Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 2 games
| Wk | Opp | CMP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | YPA | QBR | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 59-7vs Eastern Illinois | 19/24 | 264 | 1 | 0 | 11.0 | 86.2 | |
| Wk 2 | L 13-38vs Mississippi State | 31/48 | 279 | 0 | 0 | 5.8 | 57.9 | Season-high 279 yds |
| Total | 50/72 | 543 | 1 | 0 | 8.4 | 72.0 |
#5
Drake Lindsey
Junior quarterback for Minnesota. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
6′5″ · 230 lb · Fayetteville, AR · Fayetteville
CFB Index 39 · #95 of 146 QBsHigh confidenceWatch-list name (model)Returning to Minnesota for 2026
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The numbers
543
passing yards · 2026
1 TD · 0 INT · 7.5 per attempt
2 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 264 pass yds, 1 TD, 6 rush yds, vs Eastern Illinois
The play that turned itSwung Minnesota from 30% to 77% to win.Michigan State at Minnesota · 23-20
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
3 quarterback for Minnesota. 2026: 2 games with a box-score line.
- Signed as a 3-star recruit to Minnesota in 2024.
Aura™ · Him Watch
Hype = tape
+4aura tax
Fans rank this player in the 38th percentile of QBs; the tape says
34th pctl our passing-value metric (wEPA) QBs · 160 qualified, n=40
— the discourse is fair.Aura — fan perception38th pctl
Production — on-field34th pctl
n=40 mentions · cohort: QBs · 160 qualified · perception = conversation volume, production = our passing-value metric (wEPA)
Buzz vs Tape
Country hotter than the fans
The wider college football conversation reads him warmer than his own fans do — a gap of 26.3 points in belief.
18.7own fans
45national conversation
Man I love Drake Lindsey and I love gopher football. Got a lot of things to clean up on defense but RTBSUMGG.
Also worth knowing:
In Their Words
295 windows · 2026 fan posts
drake×472.3minnesota×106.6gophers×309.5fleck×161.2darius×40.3taylor×22.0quarterback×7.5nfl×12.0
“Drake Lindsey having NFL QB hype was such ridiculous thought lol”
reddit/CFB · fan post, verbatim
Drake Lindsey
Operates within the system without forcing anything. Third year in the Minnesota quarterback room, same address the whole way. 2025 brought the first one: Big Ten Freshman Player of the Week. One game to point at: 279 pass yds against Mississippi State — Week 2, 2026.
543 PASS YDS · 1 PASS TD · 6 RUSH YDS
Low coverage — composed from the verified record.
- season totals
- positional archetype classification
- seasons on the roster
- recognition record
- game log
His career
Nobody recruited him. He earned the honors anyway.
2024
- Signed with Minnesota3-star out of Fayetteville
Career arc
HS
Recruit
★★★
CFB
College
Minnesota
NFL
NFL Draft
—
Trophy case · Confirmed honors
What the selectors said
🎓
FRESHMAN HONORS
Freshman recognition (2025)
1 mention(s)
Badges
- Program Benchmark
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
1 coach2024–2026
Minnesota
Played his entire career under P.J. Fleck.
2026 snapshot
Season context · Team result + system
3 seasons under P.J. Fleck — 17-11 over that span.
2024Minnesota8-5HC: P.J. Fleck · Balanced
2025Minnesota8-5HC: P.J. Fleck · Balanced, slow tempo
2026Minnesota1-1HC: P.J. Fleck · Pass-leaning
Where this profile ranks vs the QB cohort
Box-score percentiles
High confidence
Elite: interceptions (92nd percentile). Strength: completion % (85th percentile). Concern: pass tds (0th percentile).
Box-score rates (7)
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Passing profile
Pass Profile · True throw depth (charted plays)
Adjusted ANY/A, sack rate, and where the yards came from
72 of 72 attempts matched to play-by-play
72 of 72 attempts charted for true throw depth
Adjusted ANY/A
7.4536 of 75 QBsSack rate
2.7%23 of 75 QBsRarely sacked (23 of 75 QBs) and still 36 of 75 in Adjusted ANY/A.
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
15% of attempts (11)
82%comp
Air -2.5 · YAC 8.0 avg
Short · 0–9 air yds
53% of attempts (38)
82%comp
Air 4.2 · YAC 3.7 avg
Middle · 10–19 air yds
25% of attempts (18)
39%comp
Air 14.3 · YAC 4.3 avg
Deep · 20+ air yds
7% of attempts (5)
60%comp
Air 30.2 · YAC 14.7 avg
Overall 69.4% completion on 72 attempts · 53% of attempts thrown 0–9 air yds.
Splits & context
Splits
Per-game splits
Through 2 games: 272 YDS/g, 0.5 TD/g, 8.4 YPA, 0.0 INT/g — splits start at 3 games.
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
P.J. Fleck
Scheme reads (pass share, tempo, sack rate) need at least 3 team games — 2 games in so far.
Awards
Player standing · 2026
Watch-list name (model)
Our Heisman model has him inside the top 25; he is not on a published award watch list yet.
Recognition
Roster2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
2026 outlook
Outside shot for All-Big Ten
Based on 2025: #14 of 19 Big Ten QBs
How the All-Big Ten estimate is computed
22% estimated, 95% confidence interval 19–25%. Base rate measured from players who finished at a comparable rank in their conference and came back the next season. It is an estimate from a small sample, not a forecast of this player.
Career stats
Signature game
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 59–7
Signature plays
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
- Week 1 · Eastern Illinois · 3&8 · Q2 · EPA +5.09(05:17) Shotgun #5 D.Lindsey pass complete deep right to #11 J.Tracy caught at EIU37, for 55 yards to the EIU02 (#1 S.Maiava Jr), 1ST DOWN. The previous play is under automatic review - "Runner was down by contact". CALL OVERTURNED. (Original Play: (05:17) Shotgun #5 D.Lindsey pass complete deep right to #11 J.Tracy caught at EIU37, for 55 yards to the EIU02 (#1 S.Maiava Jr), 1ST DOWN)
- Week 1 · Eastern Illinois · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA -4.35(09:10) #5 D.Lindsey pass complete short right to #23 T.Thomas caught at EIU22, for 18 yards to the EIU04 fumbled by #23 T.Thomas at EIU08 forced by #19 M.Tupou recovered by EIU #8 N.Vecchiarelli at EIU04, End Of Play
- Week 2 · Mississippi State · 4&4 · Q3 · EPA -4.02(02:33) Shotgun #5 D.Lindsey pass complete short left to #11 J.Tracy caught at MSST04, for 0 yards to the MSST04 (#8 K.Singleton), TURNOVER ON DOWNS
- Week 2 · Mississippi State · 4&2 · Q2 · EPA +2.98(01:16) #5 D.Lindsey pass complete short left to #13 N.Jennings caught at MSST34, for 22 yards to the MSST24 (#2 I.Smith), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Mississippi State · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA +2.84(09:51) Shotgun #5 D.Lindsey pass complete deep left to #13 N.Jennings caught at MSST43, for 34 yards to the MSST41 (#1 K.Jones), out of bounds, 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Eastern Illinois · 3&7 · Q1 · EPA +2.66(09:35) Shotgun #5 D.Lindsey pass complete short right to #1 D.Taylor caught at EIU41, for 19 yards to the EIU29 (#25 C.Sharp; #11 N.Williams), 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Eastern Illinois · 3&13 · Q2 · EPA +2.56(07:28) Shotgun #5 D.Lindsey pass complete short middle to #11 J.Tracy caught at MINN28, for 17 yards to the MINN41 (#0 N.Maryland), 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Eastern Illinois · 1&10 · Q1 · EPA +2.24(00:30) No Huddle #5 D.Lindsey pass complete deep middle to #13 N.Jennings caught at EIU45, for 28 yards to the EIU38 (#25 C.Sharp; #21 K.Lyons), 1ST DOWN
- Week 2 · Mississippi State · 2&9 · Q1 · EPA +1.97(08:32) #5 D.Lindsey pass complete short middle to #23 T.Thomas caught at MINN38, for 11 yards to the MSST47 (#3 K.Dolby; #13 L.James), 1ST DOWN
- Week 1 · Eastern Illinois · 1&10 · Q3 · EPA +1.92(11:13) #5 D.Lindsey pass complete short right to #19 P.Walsh caught at EIU44, for 27 yards to the EIU34 (#0 N.Maryland), 1ST DOWN
Game log
How he plays
Play style
Balanced passer who operates within the system, without one standout number carrying the profile.
CFB Index positional classification
2026 Outlook
Minnesota
2026 Depth chart
Projected starter
Quarterback · Minnesota
Returning around him
- 65% of 2024 offensive production back (Solid continuity)
- 1 Minnesota player drafted to NFL
- Transfer portal: -1 net (19 in / 20 out)
2026 Award watch
No preseason watch lists yet (most drop June 15 – July 15)
Minnesota · Last season: 8-5 · Talent rank #41 · 2026 recruiting class #28
DNA match
Player DNA
Pocket Passer
Balanced passer who operates within the system, without one standout number carrying the profile.
QB
His 2025 production profile sits closest to Evan Bullock’s 2024 season.
67%match
All-Conference USA
Matches Evan on
Total pass EPA (college ability)
Differs from Evan on
EPA / dropback (adj) (higher)
Rush usage (lower)
Weight (higher)
Through 2 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Parker McKinney’s path through Eastern Kentucky.
Parker McKinney
97%match
Matches Parker on
Completion %
Yards per attempt
As a sophomore, his production profile tracks closest to Evan Bullock's sophomore season at Louisiana Tech (2024).
70%match
All-Conference USA
Matches Evan on
Completion %
Differs from Evan on
Class year (lower)
Rush usage (lower)
Weight (higher)
Heisman trajectory
Heisman Trajectory · 2026
Peak #59
Peaked at #59 this season.
Background
PRONUNCIATION Your browser does not support HTML5 audio. HONORS: Academic All-Big Ten (2025) Big Ten Freshman of the Week (Sept. 29, 2025) 2025 • FRESHMAN SEASON: Started all 13 games at quarterback • won eight games, setting a program record for wins by a freshman quarterback • completed 249-of-...
Stats from CFBD · ESPN · fan discourse. Every figure computed from source tables — not invented. Methodology