Freshman All-Conference QB 'drawing interest' from major college football programs

One of the more accomplished quarterbacks at the FCS level is in the college football transfer portal, and some notable top-tier programs are taking a serious interest.

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One of the more accomplished young quarterbacks playing at the FCS level this past season is in the college football transfer portal, and already getting some serious interest from major programs looking for a new signal caller ahead of the 2026 season.

Mercer quarterback Braden Atkinson is drawing interest from five major college football programs, including one that was in the playoff a year ago, his representatives said to On3 Sports.

Atkinson is coming off a banner year throwing the football and will enter the 2026 campaign with three years of NCAA eligibility remaining, and some notable schools are lining up to potentially install him in their offense.

Marcus Freeman interested

The biggest name involved in the mix for Atkinson appears to be Notre Dame, according to the report.

The quarterback position doesn’t appear to be a primary need for the Fighting Irish in this transfer cycle, given the presence of CJ Carr, still the confirmed starter for 2026.

Carr is coming off a 2,741-yard passing season with 24 touchdowns and six interceptions.

Other areas of need for the Irish include wide receiver, defensive tackle, and defensive end, but the injury question is always paramount at quarterback, and having a player with more experience behind Carr would be a boost for Notre Dame’s depth chart.

Big 12 school looking into him

Coming off a disappointing 5-7 season, Baylor is expected to be in the market for a productive quarterback as Sawyer Robertson, college football’s fifth-leading passer, is poised to enter the NFL Draft.

Then after him, former top-40 recruit Walker White entered the transfer portal, leaving the Bears with Nate Bennett, who threw 7 passes this year, in addition to freshman Edward Griffin and incoming frosh Quinn Murphy.

Baylor’s quarterback room is in need of some experience and competition, and with head coach Dave Aranda’s job in some peril, he’ll need to find a solution there.

ACC hopefuls are involved

A trio of ACC teams, one of which is definitely in need of some extra help at the quarterback position, are also in the race for Atkinson, according to the report.

Syracuse is ready with Steve Angeli, the former Notre Dame transfer, at quarterback heading into next year, but is also in the market for a decent backup.

Another conference program in circulation for Atkinson appears to be Boston College, which is set to lose Grayson James via graduation, and Dylan Lonergan has entered the transfer portal.

That leaves Shaker Reisig, a little-used fixture who had 19 pass attempts this past season, putting head coach Bill O’Brien in a spot to find something more proven at QB1.

Cal is a notable addition in the conversation around Atkinson given the presence of star quarterback Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele as Tosh Lupoi embarks on his first season as head coach.

The former five-star signal caller, and the first freshman to start for the Golden Bears since Jared Goff, signaled to the school his intention to return for the 2026 season back in early December, according to ESPN’s Pete Thamel.

What he’s done on the field

Atkinson won the Jerry Rice Award as the national freshman player of the year at the FCS college football level after a productive true freshman year at Mercer.

The 6-foot-1, 215-pound quarterback was an unranked recruit, but emerged as the second-leading passer in the FCS, breaking Mercer program records with 3,596 passing yards and 34 touchdowns while completing 66 percent of his pass attempts.

In exposure against Auburn’s defense this year, the quarterback led two early touchdown drives and had 210 yards in a 62-17 defeat.

Mercer went 9-3 with Atkinson under center, earning the No. 6 seed in the FCS playoffs, and the quarterback placed fifth in the voting for the Walter Payton Award.

Head coach Mike Jacobs is headed to Toledo after going 20-6 at Mercer the last two seasons, a decision that inspired Atkinson to enter the portal.

(On3)