Ranking the Top 10 Returning College Football Quarterbacks Through Week 5

The midway point of the 2026 college football season is nearly upon us and each matchup is starting to mean a little bit more. That also means the quarterbacks of the world are under an ever increasingly bright spotlight, for better or for worse.

Last week, we focused on the transfers and frankly, in this era of college football, that tends to be the case. We all give those who have changed schools a bit more attention. So let’s give a little love to the returners, including the homegrown products who have gotten better each week with the team that they spent at least the 2025 season with, and perhaps even longer than that. And an important distinction: Players who did not start at least one game with their current team last season are not eligible for this list. (Sorry, Keelon Russell.)

Here are our top 10 returning quarterbacks so far in 2026:

10. Noah Fifita, Arizona

Stats: 73.8% completion rate, 1,415 yards, 16 total touchdowns, three interceptions, 166.3 efficiency rating

The four-year starter could be in for the best season of his career with the Wildcats, looking impressively accurate early on and establishing himself as more of a running threat. And he’s being tasked to do quite a bit, with more than 30 attempts in every game, most among Big 12 quarterbacks. But he’s also leading the conference in completion percentage, yards and touchdowns, so Arizona seems to have the right idea leaning on his arm. So long as he can keep the ball out of harm’s way, the Wildcats should be able to stick around with the Big 12’s elite.

9. Devon Dampier, Utah

Stats: 70.3% completion rate, 896 yards, 11 total touchdowns, one interception, 172.5 efficiency rating

Dampier has flown somewhat under the radar so far, largely because his Utes haven’t been tested. Although it’s a small sample size, his numbers are significantly up in some key categories. Completion percentage is up nearly seven full percentage points from 63.5% to 70.3%. Yards per attempt is also up to a career high from 7.5 in 2025 to 8.9 in ’26. Dampier will always be a threat with his legs, but right now he’s a real threat as a passing quarterback, which bodes well for Utah as the schedule gets tougher.

8. Kevin Jennings, SMU

Stats: 75.0% completion rate, 1,588 yards, 16 total touchdowns, five interceptions, 183.9 efficiency rating

When you’ve played as many snaps as Jennings has, you are what you are as a quarterback. And luckily for SMU, that’s a player who can put up serious numbers, as his 317.6 yards per game are second in the Power 4 and he’s tied for fifth in passing touchdowns with 14. He also just tends to cough up the football in critical moments, with six giveaways across five starts this season. The Mustangs will live with that if he can continue to put up the kind of numbers he has thus far, which have been far more efficient (up 8.9% completion rate) even while pushing the ball downfield (10.2 yards per attempt).

Kevin Jennings finds Randy Pittman Jr. to extend the lead 🐎

📺 @TheCW_Sports x @SMUFB pic.twitter.com/6myR7JQAun
— ACC Football (@ACCFootball) October 3, 2026

7. Conner Weigman, Houston

Stats: 67.4% completion rate, 1,186 yards, 17 total touchdowns, one interception, 166.8 efficiency rating

What’s impressed most about the Cougars’ veteran QB is his adaptability. After three straight games where he was lights out as a thrower (10 touchdowns, no INTs, average efficiency rating of 209.9), he struggled against UCF. Through the first two-and-a-half quarters, he was 11 for 21 and Houston dug itself into a 17–0 hole. So the Cougars turned to Weigman’s legs and he delivered three straight rushing touchdowns on three consecutive drives, allowing Houston to complete the comeback. He’s now been responsible for 17 touchdowns this season, tied for fourth among FBS quarterbacks.

6. Jayden Maiava, USC

Stats: 68.8% completion rate, 1,744 yards, 17 total touchdowns, three interceptions, 168.1 efficiency rating

Maiava has come back down to earth after a scintillating start to the season, and that’s been illustrated by his last two games against USC’s former Pac-12 brethren. He’s completed just 57.9% of his throws in those games with three touchdowns and two interceptions. That’s somewhat of a cause for concern for Maiava, who’s largely been more efficient and better protected the football than he has in seasons past, but the road ahead remains perilous for the Trojans, and he’ll have to play better for the team to keep the train on the tracks.

what a throw from maiava pic.twitter.com/2ETjAN1uqk
— wok (@wokdior) October 4, 2026

5. Kamario Taylor, Mississippi State

Stats: 66.2% completion rate, 1,450 yards, 18 total touchdowns, four interceptions, 176.4 efficiency rating

It was only a matter of time until Taylor, still a work in progress, showed that he still has a ways to go to become the best quarterback in college football. And against Alabama’s revamped defense, under pressure to try to go toe-to-toe with Russell, the Bulldogs sophomore stumbled more than once. Two turnovers on the first two drives, including a pick-six, set the tone and there was too much inconsistency and inaccuracy from there on out. The numbers and the upside will still be there this season, but it may be time to temper expectations for exactly what he and Mississippi State can pull off this season.

4. Trinidad Chambliss, Mississippi

Stats: 70.8% completion rate, 1,222 yards, 12 total touchdowns, three interceptions, 156.3 efficiency rating

Any of the next four quarterbacks have a claim to No. 1, and while Chambliss may be the best pick of the four on a single drive, his body of work hasn’t been as sharp this season. That’s in part due to the strength of competition (three ranked teams in four weeks) and Ole Miss’s underwhelming defense, meaning more lands on the 24-year-old’s shoulders. But he also has five turnovers in four games, including a costly fumble when Ole Miss was trading blows with Florida in the second half in the Swamp. Chambliss will have a hefty workload from here on out, and the Rebels will need him to take risks, but within reason.

3. CJ Carr, Notre Dame

Stats: 71.0% completion rate, 1,197 yards, 16 total touchdowns, one interception, 185.0 efficiency rating

There seems to be plenty of Irish detractors out there because Notre Dame isn’t “dominating” lesser competition so far, despite winning their four Power 4 games by an average of 23.75 points. And Carr is deserving of zero criticism. His completion percentage is up 4.4 points (66.6 to 71%), he’s thrown just a single interception and he’s taking fewer sacks (just two in four games), showing an ability to evade pressure and even thrive while under duress. Notre Dame’s tests are still to come and Carr will be judged solely on his play in those games, but the eye test so far suggests he’s grown significantly as a quarterback in Year 2.

CJ Carr on the money to Jordan Faison 🎯 pic.twitter.com/UWqY8DPci6
— ESPN College Football (@ESPNCFB) October 3, 2026

2. Gunner Stockton, Georgia

Stats: 75.5% completion rate, 1,049 yards, 13 total touchdowns, one interception, 202.0 efficiency rating

Saturday looms as the first real metric of Stockton that we’ll have seen yet in 2026, and not the Oklahoma game, despite the Sooners’ solid defense doesn’t count. Georgia picked up three first-half takeaways and Stockton didn’t need to be great (14 for 25, 171 yards, one touchdown, one interception) when often starting with great field position. He’s been ridiculously efficient through five games and Georgia’s average margin of victory (+32.5) is the highest in the country. Now it’s time to prove it against Alabama.

1. Julian Sayin, Ohio State

Stats: 72.5% completion rate, 1,530 yards, 15 total touchdowns, one interception, 192.0 efficiency rating

Since the second half against Texas, Sayin has played like a man possessed, smashing through the 300-yard barrier twice in three games and throwing nine touchdowns to zero interceptions. He and Jeremiah Smith are operating on another plane of existence, combining for 423 yards and six scores in the last two routs of Illinois and Iowa. Both could very well end up in New York City for the Heisman Trophy ceremony, but only one thing matters for Sayin: winning in the big games. He has one in two weeks against Indiana and could do wonders in building confidence for the Buckeyes’ inevitable playoff run.

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