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On3 Impact Rankings: The Top Risers from Week 4

wam1Wl2j_400x400by: Clark Brooks17 hours agoClarkBrooks_On3
USC running back Waymond Jordan
USC running back Waymond Jordan (acscottphotography/WeAreSC)

What a fun first month of football we have had! The fact a third of the regular season is behind us already is pretty crazy. But as wild as that fact is, some of the performances we’ve seen have been even more insane.

Several impact players are well on their ways reshaping the national landscape ahead of the meat of the schedule. Standouts have emerged as early Heisman contenders, dominant edge rushers and ball hawks have disrupted game plans, true freshmen and transfer portal additions have made immediate contributions, and loads of household names have been humbled.

Whether it’s through highlight reel plays, consistent leadership, or — for lack of better words – rizz and elite vibes, early-season stars continue to riddle our On3 College Football Impact Rankings.

Let’s take a look at some of the guys who improved their standings the most this past weekend!

Impact Riser of the Week: RB Waymond Jordan, USC

Previous Rank: RB 56, Outside Top300
Current Rank: RB 14, Player No. 186

Saturday’s burly showing against conference foe Michigan State saw Waymond Jordan’s stock climb considerably. Of his 157 rush yards, 142 came after contact thanks to forcing 8 missed tackles. He also added an explosive catch that helped set-up USC’s first scoring chance. A fine performance indeed, on account of the Spartans rocked a top15 Expected Points Added/run entering the contest.

He simply has had one of the strongest starts of any P4 ball carrier. Jordan presently exists among a select class of RBs to sit inside the nation’s top10 in rush yards, broken tackles, explosives. But he’s no compiler just padding stats; he’s also been very efficient per a 7.8 yards/carry and 36.8% 1D+TD Rate. Plus, his forceful style has resulted in 84.2% YAC makeup with a 6.5 clip per attempt, the best figure of any rusher with at least 40 tries ahead of Week 5.

No. 2: WR Eric McAlister, TCU

Previous Rank: WR 51, Outside Top300
Current Rank: WR 23, Player No. 219

Eric McAlister is a player very much on my radar. He had one of the nation’s premier yards per route run in 2023 at Boise State and entered the season with a 19.5 career yards/catch. In the preseason Impact Rankings, he was comfortably a top20 WR. A couple of mellow showings hurt his standing, but he had the highest output of any pass catcher in Week 4 to reclaim a spot inside the top300 players in college football. All but one catch went for a conversion or a score; and his 254 yards were 78 more than anyone else.

In terms of obvious impact, he provided the Horned Frogs not only their best play from scrimmage, but also the go-ahead score on their way to victory. Speaking of points, he was responsible for 18 against SMU. And if he managed to win a tossup fade into the end zone, he could have had 6 more. Either way, McAlister is now college football’s only receiver with a +13.0 yards/target and yards after catch average with a Missed Tackles Forced Rate north of 45%.

No. 3: ED Akheem Mesidor, Miami (FL)

Previous Rank: EDGE 80, Outside Top300
Current Rank: EDGE 57, Outside Top300

Playing alongside one of the nation’s premier pass rushers (more on Rueben Bain later), Ahkeem Mesidor is occasionally overlooked as a solid chaos-creator in his own right. But against Florida, he was hard to ignore. He totaled 7 hurries, a QB hit, and a sack. He also threw in three stops, for good measure. Ultimately, the stress he and his teammates provided the Gators saw Napiers’ offense reduced to a 29% Success Rate and 13.5% Negative Play Rate.

After the first month of play, Mesidor’s 20 havoc plays are tied for the 7th-most among edges. And, his 90.3 PFF defensive grade is a top10 mark.

No. 4: ED Zion Young , Missouri

Previous Rank: Not Ranked
Current Rank: EDGE 58, Outside Top300

Like Mesidor, Zion Young had himself a helluva weekend pestering an SEC O-Line to the tune of 6 hurries, 2 QB hits, and a sack. Against South Carolina, he more than doubled his amount of pressures from the first three games. On the year, 19.1% of his snaps have resulted in an defensive impact play (havoc or a stop), a top-20 clip among edges. To that point, only two dudes at the position have more tackles for a loss ahead of Week 5.

No. 5: QB Athan Kaliakmanis, Rutgers

Previous Rank: QB 46, Outside Top300
Current Rank: QB 32, Outside Top300

Athan Kaliakmanis has been aggressively attempting to shed the “game manager” label that followed him from Minneapolis to New Brunswick the last couple of seasons. And after the first month, no passer has a preferable PFF Passing Grade than his 92.6 figure. Additionally, that firm has him with 0 worthy plays and 11 big time throws, 5 of which occurred in Rutgers’ loss to Iowa. Though the scoreboard didn’t reflect the result the Knights wanted, their QB now is top10 in First Down+TD Rate (44.2%), top16 in yards/game (287.5), top30 in yards/attempt (9.1).

No. 6: WR Trell Harris, Virginia

Previous Rank: Unranked
Current Rank: WR 61, Outside Top300

Trell Harris was a big play machine in Virginia’s 48-20 romp against Stanford. On his 5 targets, his 4 catches produced 145 yards and 3 TDs. The one-week-wonder concerns are valid considering his career arc. Still, his 3.09 yards per route run and 54.5% First Down+TD Rate are top50 nationally. And, his 14.6 yards/target sits inside the top20.

No. 7: DL Devan Thompkins, USC

Previous Rank: DL 66, Outside Top300
Current Rank: DL 45, Outside Top300

USC interior Devan Thompkins has started Big Ten play remarkably well. In the Trojans’ two conference tilts, he’s logged 10 pressures and 6 stops — the most and 7th-most, respectively, among P4 players at the position the last two weeks. Subsequently, his 20 total impact plays ahead of Week 5 are also tops from the major conferences defensive tackles. And on a per-snap basis, his such 13.7% clip is top20 regardless of league. Thompkins’ continued bullying could see him soon become a popular name in a position group that has some flimsiness in the upper echelon.

No. 8: TE Eli Finley, LA Tech

Previous Rank: Unranked
Current Rank: TE 60, Outside Top300

No collegiate pass catcher had a more efficient weekend than LA Tech’s Eli Finley. Catching all 6 of his targets for 155 yards, his 12.8 yards per route run was the golden mark of anyone that ran at least 10 patterns. And, he came within an inch of a score after a long after-the-catch scurry on a wide open rep of “Y Sling” on the Bulldogs’ opening possession. For what it’s worth, Southern Miss is a top20 defense in EPA/dropback. So while Finely is bound to get some side eyes for beating up a G5 opponent, it’s not like he did it against a unit ranked in the triple-digits.

Moving forward, however, his production is worth monitoring. His days of flying totally under the radar are over; and folks will probably look to undercut his impact.

Blue Chip Shoutout: ED Rueben Bain, Miami (FL)

Previous Rank: EDGE 3, Player No. 11
Current Rank: EDGE 1, Player No. 5

Fueled by a premium performance gashing the Gators’ front — including 9 hurries, 3 stops, and a sack — Rueben Bain is now the top edge in our Impact Rankings. On the year, his 39 defensive impact plays are five more than the next P4 player at the position. And, his 21.5% such rate is tops among anyone with at least 60 snaps.

But, he hasn’t just been specializing in one facet. Bain has recorded both the most stops (14) and total pressures (22). And because of Bain’s dominating play, PFF scored him as the highest-graded defender in college football.