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Welcome back to RotoBaller's top five quarterback performances of the week list. It was a strong week for quarterbacks across college football, so I'm excited to talk about some of the top ones from this second week of action.
It was a fun week of football, with some surprising results. Texas destroyed Michigan! Notre Dame lost to Northern Illinois! Penn State just barely beat Bowling Green! It was a week full of upsets and near upsets, including a last-minute field goal from Iowa State to beat rival Iowa.
Below are the top five quarterback performances from Week 2 of the college football season. These are judged through a combination of statistics, fantasy scoring, and game context, with consideration also given based on the team's offensive systems. Let's take a look at this week's top performances.
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Honorable Mentions
These guys didn't make the top five, but let's shout out a few other QBs from Week 2:
- Two players threw for over 400 yards but didn't make this list: Arkansas's Taylen Green and Wake Forest's Hank Bachmeier. This was a strong week and it was tough to justify putting two guys who threw just one touchdown each on it.
- Jaxson Dart had another big week, throwing for 377 yards. He looks like a Heisman frontrunner.
- Georgia's Carson Beck threw five touchdowns this week. Another strong showing from the Georgia QB.
- Five QBS had over 100 rushing yards: Washington State's John Mateer (197), Navy's Blake Horvath (122), Army's Bryson Daily (117), South Florida's Byrum Brown (108), and Jacksonville State's Tyler Huff (101). Horvath had three touchdown runs.
5. Kyle McCord - Syracuse
After a solid but unspectacular season at Ohio State last year, Kyle McCord transferred to Syracuse. He's got the Orange rolling so far, with the team looking like a legitimate threat to win the ACC.
After a strong debut against Ohio, McCord took things to another level in a win over ranked Georgia Tech. He was 32-for-46 for 381 yards and four touchdowns in the victory. He now has eight touchdowns and just one interception through the first two games of the season.
I'm not saying that McCord is a Heisman contender or anything, but he's finally showcasing what made Ohio State trust him as the team's starter in 2023. It just took a little longer (and a transfer) for him to get there.
4. DJ Lagway - Florida
With Graham Mertz out with a concussion, Florida turned to freshman DJ Lagway against Samford. And while the level of competition was definitely a factor in Lagway's success, he still deserves a lot of credit for how well he played in his first collegiate start.
This is the play and throw.
You don’t need to be a football savant to realize only a handful of players on earth can make this play and throw.
DJ Lagway is one of them . pic.twitter.com/lU60gtSEJX
— Neil W. Blackmon (@nwblackmon) September 8, 2024
Lagway was 18-for-25 for 456 yards and three touchdowns in Saturday's 45-7 win. He also added five carries for 16 yards. After a blowout loss to Miami to open the season, Lagway's performance was a breath of fresh air.
That doesn't mean we'll see him again this season, though. Florida brought Mertz in for a reason and likely doesn't have a lot to play for this season, so if he's cleared, he'll likely start. Being able to redshirt Lagway is too important for the team's future.
3. Garrett Nussmeier - LSU
There were a lot of questions about Garrett Nussmeier and if he could live up to the hype this year. He had big shoes to fill, as last year's LSU quarterback won the Heisman.
In the opener against USC, Nussmeier was...fine. He threw for 308 yards and two touchdowns but was picked off once and the Tigers lost 27-20. It was a disappointing outcome for a Tigers team with playoff aspirations.
This week against Nicholls State, Nussmeier was 27-for-37 for 302 yards and six touchdowns. He wasn't picked off and added 13 rushing yards. Yeah, yeah, it was against an FCS school, but it was still a six-touchdown game for the LSU QB. No one else threw for that many in Week 2.
2. Joe Fagnano - UConn
Look, the fact that UConn was playing Merrimack is relevant here, because an FBS team beating up on an FCS school isn't usually impressive. But as recently as 2021, UConn was losing games to Holy Cross, so good for the Huskies.
Quarterback Joe Fagnano was shut down in the team's season-opening 50-7 loss to Maryland, completing just half his passes for 149 yards, one touchdown, and one interception.
Just wanted to point out that Joe Fagnano has the number one QBR in ALL of College Football @joefagnano @Pawsarfblog @CalhounColonel @CoachJimMoraFB pic.twitter.com/wINhDcHSlN
— Steven Y. (@UConn_2018) September 8, 2024
Against Merrimack, he completed just 13 passes, but those 13 completions went for 328 yards and five touchdowns. Fagnano also added five carries for 38 yards and a score.
Fagnano isn't UConn's normal starter, as Nick Evers was out with a head injury. Did he do enough this week to earn the starting role going forward? Time will tell, but after next week's Duke game, the Huskies's schedule gets relatively soft.
1. Cade Klubnik - Clemson
People have been waiting to see Cade Klubnik explode, but it seemed like it might never happen, especially after how much he struggled against Georgia in the season opener. In that game, Klubnik threw for 142 yards, zero touchdowns, and one pick.
Clemson vs App State
Cade Klubnik Passing ChartsAre you telling me his only incompletions were throwaways? Yes. That's what I'm telling you.
99.6 QBR = A+++ grade pic.twitter.com/jgqMqkcHWf
— Morgan Thomas (@TheMorganTShow) September 8, 2024
This week's 66-20 win over App State was a completely different story, though. Klubnik looked unstoppable during the victory. He was 24-for-26 passing for 378 yards and five touchdowns. Oh, and he also added a pair of rushing scores, the first time in his career he's had multiple touchdown runs.
This game was the first 300-yard game for Klubnik since last October against Miami. It was also the most yardage of his career. It was his first multi-touchdown game since Nov. 11, when he threw four against Georgia Tech. Basically, it was the best game of his college career.
