FSU Football's Ashton Daniels Graded Among the Country's Best

Florida State quarterback Ashton Daniels put on a historic performance last Saturday, rushing for five touchdowns. It's the most by any player in program history in a single game, helping the Seminoles defeat the Cavaliers 38-7 at Doak Campbell Stadium.

Daniels’ record-setting afternoon not only left the Florida State faithful in awe, but PFF ranked him among its highest-graded Power Four quarterbacks for Week 5.

Daniels Earns Fourth-Highest PFF Grade Among Power Four Quarterbacks

Oct 3, 2026; Tallahassee, Florida, USA; Florida State Seminoles quarterback Ashton Daniels (14) runs for a touchdown during the second half against the Virginia Cavaliers at Doak S. Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Myers-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Daniels earned a 90.0 grade from PFF, placing him fourth among Power Four quarterbacks in Week 5. Only Wake Forest’s Gio Lopez (91.6), Louisville’s Lincoln Kienholz (90.8) and Georgia’s Gunner Stockton (90.1) finished ahead of him.

Highest Graded Quarterbacks from Week 5🎯 pic.twitter.com/uejx9sUtDD
— PFF College (@PFF_College) October 5, 2026

He was one of four quarterbacks on PFF’s list to reach the 90.0 mark, finishing ahead of Notre Dame’s CJ Carr and Missouri’s Austin Simmons, who each earned an 89.3.

Daniels rushed for a career-high 136 yards, including an 81-yard touchdown run, while his five rushing scores accounted for every Florida State touchdown in the victory.

He broke the previous single-game program record of four rushing touchdowns in a single game, shared by Dalvin Cook, Greg Allen, Antone Smith and Cam Akers.

Cook did it twice in 2016, against Clemson and Syracuse. Daniels’ fifth score against Virginia moved him ahead of all four former Seminole running backs, giving the quarterback sole possession of the record.

Daniels also broke FSU’s single-game record for rushing touchdowns by a quarterback, surpassing Kelly Lowrey’s three against LSU in 1983.

Daniels Sparked FSU's Offensive Surge in Virginia Win

Oct 3, 2026; Tallahassee, Florida, USA; Florida State Seminoles running back Ousmane Kromah (32) runs the ball against Virginia Cavaliers safety Brandyn Hillman (6) during the second half at Doak S. Campbell Stadium. Mandatory Credit: Melina Myers-Imagn Images | IMAGN IMAGES via Reuters Connect

Florida State trailed 7-0 after the first quarter before Daniels helped ignite an offense that scored 38 unanswered points. On the Seminoles’ first scoring possession, he connected with Micahi Danzy for 22 yards and Quintrevion Wisner for 48 yards before capping the 98-yard drive with a 4-yard touchdown run.

Daniels added a 3-yard rushing touchdown on the next possession, giving FSU a lead it never surrendered. After the Seminoles entered halftime ahead 17-7, he scored twice more in the third quarter, including that 81-yard run that extended the lead to 31-7.

ASHTON DANIELS GOES 81 YARDS 🤯

📺 ESPN2 x @FSUFootball pic.twitter.com/Yj0zcEUjcO
— ACC Football (@ACCFootball) October 3, 2026

"Coming into it, I didn’t really think I was going to be running the ball like that,” Daniels said after the win. “But it ended up happening.”

He finished with 136 rushing yards and completed 12 of 19 passes for 183 yards, accounting for 319 of Florida State’s 464 total yards.

Daniels and the Seminoles will look to build on that performance on the road this Friday, October 9, against the Louisville Cardinals. The game is set to kick off at 7:00 p.m.

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