College football Week 1 grades: How six prominent transfer QBs fared, from ‘A+’ to ‘D’

Cam Ward’s https://www.cbssports.com/college-football/news/the-u-is-so-back-miami-drains-the-swamp-and-looks-cool-physical-and-damn-good/ in-state rival Florida showed the college football world why Miami was so desperate to land him.

The Hurricanes fended off Florida State and the NFL to land the Washington State transfer to lead the program’s offense. It was a costly endeavor with Miami laying out seven figures to bring him to Coral Gables, according to industry sources, but it is already looking like the best deal the NIL-aggressive program has made yet. That’s the power of an instant-impact transfer quarterback in the modern era of college football. 

Not every transfer quarterback looked as brilliant as Ward, though. Here’s how six of the biggest QB names who switched schools this offseason fared in Week 1.

Cam Ward, Miami

Grade: A+

Why: Ward looked like a legit NFL quarterback and Heisman Trophy contender in a brilliant performance against the Florida Gators. Ward finished with 385 yards, three touchdowns and an interception, and could have racked up even more offensive yards if Miami didn’t ease off the gas in the 42-17 win. Ward highlighted how important the quarterback position is and how just having the right guy in that spot could elevate you to a College Football Playoff appearance. Given how sloppy Florida State’s offense looked under transfer quarterback DJ Uiagalelei in a Week 0 loss to Georgia Tech, there has to be at least some remorse in Tallahassee that Florida State didn’t do whatever necessary to land Ward. 

Kyle McCord, Syracuse

Grade: A-

Why: No one is happier Ohio State nudged Kyle McCord out of Columbus than Syracuse head coach Fran Brown. 

“I should send Ryan Day a bottle of champagne for allowing us to get Kyle McCord,” Brown said in what’s an early contender for quote of the year. 

McCord looked terrific Saturday against Ohio, totaling 354 passing yards, four touchdowns and one interception. It’s only one game against a MAC opponent but McCord looked comfortable out there and showed he’s capable of putting up big numbers without a stacked supporting cast like he had at Ohio State. 

Riley Leonard, Notre Dame

Grade: B+

Why: The Duke transfer looked like the ideal fit for the Fighting Irish in Notre Dame’s gritty road win over No. 20 Texas A&M. The tough-nosed quarterback made the big plays when he needed to against the Aggies and showed off his legs with 63 yards on the ground. The passing numbers don’t blow you away — 18 of 30 for 158 yards — but within the flow of the offense and against Mike Elko’s nasty A&M defense in one of the toughest road environments in the country, Leonard’s performance more than earned a passing grade. The schedule sets up very nicely moving forward for Notre Dame to make the College Football Playoff, and Leonard will be a big part of that push. 

Will Howard, Ohio State

Grade: B

Why: The Kansas State transfer started slow, completing only six of his first 16 passes, but his second-half performance (11 of 12 for 152 yards and two touchdowns) illustrated how good he can be in this offense. It certainly doesn’t hurt that it sure looks like he’s got a transcendent talent to throw to in true freshman freak Jeremiah Smith, who caught two of Howard‘s three touchdowns. Vernard Abrams, Howard’s QB coach, told CBS Sports before the season that his talented pupil might start a little slow in a new system but would only get better as the season progressed. Abrams couldn’t have known that’s exactly how Howard’s first game would play out, but nothing he did against Akron should tamper the title-or-bust expectations in Columbus. 

Dillon Gabriel, Oregon

Grade: B-

Why: Gabriel didn’t quite look like the Heisman Trophy frontrunner as the preseason betting markets bestowed upon him in an up-and-down performance against Idaho. The stats look very good on paper (41 of 49 for 380 yards and two touchdowns), but those numbers are a bit of a mirage and his QBR (56.2) more closely matches the eye test of his performance. Gabriel mostly racked up the yards on short throws five yards within the line of scrimmage.

Gabriel was sacked three times — by comparison, his predecessor, Bo Nix, was sacked only five times all of last season – and looked a bit tentative in the second half after getting his hand banged up. Plenty of that wasn’t Gabriel’s fault – the offensive line has to improve — but Gabriel showed at Oklahoma he’s capable of more than what fans saw Saturday. 

Aidan Chiles, Michigan State

Grade: D

Why: The runaway preseason hype train quickly went off the tracks in Chiles’ disappointing performance in the Spartans’ tight 16-10 win over Florida Atlantic. Billed as the savior to lead Michigan State back up the Big Ten power rankings and ranked as the No. 2 transfer QB in 247Sports’ rankings, the sophomore quarterback seemed to feel the weight of those expectations in a performance he’d love to forget. 

The moment looked too big for Chiles who threw two bad interceptions in a 10 for 24 for 134 yards and zero touchdowns performance. He did add a score on the ground, showing off the wheels that can hopefully one day make him a true dual-threat force in the Big Ten. 

Chiles’ debut wasn’t close to what QB-starved Spartans fans expected after Jonathan Smith brought him with him from Oregon State, but he’s still only 18-years-old and the talent and upside is still abundant. 

Taking ownership for the poor performance — “Me. Like, it’s me,” Chiles told reporters. “I’m taking full responsibility for everything that happened today.” — showed maturity, too. 

MORE: Overreactions from Week 1, including Ohio State’s new top threat in Big Ten