We are four full weeks into the college football regular season, and we continue to get more data points with Big Ten quarterbacks to see who is doing the best at their position, including Ohio State football’s new starter under center, Kyle McCord who just happened to orchestrate one memorable game-winning drive over Notre Dame on Saturday.
The metric we like to use more than any other is ESPN’s Total QBR rating. We find it to be a better indicator of performance because it takes into account many aspects others don’t, including the level of competition.
Buy Buckeyes TicketsSo what is Total QBR exactly? According to 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.”
OK, we’re game.
So where are McCord and Big Ten signal-callers like J.J. McCarthy of Michigan, Drew Allar of Penn State, Maryland’s Taulia Tagovailoa, and Cade McNamara of Iowa following Week 4 of the college football season? It now seems to be a clear race for the top spot between two old rival schools’ quarterbacks.
Here’s how things stack up after another week of the still relatively new college and Big Ten football season.
14
Cade McNamara , Iowa
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 29.5
Total Before Last Week | 30.4
Ranking Last Week | 13 (⇓ one spot)
13
Tayven Jackson, Indiana
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 33.5
Total Before Last Week | 55.5
Ranking Last Week | 7 (⇓ six spots)
12
Noah Kim, Michigan State
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 39.9
Total Before Last Week | 44.2
Ranking Last Week | 10 (⇓ two spots)
11
Heinrich Haarberg, Nebraska
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 40.7
Total Before Last Week | N/A
Ranking Last Week | N/A
10
Ben Bryant, Northwestern
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 41.8
Total Before Last Week | 25.2
Ranking Last Week | 14 (⇑ four spots)
9
Tanner Mordecai, Wisconsin
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 48.6
Total Before Last Week | 39.0
Ranking Last Week | 11 (⇑ two spots)
8
Hudson Card, Purdue
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 52.1
Total Before Last Week | 53.6
Ranking Last Week | 8 (⇔ no change)
7
Athan Kaliakmanis, Minnesota
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 57.3
Total Before Last Week | 49.2
Ranking Last Week | 9 (⇑ two spots)
6
Luke Altmyer, Illinois
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 57.3
Total Before Last Week | 56.6
Ranking Last Week | 6 (⇔ no change)
5
Taulia Tagovailoa, Maryland
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 70.7
Total Before Last Week | 66.4
Ranking Last Week | 5 (⇔ no change)
4
Gavin Wimsatt, Rutgers
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 76.2
Total Before Last Week | 77.4
Ranking Last Week | 4 (⇔ no change)
3
Drew Allar, Penn State
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 82.2
Total Before Last Week | 78.1
Ranking Last Week | 3 (⇔ no change)
2
Kyle McCord, Ohio State
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 87.7
Total Before Last Week | 87.2
Ranking Last Week | 1 (⇓ one spot)
1
J.J. McCarthy, Michigan
Inside the Numbers
Total QBR | 91.0
Total Before Last Week | 85.7
Ranking Last Week | 1 (⇑ one spot)
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