Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | CMP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | YPA | QBR | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 20-33@ Houston | 29/48 | 376 | 1 | 0 | 7.8 | — | |
| Wk 2 | L 24-35vs Texas Tech | 31/51 | 413 | 2 | 1 | 8.1 | 68.7 | Season-high 413 yds |
| Total | 60/99 | 789 | 3 | 1 | 7.9 | 68.7 |
#2
Braden Atkinson
Sophomore quarterback for Oregon State. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
6′1″ · 208 lb · Raleigh, NC · Rolesville
Returning to Oregon State for 2026
The numbers
789
passing yards · 2026
3 TD · 1 INT · 8 per attempt
2 games into 2026 so far
The play that turned itSwung Texas Tech from 37% to 82% to win.Texas Tech at Oregon State · 35-24
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
2 quarterback for Oregon State. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Delaware in 2017.
- Braden Atkinson named Oregon State QB1 (Aug 25) Reported
How he plays
Pushes it downfield on every look.
EPA / dropback: 73rd percentile.
The full scouting readBuzz vs Tape
Rivals warmer than fans
The rival fanbase is unexpectedly warm on him relative to his own.
14.8own fans
70rival fans
Also worth knowing:
In Their Words
92 windows · 2026 fan posts
mercer×496.5braden×387.9fcs×290.9transfer×24.5oregon×14.8
“Braden Atkinson (FCS Mercer transfer) wins Oregon State quarterback competition over returning starter Maalik Murphy”
reddit/CFB · fan post, verbatim
Braden Atkinson
Pushes it downfield on every look. One game to point at: 399 pass yds, 4 rec yds against Texas Tech — Week 2, 2026.
789 PASS YDS · 3 PASS TD · -31 RUSH YDS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- game log
His career
2017
- Signed with Delaware3-star out of The Boys' Latin School
2025
- Signed with Mercerout of Rolesville
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
Oregon State
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Badges
- Program Benchmark
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
2026Oregon State0-2HC: JaMarcus Shephard · Pass-heavy, fast tempo
Where this profile ranks vs the QB cohort
Box-score + play-by-play EPA percentiles
Elite: pass yards (81st percentile). Concern: success rate (27th percentile).
Real play-by-play efficiency
Box-score rates (7)
Season trend
EPA / dropback— first qualifying season
Success rate— first qualifying season
Explosive rate— first qualifying season
Sack rate— first qualifying season
Interception rate— first qualifying season
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season. Most bars are box-score rates; EPA / success-rate bars are computed from real play-by-play (offense only — no defensive EPA model exists yet).
Passing profile
Pass Profile · True throw depth (charted plays)
Adjusted ANY/A, sack rate, and where the yards came from
99 of 99 attempts matched to play-by-play
99 of 99 attempts charted for true throw depth
Adjusted ANY/A
7.1641 of 75 QBsSack rate
5.7%49 of 75 QBsSacked on 5.7% of dropbacks (49 of 75) and Adjusted ANY/A trails the field (41 of 75).
Adjusted ANY/A uses full-season box-score totals (attempts, yards, TDs, INTs); sack rate is play-by-play-derived.
Behind LOS · Negative air yds
12% of attempts (12)
92%comp
Air -2.9 · YAC 5.0 avg
Short · 0–9 air yds
42% of attempts (42)
71%comp
Air 3.6 · YAC 5.9 avg
Middle · 10–19 air yds
24% of attempts (24)
54%comp1 INT
Air 14.1 · YAC 3.5 avg
Deep · 20+ air yds
21% of attempts (21)
29%comp
Air 30.6 · YAC 17.0 avg
Overall 60.6% completion on 99 attempts · 29% completion on 21 deep attempts (20+ air yds).
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 394 YDS/g, 1.5 TD/g, 7.9 YPA, 0.5 INT/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
JaMarcus Shephard
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Backup
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Career stats
| Season | Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Oregon State | 60 | 99 | 60.6% | 789 | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 135.5 | 55 | -- | -- |
| Career | 60 | 99 | 60.6% | 789 | 8.0 | 3 | 1 | 135.5 | 55 | -- | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Oregon State | 9 | -44 | -4.9 | 1 | -- |
| Career | 9 | -44 | -4.9 | 1 | -- |
Signature plays
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
- Week 2 · Texas Tech · 1&10 · Q2 · EPA +6.08(07:35) Shotgun #2 B.Atkinson pass complete deep right to #12 J.Legree caught at TTU38, for 75 yards to the TTU00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 07:25, 1ST DOWN #28 C.Ojeda kick attempt good (H: #38 A.Winsor, LS: #47 T.Sanford)
- Week 2 · Texas Tech · 4&7 · Q3 · EPA +5.44(05:04) Shotgun #2 B.Atkinson pass complete short middle to #12 J.Legree caught at TTU20, for 37 yards to the TTU00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 04:55, 1ST DOWN #2 B.Atkinson rush attempt Successful
- Week 1 · Houston · 1&10 · Q1 · EPA +3.96(08:07) No Huddle-Shotgun #2 B.Atkinson pass complete deep left to #12 J.Legree caught at HOU49, for 71 yards to the HOU09 (#2 J.Mayo), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Texas Tech · 2&10 · Q3 · EPA +3.85(13:59) Shotgun #2 B.Atkinson pass complete deep right to #12 J.Legree caught at OSU46, for 41 yards to the TTU35 (#3 P.Morgan), out of bounds, 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Texas Tech · 3&7 · Q3 · EPA +3.33(06:18) Shotgun #2 B.Atkinson pass complete deep left to #12 J.Legree caught at TTU40, for 22 yards to the TTU40, out of bounds at TTU40, 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Houston · 4&5 · Q4 · EPA +3.04(03:25) No Huddle-Shotgun #2 B.Atkinson pass complete short middle to #80 E.Olsen caught at OSU46, for 9 yards to the HOU47 (#6 J.Allen), 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Houston · 2&9 · Q4 · EPA +2.89(11:33) No Huddle-Shotgun #2 B.Atkinson pass complete short right to #80 E.Olsen caught at HOU45, for 24 yards to the HOU40 (#1 J.Yates), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Texas Tech · 3&8 · Q1 · EPA +2.70(02:24) Shotgun #2 B.Atkinson pass complete short right to #7 A.Hampton caught at TTU37, for 13 yards to the TTU37, End Of Play, 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Houston · 3&3 · Q1 · EPA +2.62(06:24) Shotgun #2 B.Atkinson rush right for 3 yards gain to the HOU00 TOUCHDOWN, clock 06:17 #28 C.Ojeda kick attempt good (H: #38 A.Winsor, LS: #47 T.Sanford)
- Week 2 · Texas Tech · 2&10 · Q2 · EPA +2.62(02:09) Shotgun #2 B.Atkinson pass complete short middle to #7 A.Hampton caught at OSU35, for 18 yards to the TTU49 (#24 M.Esquerra), 1ST DOWN
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Elite arm talent, pushing downfield. Completion rate is the variable.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Oregon State
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Quarterback · Oregon State
Returning around him
- 58% of 2024 offensive production back (Solid continuity)
- Transfer portal: -15 net (20 in / 35 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Oregon State · Last season: 2-10 · Talent rank #76 · 2026 recruiting class #100
DNA match
Player DNA
Vertical Passer
Elite arm talent, pushing downfield. Completion rate is the variable.
QB
His 2026 production profile sits closest to Rocco Becht’s 2024 season.
76%match
Matches Rocco on
Total pass EPA (college ability)
Yards / attempt
Differs from Rocco on
Recruiting rating (lower)
TD rate (lower)
Class year (lower)
Through 2 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Tyler Johnston III’s path through UAB.
83%match
Matches Tyler on
Yards per attempt
Completion %
Height
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Dylan Rizk's sophomore season at UCF (2024).
Matches Dylan on
Height
TD rate
Differs from Dylan on
EPA / dropback (adj) (higher)
Rush usage (lower)
Weight (lower)
Heisman trajectory
Heisman Trajectory · 2026
Peak #89
Peaked at #89 this season.
Background
MERCER • Saw action at Mercer in 2025, playing in 11 games • 2025 Jerry Rice Award winner • Second-Team All-SoCon selection and SoCon Freshman of the Year • Passed for 3,596 yards and 34 touchdowns. Completed 268-of-406 (66 percent) passes attempted, and was intercepted 11 times • Averaged 326.9...
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology