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
1Isaac ZayToledo99.1
2Zach MowchanEastern Michigan96.3
3Michael MolnarOhio92.2
4SaVeon BrownBuffalo91.8
5Dillon MooreWestern Michigan89.8
6Julian FoxToledo85.6
7Alex RochaSacramento State83.4
8Donelius JohnsonAkron83.4
9Gavin ForshaBall State83.4
10Grant LyonsMiami (OH)79.8
11Dorian PringleBowling Green78.5
12Justyce BettsWestern Michigan77.4
13Jack FriesOhio74.7
14Cashmire LewisBowling Green73.6
15Fata PulokaSacramento State70.1
16Rocco NichollKent State70.1
17Brett McCallaCentral Michigan70.1
18Mikeah WebsterBall State70.1
19Blayne MyrickMiami (OH)70.1
20Timmy HinspeterMassachusetts68.6
21Xavier WhiteCentral Michigan68.6
22Malcolm McCainMiami (OH)68.6
23Dwight NunooAkron67.0
24Zach BergmannBuffalo67.0
25Cincear LewisBall State61.8
26CJ YoungMiami (OH)60.5
27Domanick MoonWestern Michigan57.8
28Kaleb StewartBall State57.8
29Tim ThomasSacramento State55.9
30Joshua IseahMassachusetts55.9
31Elgin McDuffeyEastern Michigan51.5
32Quan Rhodes-McKeeKent State49.6
33Sayed AbuhamdehKent State47.7
34Eli CoppessMiami (OH)47.7
35Justin ThomasBall State47.7
36Trey RubinsteinKent State45.3
37Mayson HitchensCentral Michigan45.3
38Brenden AnesWestern Michigan45.3
39Stevie BraceyBuffalo45.3
40Tyler MartinMassachusetts45.3
41Jared BadieBall State42.7
42Barry ManningEastern Michigan42.7
43Tyler DikosMiami (OH)40.8
44Lucas SzymborskiBall State39.0
45Brock UihleinMiami (OH)36.9
46Bryce EliukEastern Michigan36.9
47Daunte CurtisAkron36.9
48Ivan Moore Jr.Sacramento State34.7
49Isaac PrinceToledo34.7
50AJ OdomBowling Green32.2

Top 50 of 75. 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.