College football · 2026

Season grade leaderboard

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

Qualified: played in at least half of their team's games against FBS teams. Show everyone

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

#PlayerGrade
1Austin RomaineTexas Tech97.6
2Sullivan SchlimgenIowa State95.9
3Ben RobertsTexas Tech94.7
4Jaden YatesHouston93.7
5Carson WillichIowa State92.8
6Isaiah PattersonWest Virginia91.8
7Tate RomneyOklahoma State91.4
8Ethan WesloskiOklahoma State90.5
9Jonathan ThompsonCincinnati90.5
10Gideon ESPN LampronColorado88.6
11Tackett CurtisUCF87.8
12Travion BarnesBaylor87.0
13Antwan Peek Jr.Cincinnati87.0
14Ben CutterWest Virginia86.3
15Johnathan HallUtah84.6
16Elijah EllissUtah84.6
17Martell HughesArizona State83.4
18Trey ReynoldsUtah83.4
19Latreveon McCutchinHouston77.4
20Mekhi MasonKansas State77.4
21Kyland ReedBaylor75.9
22Brandon Mack IIHouston74.7
23Gabe PowersKansas State74.7
24Rex Van WyheKansas State73.6
25Jahleel CulbreathUCF73.6
26Darien Whitaker Jr.Kansas State72.0
27Trey LathanKansas72.0
28Liona LefauColorado72.0
29Owen LongArizona State70.1
30Cam TorborWest Virginia70.1
31Cyrus PoluUtah67.0
32Cooper BlomstromArizona65.5
33Sione FotuHouston64.1
34Adam TrickTexas Tech64.1
35Taye BrownArizona61.8
36LaDamion GuytonTexas Tech61.8
37Isaiah ChisomOklahoma State60.5
38Lewis CarterUCF60.5
39Beau GoodwinIowa State59.3
40Tyler MartinezColorado59.3
41Damaine WilsonCincinnati59.3
42Willie Breland IIIIowa State55.9
43Ashton WoodsWest Virginia55.9
44John CurryTexas Tech54.0
45Cade UluaveBYU54.0
46Simeon ColemanCincinnati54.0
47Hudson HooperTCU51.5
48Isaiah GlaskerBYU51.5
49Jayden JenningsUCF49.6
50Kaleb BurnsBaylor45.3

Top 50 of 82. 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.