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UCF PFF Defense Player Grades - 68-7 win vs. North Carolina A&T

UCFSportsOn3by: Brandon Helwig09/07/25UCFSports
NCAA Football: North Carolina A&T at Central Florida
Sep 6, 2025; Orlando, Florida, USA; North Carolina A&T Aggies quarterback Braxton Thomas (17) is tackled by UCF Knights edge Malachi Lawrence (51) during the first quarter at Acrisure Bounce House. Mandatory Credit: Mike Watters-Imagn Images

UCF’s defense turned in a near-flawless showing in Saturday’s 68-7 rout of North Carolina A&T, limiting the Aggies to just 200 total yards, including a mere 40 passing yards across three quarterbacks. The Knights nearly pitched their first shutout since 2019, with NC A&T’s lone score coming on a late 17-yard touchdown run with 3:00 left in the fourth quarter.

The Knights allowed just 3.2 yards per play and racked up 11 tackles for loss, led by Sincere Edwards who recorded a team-high 3.5 TFLs. Rodney Lora added 3.0 TFLs and also scored a defensive touchdown after Nyjalik Kelly’s strip sack in the end zone.

Jayden McDonald, starting in place of the suspended Lewis Carter (targeting), made an immediate impact with a diving interception in the first quarter, which was one of three forced turnovers for the defense on the night.

Pass rush was especially disruptive, with two sacks and consistent pressure. Kelly led the edge group with a sack, QB hit, forced fumble, and four total tackles.

Top box score defensive performers:

  • DE Sincere Edwards – 5 tackles, 3.5 TFLs
  • DT Rodney Lora – 4 tackles, 3.0 TFLs, fumble recovery TD
  • DE Nyjalik Kelly – 4 tackles, sack, QB hit, forced fumble
  • LB Cole Kozlowski – team-high 7 total tackles
  • LB Jayden McDonald – INT

PFF Grades

To go beyond the basic box score, here’s a look at the Pro Football Focus (PFF) evaluation.

PFF grades evaluate player performance on a 0-100 scale, derived from a play-by-play analysis of each player’s actions on a -2 to +2 scale. An analyst assigns a grade for each event, with a 0 representing an “expected” or neutral play and positive or negative grades for performances better or worse than expected. These individual play grades are then converted into a final 0-100 scale, with 60 being average, 70+ good, 80s great, and 90+ elite.

PFF Grading Scale
90 and above – Elite
80 to 89 – Great
70 to 79 – Good
60 to 69 – Average to Above Average
50 – 59 – Below Average
49 and below – Poor

Overall Defensive Grades

Player Snap Count Grade
DE Nyjalik Kelly 12 94.5
DE Sincere Edwards 29 85.6
DT Horace Lockett 25 84.4
DT RJ Jackson Jr. 27 82.8
LB Cole Kozlowski 41 82.3
DT Rodney Lora 25 81.9
DE Malachi Lawrence 11 78.3
DE Aymeric Koumba 11 76.4
LB TJ Bullard 13 74.8
LB Jayden McDonald 42 73.6
DE Jamaal Johnson 26 72.5
CB DJ Bell 33 71.8
S Jaeden Gould 20 69.5
DT Tyreek’e Robinson 10 69.1
DT Jeffson Lafontant 5 69.1
CB Antione Jackson 37 69.0
DE Isaiah Nixon 36 69.0
DT John Walker 27 68.1
S Demari Henderson 32 66.9
DT Trenton Turner 5 65.8
LB Kam Moore 10 65.6
LB Keli Lawson 28 65.2
SCB Braeden Marshall 19 63.9
S Tony Williams 7 63.6
S Jaylen Heyward 21 63.5
CB Rukeem Stroud 14 61.8
SCB Jyaire Brown 5 61.7
S Phillip Dunnam 39 60.7
SCB Christian Peterson 15 57.5
CB Jayden Bellamy 18 56.9
CB Ja’Cari Henderson 22 54.3
S Jakob Gude 7 50.0
LB Troy Ford Jr. 10 45.2

Notes: In a blowout that was over after the first quarter, UCF gave its backups/reserves an opportunity to get some valuable in-game reps. A total of 33 defensive players saw action, including several true freshmen (Trenton Turner, Tony Williams, Rukeem Stroud) making their collegiate debuts.

Nyjalik Kelly only saw 12 snaps, but made a huge impact with four tackles and a strip sack that led to a Rodney Lora touchdown. UCF’s defensive line graded very well – Sincere Edwards, Horace Lockett, RJ Jackson Jr. and Lora earned 80+ grades.

At linebacker, first-game starter Lewis Carter was unavailable in the first half due to a targeting call during last week’s opener vs. Jacksonville State, but UCF opted to not play him in the second half. The depth chart backups – Cole Kozlowski and Jayden McDonald – took the lion’s share of reps and graded highly. Kozlowski led UCF with seven tackles, and McDonald had an early interception.

At safety, Demari Henderson got the start in place of Jayden Williams, who had the game-saving 4th-and-1 stop a week prior vs. Jax State. Scott Frost said Williams injured his thumb in that game and required surgery, but should return in time for the North Carolina game.

Here’s a breakdown of grades by position:

Defensive End (6)

Player Snap Count Grade
DE Nyjalik Kelly 12 94.5
DE Sincere Edwards 29 85.6
DE Malachi Lawrence 11 78.3
DE Aymeric Koumba 11 76.4
DE Jamaal Johnson 26 72.5
DE Isaiah Nixon 36 69.0

Defensive Tackle (7)

Player Snap Count Grade
DT Horace Lockett 25 84.4
DT RJ Jackson Jr. 27 82.8
DT Rodney Lora 25 81.9
DT Tyreek’e Robinson 10 69.1
DT Jeffson Lafontant 5 69.1
DT John Walker 27 68.1
DT Trenton Turner 5 65.8

Linebacker (6)

Player Snap Count Grade
LB Cole Kozlowski 41 82.3
LB TJ Bullard 13 74.8
LB Jayden McDonald 42 73.6
LB Kam Moore 10 65.6
LB Keli Lawson 28 65.2
LB Troy Ford Jr. 10 45.2

Safety (6)

Player Snap Count Grade
S Jaeden Gould 20 69.5
S Demari Henderson 32 66.9
S Tony Williams 7 63.6
S Jaylen Heyward 21 63.5
S Phillip Dunnam 39 60.7
S Jakob Gude 7 50.0

Corner (8)

Player Snap Count Grade
CB DJ Bell 33 71.8
CB Antione Jackson 37 69.0
SCB Braeden Marshall 19 63.9
CB Rukeem Stroud 14 61.8
SCB Jyaire Brown 5 61.7
SCB Christian Peterson 15 57.5
CB Jayden Bellamy 18 56.9
CB Ja’Cari Henderson 22 54.3

Pressure Tracker (combination of sacks, hits and hurries)

2 – Nyjalik Kelly
1 – Sincere Edwards, Rodney Lora, Isaiah Nixon, RJ Jackson Jr., Jamaal Johnson, Horace Lockett, Malachi Lawrence

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