Notre Dame sophomore quarterback CJ Carr quickly vaulted himself into the conversation as one of the nation’s most talented signal-callers, with current and former coaches continuously calling him a future first-round NFL Draft pick.
This week, he was even named one of 20 semifinalists for the Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award, a special honor for a player who is nine games into his collegiate career as a starter.
Thus far, the 6-foot-3, 210-pound quarterback has completed 67.6% of his passes for 2,275 yards, 19 touchdowns and four interceptions. He’s also run for two additional scores.
Additionally, his 10.1 yards per pass attempt ranks first nationally and has the redshirt freshman on pace to tie a Notre Dame single-season record (minimum 100 attempts) set by Heisman Trophy-winning quarterback John Huarte in 1964.
Carr also boasts the third-best pass efficiency rating (170.61).
So, where does he stack up overall compared to quarterbacks from the nation’s other most prominent college football programs?
ESPN’s Bill Connelly has reranked all 68 Power Four quarterbacks two months into the season.
Carr landed at No. 7, his exact position on the list from one month ago.
“His job has gotten easier now that star running back Jeremiyah Love has fully checked into the season (Love’s past three games: 552 yards from scrimmage),” Connelly wrote, “but Carr is fourth nationally in yards per dropback and eighth in success rate, and while it’s concerning that (a) he has played against only three top-50 defenses (per SP+) and (b) he wasn’t very good against two, Total QBR is still opponent adjusted, and he’s 10th in that.”
Those top 50 SP+ defenses are Miami (14th), Texas A&M (18th) and USC (42nd), with the subpar performances coming at the Hurricanes in his first-ever start and versus USC when the young quarterback self-reportedly needed a week off after playing six straight games.
CJ Carr’s QBR by Game
- Week 1 at Miami – 70.6
- Week 3 vs. Texas A&M – 86.7
- Week 4 vs. Purdue – 90.5
- Week 5 at Arkansas – 98.1
- Week 6 vs. Boise State – 78.4
- Week 7 vs. N.C. State – 63.0
- Week 8 vs. USC – 34.7
- Week 10 at Boston College – 93.2
- Week 11 vs. Navy – 98.4
He’ll get a crack to prove he can perform against a competent defense this weekend at Pitt (33rd). Albeit, the Panthers perform decidedly worse against the pass compared to the run. They rank first in yards per rush allowed (2.39), while owning the nation’s 72nd-ranked pass efficiency defense (132.65).
With that in mind, it’s imperative that he out-duels Pitt’s true freshman quarterback, Mason Heintschel, this weekend. Since becoming the starter, he’s led the Panthers to a five-game winning streak and has completed 64.1% of his passes for 1,547 yards, 12 touchdowns and five interceptions this season.
Of course, Heintschel will be facing by far the best defense he’s encountered in his young career. Notre Dame owns the 13th-ranked defense, according to SP+, and the 24th-best pass efficiency defense.
In five starts, he’s only faced one team with a top-50 SP+ defense: Florida State (28th). However, the Seminoles also boast the best pass efficiency defense he’s contented with at 71st nationally, with the other four defenses ranking 96th or worse.
To Notre Dame’s credit, they’ve already had to defend against several of the nation’s top signal-callers.
ESPN’s Top-68 Power Four Quarterbacks On Notre Dame’s 2025 Schedule
- No. 5 Jayden Miava, USC (down four spots)
- No. 10 Taylen Green, Arkansas (up four spots)
- No. 12 Marcel Reed, Texas A&M (up 14 spots)
- No. 20 CJ Cailey, N.C. State (up 12 spots)
- No. 25 Mason Heintschel, Pitt* (previously unranked)
- No. 26 Carson Beck, Miami (down six spots)
- No. 56 Ryan Browne, Purdue (down 12 spots)
- No. 62 Grayson James and Dylan Lonergan, Boston College (down 10 spots)
- No. 64 Ben Gulbranson and Elijah Brown, Stanford* (down five spots)
- No. 66 Rickie Collins, Syracuse* (down three spots)
*Denotes teams Notre Dame has yet to play in 2025