CFB Zeitgeist Score
40
Mid-pack in the position cohort. Carried by pass tds at the 75th percentile.
Ben Finley
Below the discourse floor — the honest stats-only state.
2,475 PASS YDS · 19 PASS TD · 130 RUSH YDS
2026 Outlook
Returning to Akron for 2026
2026 Depth chart
Returning starter
Quarterback · Akron
Returning around him
- 37% of 2024 offensive production back (Moderate turnover)
- Transfer portal: -3 net (15 in / 18 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Akron · Last season: 5-7 · Talent rank #104 · 2026 recruiting class #128
QB · AKRON · MID-AMERICAN
Ben Finley
- 4
- #10
- 6-3 | 200 lb
- Phoenix, AZ
Heisman Heat
#474
<1% win probability
Fan Belief
Awaiting
Player-specific FI not yet ingested. Falls back to team mood below.
Respect Gap
Awaiting
Coming online with player-level FI.
Reality Gap
Awaiting
Coming online with player-level FI.
ACCOLADE PROBABILITY
Heisman
<1%
TOP QB AWARD
Davey O'Brien
—
CONSENSUS
All-American
—
Player Standing · 17 rungs
Tier 2 · StarterR06 · Starter
Starter. A locked-in starting role.
Not on team2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Development Trajectory · passing yards
2021–2025+8739%
Up 8739% from first season to most-recent.
Career Arc
HS
Recruit
—
CFB
College
3 teams
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Identity & Role
The durable bio layer: position, size, hometown, and roster role.
Recruiting Pedigree
How big the prospect was before college, and whether the later career arc beat that expectation.
| Class | Profile | Context |
|---|---|---|
| No recruiting profile is on file for this player. | ||
Transfer Arc
Portal movement changes role, context, and perception. This keeps that path in one place.
| Season | Move | Context |
|---|---|---|
| 2024 | California -> Akron | 3-star | 0.8300 | Immediate |
| 2023 | NC State -> California | 3-star | 0.8700 | Immediate |
Heisman Lens · 2024 Season · Final
Where the player landed at the end of the listed season — final nowcast rank, win/finalist/ballot probabilities, and the cleanest official Heisman placement on file.
HIGH CONFIDENCE· through week 16Heisman Futures
Not yet listed on major futures markets.
Achievements
- Program Benchmark 5.5% Program Benchmark Season leader for the program at the player's position across the headline volume metric (passing yards / rushing yards / receiving yards). Held by 5.5% of the 2025 pool. Team leader in passing yards (2475).
Selector Grid · 2025
AP—
FWAA—
AFCA—
WCFF—
SN—
SI—
Selector recognition fills in once the major honors lists (AP, FWAA, AFCA, Walter Camp, Sporting News, SI) are scraped and ingested.
Today’s Hot-Take
The Hot-Take engine fires when this player’s percentile profile crosses a defensible threshold (top 10% in a cohort, 100+ snap sample). When it’s quiet, the model is honoring its “must be defensible” rule.
Anti-Take
PENDINGThe contrarian read fires when the rules-engine detects a stat that complicates the Hot-Take. Quiet here means the model hasn’t found a defensible counter yet — not that one doesn’t exist.
The Room on Ben Finley
Fan sentiment ·
Belief Meter
—
Awaiting per-cohort signal
Top Take
“”
Trajectory
Per-cohort trajectory lands when historical bucket data is aggregated.
Cohort divergence map
- National · n=1
Rival Radar
How rival fanbases talk about Ben Finley
No rival-bucket mentions in the current season.
Signature Story
Awaiting candidate metric
He hasn't written his page yet — we'll start filling it in when there are enough snaps to rank against his peers.
Signature Moment
No signature moment on the ledger yet.
Returns once this player puts together a multi-game body of work — single-game flashes alone don't clear the bar.
Season Pace · Projection
Where the passing totals stand
Through 11g
2,475Pass yards
19Pass TDs
9INT
Per game
225Pass yards
2Pass TDs
1INT
Projected (13g)
2,925Pass yards
22Pass TDs
11INT
To hit 3,000-yard season (currently 2,475): needs 262.5/game over remaining 2.
To hit 4,000-yard season (currently 2,475): needs 762.5/game over remaining 2.
To hit 25 passing TDs (currently 19): needs 3/game over remaining 2.
To hit 30 passing TDs (currently 19): needs 5.5/game over remaining 2.
To hit 35 passing TDs (currently 19): needs 8/game over remaining 2.
What made this player interesting
The fast read on the thing that makes this player more than a generic stat line.
Ben Finley's story is about how role and output meet each other. For Akron, the card already shows enough current-season production to explain why he is on the serious-player board, and the next layer is determining whether the profile is just very good or actually distinctive.
2025 Season · Final
Traditional stats first. Advanced context underneath.
Last season
QB season snapshot
2025 season snapshot | final
2025 season snapshot | finalData: CFBD player stats + local Heisman modelPeer context: same position + same level
Player identity What kind of player is this?
30-second read
What kind of player is this?
High-volume passer against FBS QB peers. The quickest read is whether the profile wins on volume, efficiency, explosiveness, or rushing value.
2025 Season · Final
2025 season snapshot | final
Passing Efficiency
CMP
186 78th
ATT
362 89th
CMP%
51.4% 21st
Y/A
6.8 48th
Passing Production
YDS
2,475 84th
TD
19 89th
INT
9 12th
Rushing
CAR
69 78th
YDS
130 72nd
YPC
1.9 37th
TD
2 73rd
Game Log · Week-by-week
2025 season · 11 games
| Wk | Opp | CMP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | YPA | QBR | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 0-10vs Wyoming | 16/38 | 139 | 0 | 1 | 3.7 | 7.9 | |
| Wk 2 | L 0-68@ Nebraska | 7/21 | 54 | 0 | 0 | 2.6 | 36.2 | |
| Wk 3 | L 28-31@ UAB | 19/35 | 282 | 2 | 0 | 8.1 | 29.2 | Clean 2-TD game |
| Wk 4 | W 51-7vs Duquesne | 13/23 | 219 | 2 | 1 | 9.5 | 22.7 | |
| Wk 6 | W 28-22vs Central Michigan | 18/29 | 252 | 3 | 1 | 8.7 | 66.6 | 3 TD passes |
| Wk 7 | L 7-20vs Miami (OH) | 21/39 | 211 | 1 | 1 | 5.4 | 30.7 | |
| Wk 8 | L 28-42@ Ball State | 22/40 | 291 | 3 | 2 | 7.3 | 24.4 | 3 TD passes |
| Wk 9 | W 24-16@ Buffalo | 17/32 | 230 | 2 | 1 | 7.2 | 65.5 | |
| Wk 11 | W 44-10vs Massachusetts | 12/20 | 197 | 2 | 0 | 9.9 | 85.7 | |
| Wk 12 | L 35-42vs Kent State | 32/59 | 424 | 3 | 1 | 7.2 | 20.6 | Season-high 424 yds |
| Wk 13 | W 19-16@ Bowling Green | 9/26 | 176 | 1 | 1 | 6.8 | 16.8 | |
| Total | 186/362 | 2475 | 19 | 9 | 6.9 | 36.9 |
Season-by-season tables Career rows + per-season box score
Traditional history
Traditional Stats
Season rows up top, career context at the bottom.
Season context · Team result + system
2021NC State9-3HC: Dave Doeren · Balanced
2022NC State8-5HC: Dave Doeren · Balanced
2023California6-7HC: Justin Wilcox · Run-leaning
2024Akron4-8HC: Joe Moorhead · Pass-leaning
2025Akron5-7HC: Joe Moorhead · Balanced
| Season | Team | ||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Akron | 186 | 362 | 51.4% | 2,475 | 6.8 | 19 | 9 | 121.2 | -- | -- |
| 2024 | Akron | 211 | 387 | 54.5% | 2,581 | 6.7 | 16 | 9 | 119.5 | -- | -- |
| 2023 | California | 54 | 94 | 57.4% | 575 | 6.1 | 3 | 4 | 110.9 | -- | -- |
| 2022 | NC State | 65 | 123 | 52.8% | 741 | 6.0 | 3 | 3 | 106.6 | -- | -- |
| 2021 | NC State | 5 | 9 | 55.6% | 28 | 3.1 | 0 | 0 | 81.7 | -- | -- |
| Career | 5 loaded seasons | 521 | 975 | 53.4% | 6,400 | 6.6 | 41 | 25 | 117.3 | -- | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Akron | 69 | 130 | 1.9 | 2 | -- |
| 2024 | Akron | 80 | 51 | 0.6 | 0 | -- |
| 2023 | California | 12 | 8 | 0.7 | 0 | -- |
| 2022 | NC State | 6 | -8 | -1.3 | 0 | -- |
| 2021 | NC State | 2 | 7 | 3.5 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 5 loaded seasons | 169 | 188 | 1.1 | 2 | -- |
Advanced layer Usage, value, and context
Advanced metrics second
Advanced Metrics
Usage, value, and opponent-adjusted context.
Opponent-adjusted passing value. Positive numbers mean the quarterback is adding more value through the air than a neutral peer would in the same environment.
How much of the offense runs through the quarterback once passing and rushing responsibility are blended together.
Every percentile is compared against players at the same position and level, so an FBS quarterback is judged against FBS quarterbacks, not the whole sport.
The top tables stick to the stats fans already know from broadcasts and box scores. Advanced context is pushed underneath instead of replacing the basics.
Open full stat explorer
| Group | Metric | Value | Rank | Pct | Why it matters |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Passing | Passing yards | 2,475 | #64/382 | 84th pct | Volumevs FBS QB |
| Passing | Pass TD | 19 | #44/407 | 89th pct | Scoringvs FBS QB |
| Passing | Completions | 186 | #85/383 | 78th pct | Volumevs FBS QB |
| Passing | Completion % | 51.4% | #305/383 | 21st pct | Efficiencyvs FBS QB |
| Passing | Yards / attempt | 6.8 | #199/382 | 48th pct | Efficiencyvs FBS QB |
| Rushing | Rushing yards | 130 | #116/408 | 72nd pct | Volumevs FBS QB |
| Value | Passing WEPA | +0.16 | #165/200 | 18th pct | Opponent-adjusted passing value | 364 weighted playsvs FBS QB |
| Usage | Role share | 53.2% | #54/428 | 88th pct | Share of team offensevs FBS QB |
| Passing | Attempts | 362 | #47/407 | 89th pct | Volumevs FBS QB |
| Passing | Interceptions | 9 | #359/407 | 12th pct | Turnoversvs FBS QB |
| Rushing | Carries | 69 | #92/408 | 78th pct | Volumevs FBS QB |
| Rushing | Rushing LONG | 40 | #69/391 | 83rd pct | Metricvs FBS QB |
| Rushing | Rush TD | 2 | #113/408 | 73rd pct | Scoringvs FBS QB |
| Rushing | Yards / carry | 1.9 | #259/407 | 37th pct | Efficiencyvs FBS QB |
| Usage | Pass share | 93.7% | #35/428 | 92nd pct | Air-game usagevs FBS QB |
| Usage | Passing-down usage | 71.7% | #38/428 | 91st pct | Known-passing sharevs FBS QB |
| Usage | 3rd-down usage | 68.1% | #48/428 | 89th pct | Money-down loadvs FBS QB |
| Usage | 2nd-down usage | 53.9% | #52/428 | 88th pct | Middle-down loadvs FBS QB |
| Usage | 1st-down usage | 46.3% | #59/428 | 86th pct | Early-down loadvs FBS QB |
| Usage | Standard-down usage | 43.9% | #83/428 | 81st pct | Base-situation sharevs FBS QB |
| Usage | Rush share | 10.2% | #156/428 | 64th pct | Ground-game usagevs FBS QB |
| Value | Rushing WEPA | +0.27 | #58/140 | 59th pct | Opponent-adjusted rushing value | 33 weighted playsvs FBS QB |
| Ball Security | Fumbles lost | 4 | #237/258 | 9th pct | Turnoversvs FBS QB |
Player Standing
Universal 17-step ladder. Tier pills below; accolade streams nested.
AWAITING CLASSIFICATION
On-team2-deepStartingRecognizedEliteApex
AWAITING CLASSIFICATION · Rung None of 16
Why he’s here
Standing classification populates when honors, Heisman, and roster signals all align.
What moves him up
What moves him down
Accolade streams
Status—Awaiting tracker
Heisman model tracks the top FBS contenders weekly; this player hasn't entered the watch list yet.
Splits · Per-game
2025 season · 11 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | TD/g | YPA | INT/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home6g | 240 | 1.8 | 7.4 | 0.8 |
| Road5g | 207 | 1.6 | 6.4 | 0.8 |
Win vs Loss
| YDS/g | TD/g | YPA | INT/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wins5g | 215 | 2.0 | 8.4 | 0.8 |
| Losses6g | 234 | 1.5 | 5.7 | 0.8 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | TD/g | YPA | INT/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 193 | 1.3 | 6.3 | 0.7 |
| Weeks 8+5g | 264 | 2.2 | 7.7 | 1.0 |
Pocket and defense-quality (clean vs. pressure) splits are coming soon.
Savant · Box-rate percentiles
Where this profile ranks vs the QB cohort
40Mid-pack
Concern: completion % (5th).
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Pass Profile · Completion depth (PBP)
Where the throws are landing
Short
0–9 yds46%of completions
51 comp5.3 yds avg3 TD
Middle
10–19 yds40%of completions
44 comp13.8 yds avg
Deep
20+ yds14%of completions
15 comp32.5 yds avg2 TD
Overall 50.9% completion on 216 attempts · 15 deep completions averaging 32.5 yds.
Advanced Savant · QB · 2024
Percentile Card
Concerns: EPA / dropback.
P4G5All FBS
Advanced Savant
Opponent-adjusted advanced metrics with a cohort filter.
wepa_passing0.16Below (<p25) (n=94)
wepa_rushing0.27Low (p25–p50) (n=72)
Peer Comparator · Fingerprint match
Three closest profiles by box-rate percentile
Ben FinleyAkronTa'Quan RobersonBuffalo· 90% simMalik WashingtonMaryland· 83% simLogan FifeNew Mexico State· 81% sim
Pass TDs
Pass yards
Rush yards
Rush TDs
Yards / att
Interceptions
Fumbles lost
Completion %
Closest peers by overall box-score percentile profile at the same position.
Player DNA
The Pocket Passer
Balanced passer who operates within the system. Profile sits near league average across dimensions.
QB
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Ben Finley’s 2024 season.
Ben Finley
73%match
#2
Athan Kaliakmanis
NFL Rd 7
71%
#3
Gavin Hardison
70%
#4
Billy Wiles
64%
#5
CJ Ogbonna
58%
Matches Ben on
Total pass EPA (college ability)
Weight
Differs from Ben on
TD rate (higher)
Completion % (lower)
Rush yards / carry (higher)
Through 5 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Jordon Brookshire’s path through San Diego State.
Jordon Brookshire
87%match
#2
Zion Webb
86%
#3
J.D. Head
86%
#4
Billy Wiles
85%
#5
Cam Ransom
85%
Matches Jordon on
Yards per attempt
Completion %
Height
Supporting Cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Joe Moorhead
Pass share
48.7%
402 pass / 423 run
Plays / game
68.8
12 games
OL sack rate (allowed)
9.2%
370 dropbacks · PBP
Scheme: Balanced.
Coaching Lineage · 2021–2025
2 coaches2021
Oscar Rodriguez
Akron
2022era →
Joe Moorhead
Akron
2023
Joe Moorhead
Akron
2024
Joe Moorhead
Akron
2025
Joe Moorhead
Akron
Coaching transition mid-career: Oscar Rodriguez → Joe Moorhead. Worth noting in scheme + development context.
Bio · Recruiting · Transfer · Roster
Off-field context — switch tabs to drill into recruit profile, transfer arc, or roster timeline.
HometownPhoenix, AZ
Height6'3"
Weight200 lb
Class4
PositionQB
Jersey10
No fields populated yet.
No fields populated yet.
Current teamAkron
ConferenceMid-American
Joined2025
Career arc5 season(s)
Trophy Case · Detail
Every honor on the ledger, broken out by stream and selector.
No formal honors on the ledger yet
All-America, all-conference, player-of-the-week, watch-list, and postseason awards land here when they're earned. The absence is the signal: most players never collect formal honors, and that's its own kind of context.
Honors Timeline
Season-end distinction and week-by-week recognition on one timeline.
| Season | Honor | Scope | Team / Selector | Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| No formal honors on the ledger yet. All-America, all-conference, weekly awards, watch lists, and postseason trophies land here when they’re earned. | ||||
Heisman By Year
Modeled rank and official finish by season.
| Season | Team | Role | Latest Model | Forecast | Win | Finalist | Official Finish | Points | Context |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2024 | Akron | QB4 | #474 | #764 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W16 snapshot | Mid-American |
| 2023 | California | QB4 | #837 | #876 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W19 snapshot | Pac-12 |
| 2022 | NC State | QB4 | #656 | #604 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W20 snapshot | ACC |
| 2021 | NC State | QB4 | #881 | #685 | 0.0% | 0.0% | -- | -- | W20 snapshot | ACC |
Roster Timeline
Team, conference, and class by season.
| Season | Team | Conference | Pos | Class | Bio |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | Akron | Mid-American | QB | 4 | No. 10 | 6-3 | 200 lb | Phoenix, AZ |
| 2024 | Akron | Mid-American | QB | 4 | No. 10 | 6-3 | 200 lb | Phoenix, AZ |
| 2023 | California | Pac-12 | QB | 4 | No. 10 | 6-3 | 200 lb | Phoenix, AZ |
| 2022 | NC State | ACC | QB | 4 | No. 10 | 6-3 | 200 lb | Phoenix, AZ |
| 2021 | NC State | ACC | QB | 4 | No. 10 | 6-3 | 200 lb | Phoenix, AZ |