Winning week for QBC trainees as records fall, teams rise in rankings

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Stetson Bennett continues to shine. The former walk-on went 14-of-21 for 231 yards and two touchdowns and had 51 yards rushing in Georgia’s 34-10 road victory against #18 Auburn. The win moved the Bulldogs to the top of the FBS rankings. Through five games (and three starts), Stetson has completed 69.4% of his passes and has the second highest rating (206.55) in all of Division 1 football. Only fellow QBC quarterback Grayson McCall (234.28) has a better mark.

Said Georgia coach Kirby Smart of his quarterback’s performance: “Stetson played a hell of a game. Stetson made plays with his feet. I mean, you go back and look at that game and there probably are one, two, three, probably four big plays in the game that he makes with his athleticism. That’s a dynamic that he brings that forces them to defend us a different way.”

KJ Jefferson put on a show last Saturday, completing 25 of 35 passes for 326 yards and three touchdowns while also rushing 20 times for 85 yards and three more touchdowns in Arkansas’ 52-51 loss at Ole Miss. His six touchdowns accounted for topped all of Division 1 football last week and ties him for second-most in team history. KJ has led the Razorbacks to a #13 national ranking this season, and currently stands as the SEC’s #4-rated passer and the conference’s second-leading rusher at quarterback.

Chris Reynolds continues to impress for Charlotte. Earlier this season, Chris set the 49ers’ all-time marks for touchdown passes and passing yards and continued to impress on Saturday, going 21-of-27 for 203 yards and three touchdowns in a 45-33 win over FIU last week. A former walk-on, Reynolds is the highest-rated quarterback in C-USA and is ranked #14 in the nation with an offensive grade of 89.9, according to Pro Football Focus. His play through the first half of the season has earned two Conference USA Offensive Player of the Week awards and three games with four or more touchdowns. Charlotte is off to its best start in program history.

Another week, another win for Keon Howard, who has UT-Martin climbing the FCS rankings. Keon accounted for 269 yards of total offense, one passing touchdown and one rushing touchdown in the #17 Skyhawks’ 48-24 romp over Murray State. For his efforts, Keon earned his second OVC Offensive Player of the Week honors.

Matt McKay is making a difference at Montana State. The NC State transfer has keyed a surging Bobcats squad now ranked #10 in the latest FCS poll. Most recently, Matt completed 14 of 18 passes for two touchdowns and no interceptions and a 190.5 passer rating in a 45-7 victory over Cal-Poly — the team’s fifth straight win. On the season, Matt has completed 67.9% of his passes for 1344 yards, 13 touchdowns and just one interception and has added more than 200 yards rushing. He currently leads all FCS quarterbacks in passing efficiency.

Liam Welch has been re-writing the record books this season. Samford’s starting quarterback is the reigning SoCon Offensive Player of the Month and recently set SoCon records for passing yards (582) and total offensive yards (655) in a 55-48 overtime loss to then No. 15 ETSU. In that game, he set school records for completions (56) and attempts (73) and notched three touchdowns and a 76.7 accuracy percentage against a team that had been averaging just 7.7 points per game. Liam also added 73 yards on ten carries and scored on a two-point conversion. Through just five games, Liam ranks in the top ten in multiple FCS passing categories, including fifth in passing yards, ninth in passing touchdowns, and ninth in completion percentage.