College football · 2026

Season grade leaderboard

Every FBS player judged play by play against FBS opponents, updated after every game. How is this calculated?

Showing every graded player. Qualified only

Defensive grades use box-score stats, not play-level attribution, so they carry lower confidence than offense grades. Why?

#PlayerGrade
1CJ HeardVanderbilt99.9
2Collin GillCharlotte99.8
3Tre FultonUNLV99.8
4Demari HendersonUCF99.7
5Alex McLaughlinWashington99.6
6Ta'Shawn JamesUCLA99.5
7Kingston LopaCalifornia99.5
8Javion WhiteHouston99.4
9Jo PierceUAB99.3
10Nick SessionNew Mexico State99.3
11Jackson LoweMiddle Tennessee99.1
12Kona MooreHawai'i99.1
13Jett JeffersonMississippi State99.0
14Red MorganAlabama98.9
15Tyren PolleySMU98.8
16Kevin Adams IIITulane98.7
17Caleb NixJacksonville State98.6
18Luke TalichNotre Dame98.6
19Jarvis LeeSMU98.4
20Reggie Powers IIIOklahoma98.4
21Armorion SmithToledo98.4
22Santana BannerMissouri98.4
23Braylon JohnsonWake Forest98.1
24De'Marcus PetersNew Mexico State98.0
25Jason MarshallEastern Michigan98.0
26Jardin GilbertMississippi State98.0
27Davaughn PattersonWake Forest97.8
28Simeon HarrisFresno State97.7
29Aydan WestMinnesota97.6
30Adon ShulerNotre Dame97.6
31Jordan CastellKentucky97.6
32Anthony PinnaceBall State97.3
33Devin VaughtMichigan State97.3
34Bo OnuBaylor97.3
35Kelley JonesMississippi State97.0
36Elliot Washington IIClemson97.0
37Marcus UptonBoston College97.0
38Joel BoamahMissouri State97.0
39Matthew JungWisconsin97.0
40Ore AdeyiNorthwestern96.6
41Max MustellAir Force96.6
42Peyton BowenOklahoma96.6
43Corey MyrickClemson96.6
44Kentrell WebbHouston96.6
45Kennedy UrlacherUSC96.0
46Christian PierceUSC96.0
47Ian FosterMemphis96.0
48Ja'Bril RawlsFlorida State96.0
49Devin SanchezOhio State96.0
50Brevin HamblinUtah State96.0

Top 50 of 1646. Pick a conference to see more.

How college grades work

College grades use the same method as the NFL: every play's expected points added, adjusted for how good the defense was, ranked against every other player at the position. The play data comes from CollegeFootballData.com, with ESPN's play feed saying who threw, ran and caught the ball. Four things are different.

  • Only games against FBS teams count. A power-conference offense against an FCS defense tells us little about either, so those games show in the game log but aren't graded.
  • Garbage time is left out: plays with a lead of more than 38 points in the 2nd quarter, 28 in the 3rd, or 22 in the 4th. Blowouts are common in college, and backups piling up numbers against backups would otherwise count like starters.
  • No win probability or completion-percentage data. The college play feed doesn't have them, so grades rest on opponent-adjusted EPA and success rate (the share of plays with positive EPA).
  • Grades and leaderboards use a minimum workload: every grade is a percentile among the players who meet it, so a few plays can't skew anyone else's. Per game against FBS teams, 14 dropbacks for quarterbacks, 10 touches for running backs, 5 targets for receivers and 3 for tight ends, counted over at least two games. Defenders need to have played in half their team's games.

Defensive grades use the same box-score impact score as the NFL's, minus forced fumbles, which the college box score doesn't record.