College Football: Highest-graded players at every position ahead of Week 3

• Ole Miss' Jaxson Dart leads the way among Power Four QBs: Dart has six touchdown passes and only seven incompletions thus far.

• Air Force's Peyton Zdroik is a force on the interior: Zdroik led the nation in PFF overall grade last year and already boasts the highest PFF run-defense grade in college football this year (92.0).

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Estimated Reading Time: 5 minutes

QUARTERBACK

Power Four: Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss Rebels — 93.2

Dart has been nearly perfect so far this season, posting a 92.3% adjusted completion percentage. He has six touchdown passes and only seven incompletions thus far.

Group of Five: Ben Wooldridge, Louisiana Ragin’ Cajuns — 90.6

Wooldridge came out firing in Week 1 with three touchdown passes, and he experienced three drops that would’ve boosted his stats even more. This puts his adjusted completion percentage at 89.6%, which ranks third in the nation.

RUNNING BACK

Power Four: Brashard Smith, SMU Mustangs — 91.5

Smith has already forced 17 missed tackles — third most among all college football running backs. He has also caught all seven passes thrown his way, gaining 47 receiving yards to go with his 254 rushing yards.

Group of Five: Ashton Jeanty, Boise State Broncos — 91.3

Jeanty could find himself at the Heisman Trophy ceremony if he keeps up this pace. There’s no debate for now as to who the best running back in the nation is, as Jeanty is currently leading in yards (459), touchdowns (nine) and broken tackles (21).

WIDE RECEIVER

Power Four: Tre Harris, Ole Miss Rebels — 93.8

Harris and Dart are the best WR-QB duo in college football right now. Harris has gone for more than 130 receiving yards in both of Ole Miss' games and has generated a 153.8 passer rating when targeted.

Tre Harris

179 yards, 8 catches, 2 TDs

Fifth year senior season getting started on a good note. Harris is in conversation as a top-10 WR of 2025 class. pic.twitter.com/UBhJ0qGGn0

— Elite Drafters (@Elite_Drafters) September 1, 2024

Group of Five: Skyler Bell, UConn Huskies — 89.3

Bell has not been targeted all that often, but he has certainly made the most of those looks, averaging 35.1 yards per catch. His 5.47 yards per route run ranks first among all wide receivers in college football.

TIGHT END

Power Four: Oronde Gadsden II, Syracuse Orange — 90.3

Gadsden has been Kyle McCord’s favorite target so far, which has invigorated the Syracuse offense. His 201 receiving yards and 10 first-down pickups both rank second at his position to Bowling Green's Harold Fannin Jr.

Group of Five: Harold Fannin Jr, Bowling Green Falcons — 94.1

Fannin almost single-handedly beat Penn State in Week 2, going for 137 yards. He ranks first among tight ends in total yards (204) and yards after the catch (131).

OFFENSIVE TACKLE

Power Four: Logan Brown, Kansas Jayhawks — 90.3

Brown has slipped up only once across 51 pass-blocking snaps this season, allowing one pressure on his way to a 99.0 pass-blocking efficiency score.

Group of Five: Lucas Scott, Army Black Knights — 89.5

Army runs the ball with great frequency, and Scott has helped the offense do so effectively, posting an 85.2 run-blocking grade.

OFFENSIVE GUARD

Power Four: Joshua Gray, Oregon State — 86.9

Gray has been perfect in pass protection thus far. On 49 pass-blocking snaps, he has not given up a single pressure.

Group of Five: Michael McAninch, Air Force Falcons — 92.8

Air Force is another team that primarily runs the ball, which puts a lot of pressure on their guards to pave the way. McAninch has been dominant in that facet, earning a 94.0 PFF grade.

CENTER

Power Four: Connor Tollison, Missouri Tigers — 91.0

Tollison has been the leader of Missouri's offensive line for a few years now and has improved each season. His 87.0 PFF pass-blocking grade in 2024 is the main reason they rank in the top five in that metric as a team.

Group of Five: Jacob Gardner, Colorado State — 86.7

Gardner hasn’t allowed a sack in more than two years and is currently sporting a 100% pass-blocking efficiency score.

INTERIOR DEFENSIVE LINEMAN

Power Four: Thomas Collins, Oregon State — 92.3

Collins has been an elite pass-rusher, already racking up eight quarterback pressures on only 41 pass-rushing snaps.

Group of Five: Peyton Zdroik, Air Force Falcons — 94.5

Zdroik led the nation in PFF overall grade last year and is only getting better. He has five run stops and one forced fumble on the year, which has earned him the highest run-defense grade in college football (92.0).

EDGE DEFENDER

Power Four: Princely Umanmielen, Ole Miss Rebels — 91.2

Umanmielen has not played a ton but has been dominant when on the field. On only 41 pass-rushing snaps, he’s recorded seven pressures — including three hits and one sack.

Group of Five: William Whitlow Jr., Memphis Tigers — 86.7

Whitlow has put up standout numbers in two games, tallying seven pressures, three tackles, two sacks and one forced fumble.

William Whitlow Jr. With the Seessel’s Sack for Memphis Tigers against N AL #gotigersgo pic.twitter.com/R1TulEOVBZ

— EyesOnMemphisTigers (@EyesOfTigerFan) September 1, 2024

LINEBACKER

Power Four: Jay Higgins, Iowa Hawkeyes — 90.9

Higgins could be the next great linebacker to come out of Iowa, as this would mark his second straight season of earning a near-90.0 PFF overall grade. He has already forced two turnovers, one being an interception.

Group of Five: Jordan Kwiatkowski, Central Michigan Chippewas — 89.4

Kwiatkowski has been tremendous in coverage, allowing only one catch on three targets — and the reception actually led to a tackle for a loss. He broke up one of the other two passes, as well.

CORNERBACK

Power Four: Jeremiah Wilson, Houston Cougars — 89.1

Wilson has played 27 snaps in both coverage and run defense, where he has racked up one interception, one pass breakup and two run stops.

First INT of the season for @Jerem14hW 🫡#GoCoogs pic.twitter.com/3JRlZ0smFu

— Houston Football (@UHCougarFB) September 9, 2024

Group of Five: Brian Blades, FIU Panthers — 90.4

Blades’ 90.8 PFF coverage grade leads the FBS, and he has not allowed a single yard after the catch. Across seven targets, Blades has surrendered only two catches for 12 yards.

SAFETY

Power Four: Robert Spears-Jennings, Oklahoma Sooners — 91.4

Spears-Jennings is a leader of a very good Oklahoma secondary that has earned a top-15-ranked 87.7 team defensive grade. He has recorded seven tackles without a whiff to go with an interception and a forced fumble on only 86 snaps played.

Group of Five: Jahron Manning, Old Dominion Monarchs — 86.2

Manning logged three tackles, two interceptions and one pass breakup in Week 2, helping boost his PFF grade to this point. Opposing quarterbacks have a measly 39.6 passer rating when targeting the Old Dominion safety through two weeks.