Riley Van Poppel
Nebraska Cornhuskers
80
Good

Riley Van Poppel

Nebraska CornhuskersContender
NTDefenseGood
2nd String / Backup

Is Riley Van Poppel starting?

Riley Van Poppel is listed 2nd string at NT for Nebraska Cornhuskers.

Redshirt junior · #5 · 6'5", 295 lbs

See full Nebraska Cornhuskers depth chart ›
Play Dynasty as Coach NebraskaFree. You call every play.

Depth at NT · Nebraska Cornhuskers

  1. 13480Owen StoudmireStarter
  2. 2580Riley Van PoppelYou
  3. 33964David Höffken

Nebraska Starting Lineup

Full Nebraska depth chart ›

Top defensive linemen in the Big Ten

Tobi OsunsanmiIndiana · STUDSahir WestUCLA · DEKenneth MerrieweatherIowa · LDE

The Story

Making His Case

A 4-star recruit out of Argyle, ranked #386 nationally coming out of high school. In 2025: 16 tackles, 2.5 TFL, 1.5 sacks. That's 3% of the team's production at his spot — good for a 80 overall (Good tier).

Recruit4★ · #386 Natl3-Yr Total24 tackles · 2 sacksTeam Share3%
Argyle, TX
Jersey
#5
Class
RS JR
Height
6'5"
Weight
295 lbs

Career Stats

SeasonTklTFLSacks
2025162.51.5
2024310
2023510.5

Regular-season totals from public sources. Derived splits (completion %, yards per carry, catch rate) aren't available in our current dataset.

Recruiting Profile

Stars
★★★★☆4-star
Composite
0.8955
National Rank
#386
High School
Argyle
Hometown
Argyle, TX

Why this rating?

On a 88-rated defense; 72th-percentile production (×0.95 for competition level) put them +3 vs unit starters → 80. Capped to the teammate ahead of them on the depth chart.

Team defense (SP+)
88
Rating basis
On-field stats
On-field production
Outperforms 72% of peers
Recruiting pedigree
Top 25% recruit
Strength of schedule
Faces easier competition — rating adjusted down (×0.95)
Depth-chart adjustment
+3 for role; −6 depth penalty

2026 projection — based on SP+ (a respected team-efficiency metric; 2026 not published yet, using 2025), 2025 production, recruiting, and the 2026 transfer portal; capped to depth-chart order.

2026 Game Log

Oct 3WMDTKL 1
TKL
1
SOLO
1
SACK
0
INT
0
PD
0

Final W 48-23

Sep 26WMSUTKL 1
TKL
1
SOLO
1
SACK
0
INT
0
PD
0

Final W 31-13

Sep 19WUNDTKL 1
TKL
1
SOLO
1
SACK
1
INT
0
PD
0

Final W 34-7

Sep 12WBGSUTKL 2
TKL
2
SOLO
1
SACK
0
INT
0
PD
0

Final W 56-7

Sep 5WOHIOTKL 2
TKL
2
SOLO
2
SACK
1
INT
0
PD
0

Final W 49-21

Riley Van Poppel's 2026 game-by-game stat log.

The People's Ratings

Is our 80 OVR fair?
80
Good
Vote to see what thousands of fans think

Team Role

16 tkl · 2.5 TFL · 1.5 sacks
Usage / Involvement60%
DAILY PICKSMake your picks.Today's games. No account needed.

Overall ratings blend team strength (SP+), on-field production, and recruiting. Higher = more impactful.