree

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

Top pedigree 4-star No. 394 recruit
Composite rating 0.8925 HighSchool
Signed with -- 2020
Origin Williams Burlington, NC, USA
Class Profile Context
2020 4-star | 0.8925 No. 394 recruit | HighSchool

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 2024
Transfer stars 4-star CFBD transfer rating context
Eligibility Immediate Apr 17, 2024
Season Move Context
2024 Oklahoma -> North Texas 4-star | 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#12090Latest modeled ballot order
Season forecast#11888Where 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 —

Composite

0.8925

#394 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 Shane Whitter

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 Shane Whitter

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 8g
58Tackles
1.5Tackles for loss
0Sacks
Per game
7Tackles
0.2Tackles for loss
0Sacks
Projected (13g)
94Tackles
2.4Tackles for loss
0Sacks

To hit 80-tackle season (currently 58): needs 4.4/game over remaining 5.

To hit 100-tackle season (currently 58): needs 8.4/game over remaining 5.

To hit 6-sack season (currently 0): needs 1.2/game over remaining 5.

To hit 10-sack season (currently 0): needs 2/game over remaining 5.

Why this is a rare defensive case

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

Shane Whitter 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 0.0 sacks, 1.5 tackles for loss, and 1 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 #12090 0.0% win | 0.0% finalist
Role load -- Role share still loading
Profile quirk Blue-chip pedigree No. 394 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 58 28 solo | #433/4942 (91st pct)
TFL 1.5 Backfield disruption | #1771/4972 (64th pct)
Sacks 0.0 Pass-rush finish | #1762/4972 (65th 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
58 91st
SOLO
28 87th
TFL
1.5 64th
SACK
0.0 65th
QBH
6 94th

Coverage & Takeaways

PD
1 43rd
INT
1 65th

Game Log · Week-by-week

2025 season · 8 games

Box score · CFBD
WkOppTKLSOLOTFLSACKINTPDNote
Wk 1W 51-0vs Lamar540.00.00
Wk 2W 33-30@ Western Michigan1270.00.00Season-high 12 tackles
Wk 3W 59-10vs Washington State851.00.010
Wk 4W 45-38@ Army1120.00.00
Wk 5W 36-22vs South Alabama1250.50.00
Wk 7L 36-63vs South Florida740.00.00
Wk 8W 55-17vs UTSA200.00.00
Wk 10W 31-17vs Navy110.00.01
Total58281.50.011
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

2021Oklahoma10-2HC: Bob Stoops · Balanced
2022Oklahoma6-7HC: Brent Venables · Run-leaning, fast tempo
2023Oklahoma10-3HC: Brent Venables · Balanced
2025North Texas12-2HC: Eric Morris · Balanced
SeasonTeam
2025North Texas58281.50.011--
2023Oklahoma431.00.0------
2022Oklahoma820.00.0------
2021Oklahoma27121.50.0------
Career4 loaded seasons97454.00.011--
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 1 0 pick-six TD | #308/869 (65th pct)
Pass breakups 1 Coverage disruption | #1241/2184 (43rd pct)
QB pressures 6 Quarterback hurries | #117/1878 (94th pct)
Open full stat explorer
0 metrics visible Showing all metrics
Group Metric Value Rank Pct Why it matters
Defense Total tackles 58 #433/4942 91st pct Volumevs FBS DEF
Defense TFL 1.5 #1771/4972 64th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense Sacks 0.0 #1762/4972 65th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense Interceptions 1 #308/869 65th pct Takeawaysvs FBS DEF
Defense Pass breakups 1 #1241/2184 43rd pct Coveragevs FBS DEF
Defense QB hurries 6 #117/1878 94th pct Disruptionvs FBS DEF
Defense INT return avg 43.0 #41/578 93rd pct Takeawaysvs FBS DEF
Defense INT return yards 43 #137/578 76th pct Takeawaysvs FBS DEF
Defense Solo tackles 28 #608/4584 87th pct Volumevs FBS DEF
Defense Fumbles recovered 1 #103/736 86th pct Takeawaysvs FBS DEF
Ball Security Fumbles lost 0 #1/773 100th pct Turnoversvs 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 · 8 games

Home/Road · Win/Loss · Season halves

Home vs Road

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Home6g5.80.20.00.2
Road2g11.50.00.00.0

Win vs Loss

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Wins7g7.30.20.00.1
Losses1g7.00.00.00.0

First half vs Second half

TKL/gTFL/gSACK/gPD/g
Weeks 1-76g9.20.20.00.0
Weeks 8+2g1.50.00.00.5

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

Savant · Box-rate percentiles

Where this profile ranks vs the LB cohort

51Mid-pack
8 metrics · season cumulative

Elite: qb hurries (94th). Strength: tackles (85th). Concern: sacks (23rd).

QB hurries#117 / 2975 · 95th pct
6defe
Tackles#433 / 2975 · 85th pct
58defe
Solo tackles#608 / 2975 · 79th pct
28defe
Passes defended#1191 / 2975 · 48th pct
1defe
Forced fumbles#36 / 687 · 47th pct
0fumb
Tackles for loss#1711 / 2975 · 39th pct
1.5defe
Interceptions#304 / 817 · 31st pct
1inte
Sacks#1575 / 2975 · 24th pct
0.0defe

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 · 8 metrics
Shane WhitterNorth TexasBlake FletcherAir Force· 88% simTrey FieldsNorth Texas· 76% simRobert FitzgeraldNorthwestern· 73% sim
QB hurries
95
Whitter
92
Fletcher
95
Fields
55
Fitzgerald
Tackles
85
Whitter
99
Fletcher
98
Fields
99
Fitzgerald
Solo tackles
79
Whitter
91
Fletcher
96
Fields
100
Fitzgerald
Passes defended
48
Whitter
67
Fletcher
67
Fields
86
Fitzgerald
Forced fumbles
47
Whitter
47
Fields
47
Fitzgerald
Tackles for loss
39
Whitter
28
Fletcher
87
Fields
85
Fitzgerald
Interceptions
31
Whitter
31
Fields
31
Fitzgerald
Sacks
24
Whitter
24
Fletcher
63
Fields
24
Fitzgerald

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

Player DNA

The Balanced Linebacker

Solid in every phase without a signature dimension.

LB

His 2025 production profile sits closest to Tyler Jackson’s 2023 season.

Tyler Jackson

86%match

Northern Illinois · 2023

#2

A.J. DeShazor Jr.

South Alabama · 2021

86%
#3

Bryan McCoy

Oklahoma State · 2025

83%
#4

Antavious Fish

Akron · 2024

83%
#5

Quincy Bryant

Wake Forest · 2025

82%

Matches Tyler on

TFL rate
Height
Weight

Not enough data yet for this comparison.

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 · 2021–2025

2 coaches
2021
Seth Littrell
North Texas
2022
Seth Littrell
North Texas
2023
Eric Morris
North Texas
era →
2025
Eric Morris
North Texas

Coaching transition mid-career: Seth Littrell → Eric Morris. Worth noting in scheme + development context.

Bio · Recruiting · Transfer · Roster

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

HometownBurlington, NC
Height6'0"
Weight222 lb
Class4
PositionLB
Jersey7

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 North Texas LB4 #12090 #11888 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W16 snapshot | American Athletic
2023 Oklahoma LB4 #6967 #6884 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W19 snapshot | Big 12
2022 Oklahoma LB4 #11288 #11216 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W20 snapshot | Big 12
2021 Oklahoma LB4 #5589 #5820 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W20 snapshot | Big 12

Roster Timeline

Team, conference, and class by season.

Season Team Conference Pos Class Bio
2025 North Texas American Athletic LB 4 No. 7 | 6-0 | 222 lb | Burlington, NC
2024 North Texas American Athletic LB 4 No. 7 | 6-0 | 222 lb | Burlington, NC
2023 Oklahoma Big 12 LB 4 No. 7 | 6-0 | 222 lb | Burlington, NC
2022 Oklahoma Big 12 LB 4 No. 7 | 6-0 | 222 lb | Burlington, NC
2021 Oklahoma Big 12 LB 4 No. 7 | 6-0 | 222 lb | Burlington, NC