NCAAF 25 top college football quarterbacks ranked by Total QBR through Week 3
In today’s football world there are an insane number of advanced stats to help figure out just how good or valuable certain players are and how loaded teams may be.
One of those numbers when it comes to quarterback play is Total QBR which is done by ESPN. Now what exactly is Total QBR?
Per ESPN – Adjusted Total Quarterback Rating “values the quarterback on all play types on a 0-100 scale adjusted for the strength of opposing defenses faced.”
Alright, so we know with just three or four games in the book the sample size is small, but with that in mind, how do the top 25 rank to date?
Sam Hartman had another solid showing for Notre Dame but fell from the top-five this week. Who jumped him? And who is the new No. 1?
Here are the top 25 following the conclusion of Week 3:
Drew Allar - Penn State
2023 QBR: 78.1
Last week’s ranking: 11th – down 14 spots
Analysis: Penn State didn’t have any issues with their road trip to Illinois but Allar had some struggles. Not to write it off but that’s been the case for many against the Illinois secondary in recent years.
Darren Grainger - Georgia State
2023 QBR: 78.3
Last week’s ranking: Wasn’t in top 25
Grainger makes his debut in the top 25 this week after a stellar showing against Charlotte. He completed 27 of 33 passes for an absurd 466-yards and three touchdowns as Georgia State moved to 3-0.
Andrew Peasley - Wyoming
2023 QBR: 78.8
Last week ranking: 25th – up 2 spots
Analysis: Peasley did not play in Wyoming’s road loss to Texas due to an undisclosed injury but his performance to date still scored him two spots higher this week.
Jalon Daniels - Kansas
2023 QBR: 79.2
Last week ranking: 6th, down 16 spots
Analysis: Daniels didn’t have his finest performance as Kansas took down a poor Nevada team on the road. He completed 21-27 passes for 298-yards but did not throw a touchdown pass.
Shedeur Sanders - Colorado
2023 QBR: 80.0
Last week ranking: 13th – down 8 spots
Analysis: Last week we were quick to point out that things were about to get a whole lot more difficult for Sanders and Colorado. What we didn’t expect was that they’d be anywhere near as difficult as they were Saturday night against Colorado State.
Cardell Williams - Tulsa
2023 QBR: 80.4
Last week ranking: Not in top 25
Analysis: It’s not that his numbers jump off the page at you but perhaps as we sit just a few games into things, the fact he’s played some highly rated teams in Washington and now Oklahoma prop up his schedule difficulty significantly enough. Williams has thrown two touchdowns and three interceptions this year against FCS opponents.
Chandler Rogers - North Texas
2023 QBR: 81.4
Last week ranking: Not in top 25
Analysis: Rogers threw for 313-yards and two touchdowns in leading North Texas to their first victory of 2023 against Louisiana Tech.
Jayden Daniels - LSU
2023 QBR: 83.1
Last week ranking: Not in top 25
Analysis: Daniels spearheaded LSU‘s impressive SEC-opening victory at Mississippi State, completing an absurd 30-34 passes and throwing for two scores along the way.
Bo Nix - Oregon
2023 QBR: 83.2
Last week ranking: 21st – up 4 spots
Analysis: Nix threw for three touchdowns and 247-yards in Oregon‘s dominating victory over Hawai’i. Will he put up similar numbers against Colorado next week?
Cameron Ward - Washington State
2023 QBR: 83.8
Last week ranking: Not in top 25
Analysis: Ward, the third of seven Pac-12 quarterbacks we’ll see in the top 25, averaged over 12-yards per attempt as Washington State scored nine touchdowns against Northern Colorado.
Drake Maye - North Carolina
2023 QBR: 83.8
Last week ranking: 12th – down 3 spots
Analysis: Maye has widely been regarded as the best quarterback in the nation (not named Caleb Williams) but has had struggles in 2023. Through three games he’s thrown as many interceptions as touchdowns (four each) for North Carolina.
Garrett Shrader - Syracuse
2023 QBR: 84.0
Last week ranking: 15th – up 1
Analysis: Shrader didn’t throw particularly well against Purdue but did rush for 195-yards and four scores as Syracuse handled the Boilermakers with relative ease.
DJ Uiagalelei - Oregon State
2023 QBR: 84.3
Last week ranking: 2nd – down 11
Analysis: Uiagaleilei passed for 284 yards and a touchdown and ran for a touchdown for the third consecutive game as he and Oregon State now get ready to take on undefeated Washington State.
Jaxson Dart - Ole Miss
2023 QBR: 85.7
Last week ranking: 20th – up 8 spots
Analysis: Dart completed just 10-18 passes for 251-yards as Ole Miss beat Georgia Tech, but his legs were incredible as he piled up 136-ground yards and two scores Saturday.
J.J. McCarthy - Michigan
2023 QBR: 85.7
Last week ranking: 1st – down 11
Analysis: At the end of the day the totals were right, as was the final score. However, McCarthy took a significant hit after throwing a pair of first half interceptions against Bowling Green.
Dante Moore - UCLA
2023 QBR: 86.2
Last week ranking: 19th – up 9
Analysis: The freshman sensation wasn’t relied upon too much as UCLA had a field day with North Carolina Central. How good is Moore, though? We’ll soon find as he has a date with the Pac-12’s most physical team next week (Utah).
Kyle McCord - Ohio State
2023 QBR: 87.2
Last week ranking: 11th – up 2
Analysis: McCord and Ohio State had their best showings of the year in a 63-10 drubbing of Western Kentucky. It comes at a good time for them as a trip to Notre Dame awaits this weekend.
Riley Leonard - Duke
2023 QBR: 87.5
Last week ranking: 10th – up 2
Analysis: It was a ho-hum throwing performance for Leonard against Northwestern. He threw for 219-yards while completing 75% of his passes. Oh, and he ran for 97-yards and two scores in the victory.
Jordan Travis - Florida State
2023 QBR: 87.9
Last week ranking: 9th – up 2
Analysis: Travis had an injury scare late in the first half Saturday’s game at Boston College. He returned to action in the second half and finished with a 15-25 day passing for 212-yards and two scores. Things get real interesting this week as Travis and Florida State head to Clemson.
Sam Hartman - Notre Dame
2023 QBR: 89.4
Last week ranking: 5th – down 1
Analysis: Hartman’s deep ball abilities was on display Saturday as he connected for 75 and 76-yard touchdown passes in Notre Dame’s 41-17 victory over Central Michigan. He slipped a spot in the rankings but is still playing at an extremely high level as Notre Dame is set to welcome Ohio State to town.
Tyler Van Dyke - Miami
2023 QBR: 89.6
Last week ranking: 8th – up 3
Analysis: Van Dyke is playing to his high hype in 2023 as he’s completed more than 75% of his pass attempts while averaging 11-yards per attempt. He was on his game again Friday night, completing 19-23 passes against Bethune Cookman.
Caleb Williams - USC
2023 QBR: 91.9
Last week ranking: 3rd – down 1
Analysis: The only thing that can slow down Caleb Williams and USC‘s offense so far finally came this past weekend – an off week.
Dillon Gabriel - Oklahoma
2023 QBR: 92.5
Last week ranking: 16th – up 13
Analysis: Gabriel was lights out Saturday against Tulsa, throwing for five scores and 421-yards. He’s up to 11 touchdown passes and over 900-yards on the year as Oklahoma is looking more and more like they’re closer to a playoff contender than they are last year’s squad.
Conner Weigman - Texas A&M
2023 QBR: 92.8
Last week ranking: 7th – up 5
Analysis: Weigman completed over 86% of his passes, threw for a score, and ran for another against Louisiana-Monroe as the schedule now flips to the SEC slate for the Aggies.
Michael Penix - Washington
2023 QBR: 94.2
Last week ranking: 4th – up 3
Analysis: We’re not even a quarter of the way through the regular season but with what we’ve seen it certainly feels like there is something special brewing not just for Penix but for Washington as a whole.
