cfb zeitgeistZeitgeist
OFFSEASON · SUMMER 2026 · COMMITMENT SEASON
Heisman / Players / Ashton Daniels /Auburn

Ashton Daniels

QB · Auburn · Sr · #12

Below the discourse floor — the honest stats-only state.

797 PASS YDS · 3 PASS TD · 280 RUSH YDS

2026 TRANSFERTransferred Auburn → Florida State for 2026

Where He Ended Up · Transfer

Transferred to Florida State

2025Auburn
2026Florida State

QB · AUBURN · SEC

Ashton Daniels

  • 4
  • #12
  • 6-2 | 219 lb
  • Buford, GA

CFB Zeitgeist Score

38

Mid-pack in the position cohort. Carried by interceptions at the 92nd percentile.

Heisman Heat

#164

<1% win probability

Fan Belief

Awaiting

Player-specific FI not yet ingested. Falls back to team mood below.

Respect Gap

Awaiting

Coming online with player-level FI.

Reality Gap

Awaiting

Coming online with player-level FI.

ACCOLADE PROBABILITY

Heisman

<1%

TOP QB AWARD

Davey O'Brien

CONSENSUS

All-American

Player Standing · 17 rungs

Tier 2 · Starter

R06 · Starter

Starter. A locked-in starting role.

Not on team2-deepStarterRecognizedEliteApex
Aura™ · Him Watch the full board →
Aura tax +59aura tax
Fans rank this player in the 88th percentile of QBs; the tape says 28th — more hype than the tape.
Aura — fan perception88th pctl
Production — on-field28th pctl
n=62 mentions · cohort: QBs · 160 qualified · perception = conversation volume, production = wepa_passing
In Their Words 320 windows · 2025 fan posts
ashton×122.9stanford×69.0daniels×29.0fsu×21.5seriously×96.6started×22.3rusher×17.0auburn×6.0

“[247] QB Ashton Daniels officially commits to FSU”

reddit/fsusports · fan post, verbatim

Career arc · Season-by-season Standing

4 seasons on the ladder

Peak: R09 All-Conference HM / 2nd team · 2024

2022

Stanford · QB

2023

Stanford · QB

2024

Stanford · QB

R09 · All-Conference HM / 2nd team

Recognized

2025

Auburn · QB

Development Trajectory · passing yards

2022–2025
39.02022
2,2472023
1,7002024
7972025

+1944%

Up 1944% from first season to most-recent.

Career Arc

HS
Recruit
★★★
#994 national
CFB
College
2 teams
2022–2025
NFL
NFL Draft
Not drafted (yet)

Identity & Role

The durable bio layer: position, size, hometown, and roster role.

PositionQB
Class4
Jersey12
Measurements6-2 | 219 lb
HometownBuford, GA
Primary teamAuburn

Recruiting Pedigree

How big the prospect was before college, and whether the later career arc beat that expectation.

Top pedigree 3-star No. 994 recruit
Composite rating 0.8600 HighSchool
Signed with -- 2022
Origin Buford Buford, GA, USA
Class Profile Context
2022 3-star | 0.8600 No. 994 recruit | HighSchool

Transfer Arc

Portal movement changes role, context, and perception. This keeps that path in one place.

Portal moves 2 Programs changed on file
Latest destination Florida State 2026
Transfer stars 3-star CFBD transfer rating context
Eligibility Immediate Jan 6, 2026
Season Move Context
2026 Auburn -> Florida State 3-star | 0.8600 | Immediate
2025 Stanford -> Auburn 3-star | 0.8600 | Immediate

Heisman Lens · 2024 Season · Final

Where the player landed at the end of the listed season — final nowcast rank, win/finalist/ballot probabilities, and the cleanest official Heisman placement on file.

HIGH CONFIDENCE· through week 16
Current nowcast#164Latest modeled ballot order
Season forecast#247Where the full season sim points
Win probability0.0%Chance to actually win the trophy
Finalist probability0.0%Chance to make the finalist tier
Ballot probability0.0%Chance to appear anywhere on a ballot
Best official finish--Best completed Heisman placement on file

Heisman Futures

Not yet listed on major futures markets.

No achievements unlocked yet this season.

Selector Grid · 2025

AP
FWAA
AFCA
WCFF
SN
SI

Selector recognition fills in once the major honors lists (AP, FWAA, AFCA, Walter Camp, Sporting News, SI) are scraped and ingested.

NIL · Recruiting · NFL Draft

Market value, pedigree & pro outcome

Recruit stars

★★★☆☆

to —

Composite

0.8600

#994 national

Today’s Hot-Take

The Hot-Take engine fires when this player’s percentile profile crosses a defensible threshold (top 10% in a cohort, 100+ snap sample). When it’s quiet, the model is honoring its “must be defensible” rule.

Anti-Take

PENDING

The contrarian read fires when the rules-engine detects a stat that complicates the Hot-Take. Quiet here means the model hasn’t found a defensible counter yet — not that one doesn’t exist.

The Room on Ashton Daniels

Fan sentiment · Season 2025 conversation window

Belief Meter

54

Quietly Bullish

Sample 12 mentions
Confidence MEDIUM

Top Take

Trajectory

Cohort divergence mapbearishbullishheatedcalmOwn fans: 47 mentions · belief +11 · "Florida State football ignites spring buzz as Mike Norvell declares, “The best m"Own fansRivals: 15 mentions · belief +53 · "With all the negativity, I do think there’s a (small) case for optimism, even if"RivalsNational: 6 mentions · belief +0 · "Quarterback Ashton Daniels will transfer to Florida State"National
  • Own fans · n=47
  • Rivals · n=15
  • National · n=6

Rival Radar

How rival fanbases talk about Ashton Daniels

Obsession score 10
Rival mentions 15
Weeks on radar 3
Peak moment Week 0 · 12 mentions
Grudging respect 27% Neutral 66% Mockery 7%

2025 Signature · 2025 season

QB rushing weighted-EPA

+0.340

EPA

P4 + Notre Dame QBs, min 50 carries

National rank #20 of 46
Percentile vs P4 + Notre Dame QBs, min 50 carries 58th

Why it matters

#20 of 46 P4 + Notre Dame QBs among scrambling QBs by rushing weighted-EPA — +0.340 EPA per run on 54 carries.

Vs cohort

This player +0.340 (58th)

MODERATE · n=54 cohort 46

  • Also strong
  • ESPN QBR (season average)#45 / 92
  • Third-down snap share#1 / 93

Signature Moment

No signature moment on the ledger yet.

Returns once this player puts together a multi-game body of work — single-game flashes alone don't clear the bar.

A 3-act season arc returns once this player has six or more games on the ledger.

Season Pace · Projection

Where the passing totals stand

projecting to 13-game
Through 4g
797Pass yards
3Pass TDs
2INT
Per game
199.2Pass yards
1Pass TDs
0INT
Projected (13g)
2,590Pass yards
10Pass TDs
6INT

To hit 3,000-yard season (currently 797): needs 244.8/game over remaining 9.

To hit 4,000-yard season (currently 797): needs 355.9/game over remaining 9.

To hit 25 passing TDs (currently 3): needs 2.4/game over remaining 9.

To hit 30 passing TDs (currently 3): needs 3/game over remaining 9.

To hit 35 passing TDs (currently 3): needs 3.6/game over remaining 9.

Why this is a two-channel quarterback case

The fast read on the thing that makes this player more than a generic stat line.

The unusual part of Ashton Daniels's case is that the production comes in two channels, not one. For Auburn, he has 797 passing yards and 3 touchdown passes, but he also adds 280 rushing yards and 2 rushing scores. That kind of dual-threat load tends to create a more resilient Heisman case because the offense can tilt the game in multiple ways.

Current place #164 0.0% win | 0.0% finalist
Role load 70.1% Overall usage share
Profile quirk Transfer path 2 portal moves

2025 Season · Final

Traditional stats first. Advanced context underneath.

Last season

QB season snapshot

2025 season snapshot | final

2025 season snapshot | finalData: CFBD player stats + local Heisman modelPeer context: same position + same level
Pass yards 797 3 TD | 2 INT | #151/382 (61st pct)
Completion rate 57.1% 68/119 completions | #256/383 (33rd pct)
Yards/attempt 6.7 Explosiveness through the air | #210/382 (45th pct)
Player identity What kind of player is this?

30-second read

What kind of player is this?

Dual-threat against FBS QB peers. The quickest read is whether the profile wins on volume, efficiency, explosiveness, or rushing value.

Dual-threat

2025 Season · Final

2025 season snapshot | final

Passing Efficiency

CMP
68 60th
ATT
119 62nd
CMP%
57.1% 33rd
Y/A
6.7 45th

Passing Production

YDS
797 61st
TD
3 57th
INT
2 52nd

Rushing

CAR
63 76th
YDS
280 84th
YPC
4.4 71st
TD
2 73rd

Game Log · Week-by-week

2025 season · 4 games

Box score · CFBD
WkOppCMP/ATTYDSTDINTYPAQBRNote
Wk 9W 33-24@ Arkansas6/877009.656.6
Wk 10L 3-10vs Kentucky13/28108013.944.0
Wk 11L 38-45@ Vanderbilt31/44353208.079.0Season-high 353 yds
Wk 14L 20-27vs Alabama18/39259116.672.4
Total68/119797327.063.0
Season-by-season tables Career rows + per-season box score

Traditional history

Traditional Stats

Season rows up top, career context at the bottom.

Season rows Career row

Season context · Team result + system

2022Stanford3-9HC: David Shaw · Balanced
2023Stanford3-9HC: Troy Taylor · Balanced
2024Stanford3-9HC: Troy Taylor · Run-leaning
2025Auburn5-7HC: Hugh Freeze · Run-leaning
SeasonTeam
2025Auburn6811957.1%7976.732118.4----
2024Stanford17027162.7%1,7006.31012118.7----
2023Stanford19132758.4%2,2476.9118122.3----
2022Stanford5683.3%396.500137.9----
Career4 loaded seasons43472360.0%4,7836.62422120.5----
SeasonTeam
2025Auburn632804.42--
2024Stanford1486694.53--
2023Stanford1102962.73--
2022Stanford251566.23--
Career4 loaded seasons3461,4014.011--
Advanced layer Usage, value, and context

Advanced metrics second

Advanced Metrics

Usage, value, and opponent-adjusted context.

Usage Value Context
Passing WEPA

Opponent-adjusted passing value. Positive numbers mean the quarterback is adding more value through the air than a neutral peer would in the same environment.

Role share

How much of the offense runs through the quarterback once passing and rushing responsibility are blended together.

Peer percentile

Every percentile is compared against players at the same position and level, so an FBS quarterback is judged against FBS quarterbacks, not the whole sport.

Traditional first

The top tables stick to the stats fans already know from broadcasts and box scores. Advanced context is pushed underneath instead of replacing the basics.

Rush impact 280 2 rush TD | #65/408 (84th pct)
Usage 70.1% 94.2% pass share | 45.6% rush share | #1/428 (100th pct)
Passing WEPA +0.23 Opponent-adjusted passing value | #127/200 (37th pct)
Open full stat explorer
0 metrics visible Showing all metrics
Group Metric Value Rank Pct Why it matters
Passing Passing yards 797 #151/382 61st pct Volumevs FBS QB
Passing Pass TD 3 #178/407 57th pct Scoringvs FBS QB
Passing Completions 68 #155/383 60th pct Volumevs FBS QB
Passing Completion % 57.1% #256/383 33rd pct Efficiencyvs FBS QB
Passing Yards / attempt 6.7 #210/382 45th pct Efficiencyvs FBS QB
Rushing Rushing yards 280 #65/408 84th pct Volumevs FBS QB
Value Passing WEPA +0.23 #127/200 37th pct Opponent-adjusted passing value | 126 weighted playsvs FBS QB
Usage Role share 70.1% #1/428 100th pct Share of team offensevs FBS QB
Passing Attempts 119 #154/407 62nd pct Volumevs FBS QB
Passing Interceptions 2 #195/407 52nd pct Turnoversvs FBS QB
Rushing Carries 63 #97/408 76th pct Volumevs FBS QB
Rushing Rushing LONG 26 #127/391 68th pct Metricvs FBS QB
Rushing Yards / carry 4.4 #120/407 71st pct Efficiencyvs FBS QB
Rushing Rush TD 2 #113/408 73rd pct Scoringvs FBS QB
Usage Pass share 94.2% #30/428 93rd pct Air-game usagevs FBS QB
Usage 3rd-down usage 86.0% #1/428 100th pct Money-down loadvs FBS QB
Usage Passing-down usage 79.0% #5/428 99th pct Known-passing sharevs FBS QB
Usage 2nd-down usage 70.4% #3/428 100th pct Middle-down loadvs FBS QB
Usage Standard-down usage 65.3% #1/428 100th pct Base-situation sharevs FBS QB
Usage 1st-down usage 61.4% #2/428 100th pct Early-down loadvs FBS QB
Usage Rush share 45.6% #1/428 100th pct Ground-game usagevs FBS QB
Value Rushing WEPA +0.34 #28/140 81st pct Opponent-adjusted rushing value | 54 weighted playsvs FBS QB
Ball Security Fumbles lost 0 #1/258 100th pct Turnoversvs FBS QB

Player Standing

Universal 17-step ladder. Tier pills below; accolade streams nested.

AWAITING CLASSIFICATION

On-team2-deepStartingRecognizedEliteApex

AWAITING CLASSIFICATION · Rung None of 16

Why he’s here

Standing classification populates when honors, Heisman, and roster signals all align.

What moves him up

What moves him down

Accolade streams

StatusAwaiting tracker

Heisman model tracks the top FBS contenders weekly; this player hasn't entered the watch list yet.

Splits · Per-game

2025 season · 4 games

Home/Road · Win/Loss · Season halves

Home vs Road

YDS/gTD/gYPAINT/g
Home2g1840.55.21.0
Road2g2151.08.80.0

Win vs Loss

YDS/gTD/gYPAINT/g
Wins1g77.00.09.60.0
Losses3g2401.06.20.7

First half vs Second half

YDS/gTD/gYPAINT/g
Weeks 8+4g1990.87.00.5

Pocket and defense-quality (clean vs. pressure) splits are coming soon.

Savant · Box-rate percentiles

Where this profile ranks vs the QB cohort

38Mid-pack
8 metrics · season cumulative

Elite: interceptions (92nd). Strength: fumbles lost (91st). Concern: pass tds (6th).

Interceptions#8 / 183 · 92nd pct
2pass
Fumbles lost#1 / 174 · 91st pct
0fumb
Rush yards#57 / 183 · 69th pct
280rush
Rush TDs#101 / 183 · 39th pct
2rush
Yards / att#120 / 183 · 31st pct
6.7pass
Completion %#149 / 183 · 19th pct
57.1%pass
Pass yards#151 / 183 · 18th pct
797pass
Pass TDs#168 / 183 · 7th pct
3pass

Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.

Advanced Savant · QB · 2024

Percentile Card

Concerns: EPA / dropback.

P4G5All FBS
EPA / dropback0.230
23th pct
CPOE
awaiting
Success rate
awaiting
Explosive rate (20+)
awaiting
aDOT
awaiting
Deep-ball accuracy
awaiting
Pressure-to-sack
awaiting
3rd-down EPA
awaiting
Red-zone TD rate
awaiting
Play-action EPA
awaiting
Scramble EPA
awaiting
Turnover-worthy play rate
awaiting

Advanced Savant

Opponent-adjusted advanced metrics with a cohort filter.

wepa_passing0.23Below (<p25) (n=94)
wepa_rushing0.34Mid (p50–p75) (n=72)

Peer Comparator · Fingerprint match

Three closest profiles by box-rate percentile

3 peers · 8 metrics
Ashton DanielsAuburnAvery JohnsonKansas State· 64% simNick VattiatoMiddle Tennessee· 64% simCade KlubnikClemson· 58% sim
Interceptions
92
Daniels
56
Johnson
44
Vattiato
56
Klubnik
Fumbles lost
91
Daniels
66
Johnson
66
Vattiato
66
Klubnik
Rush yards
69
Daniels
80
Johnson
27
Vattiato
42
Klubnik
Rush TDs
39
Daniels
81
Johnson
39
Vattiato
59
Klubnik
Yards / att
31
Daniels
46
Johnson
13
Vattiato
63
Klubnik
Completion %
19
Daniels
33
Johnson
41
Vattiato
73
Klubnik
Pass yards
18
Daniels
61
Johnson
57
Vattiato
78
Klubnik
Pass TDs
7
Daniels
72
Johnson
64
Vattiato
64
Klubnik

Closest peers by overall box-score percentile profile at the same position.

Player DNA

The Scrambler

Makes plays with feet when the pocket collapses. Efficiency still on the rise.

QB

His 2025 production profile sits closest to Ashton Daniels’s 2023 season.

Ashton Daniels

71%match

Stanford · 2023

#2

Aveon Smith

Miami (OH) · 2023

71%
#3

Jordon Brookshire

San Diego State · 2021

70%
#4

Robby Ashford

Auburn · 2022

70%
#5

Hunter Watson

Sam Houston · 2025

68%

Matches Ashton on

Total pass EPA (college ability)
Completion %
INT rate

Differs from Ashton on

Rush usage (higher)
Rush yards / carry (higher)

Through 3 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Mark Gronowski’s path through Iowa.

Mark Gronowski

93%match

Iowa · 2025

#2

Evan Simon

Temple · 2025

87%
#3

Brayden Fowler-Nicolosi

Colorado State · 2025

87%
#4

Max Cutforth

Boise State · 2025

84%
#5

Tony Muskett

Virginia · 2024

84%

Matches Mark on

Height
Yards per attempt
Completion %

As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Aveon Smith's senior season at Miami (OH) (2023).

Aveon Smith

67%match

Miami (OH) · 2023

#2

Robby Ashford

Wake Forest · 2025

64%
#3

Brennan Armstrong

NC State · 2023

All-ACC
62%
#4

Bryson Barnes

Utah State · 2025

All-Mountain West
54%
#5

Kyron Drones

Virginia Tech · 2025

54%

Matches Aveon on

Yards / attempt
Height

Differs from Aveon on

Rush usage (lower)
Completion % (higher)
Weight (higher)

Supporting Cast · Scheme

Staff and system around the player

2025 season

Head Coach

Hugh Freeze

Pass share

44.7%

360 pass / 445 run

Plays / game

67.1

12 games

OL sack rate (allowed)

13.3%

308 dropbacks · PBP

Scheme: Run-leaning.

Coaching Lineage · 2022–2025

2 coaches
2022
Cadillac Williams
Auburn
2023
Hugh Freeze
Auburn
era →
2024
Hugh Freeze
Auburn
2025
Hugh Freeze
Auburn

Coaching transition mid-career: Cadillac Williams → Hugh Freeze. Worth noting in scheme + development context.

Bio · Recruiting · Transfer · Roster

Off-field context — switch tabs to drill into recruit profile, transfer arc, or roster timeline.

HometownBuford, GA
Height6'2"
Weight219 lb
Class4
PositionQB
Jersey12

Trophy Case · Confirmed honors

What the selectors said

1 entries
🎖

ALL-CONFERENCE

All-Conf mention (2024)

All-ACC

Trophy Case · Detail

Every honor on the ledger, broken out by stream and selector.

All-Conference

1 all-conference honor

Conference-level recognition helps anchor whether a player is merely statistically loud or actually viewed as elite within his competitive lane.

Honors Timeline

Season-end distinction and week-by-week recognition on one timeline.

Season Honor Scope Team / Selector Context
2024 All-ACC all_conference Stanford | ACC --

Heisman By Year

Modeled rank and official finish by season.

Season Team Role Latest Model Forecast Win Finalist Official Finish Points Context
2024 Stanford QB4 #164 #247 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W16 snapshot | ACC
2023 Stanford QB4 #337 #605 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W19 snapshot | Pac-12
2022 Stanford QB4 #1022 #1323 0.0% 0.0% -- -- W20 snapshot | Pac-12

Roster Timeline

Team, conference, and class by season.

Season Team Conference Pos Class Bio
2025 Auburn SEC QB 4 No. 12 | 6-2 | 219 lb | Buford, GA
2024 Stanford ACC QB 4 No. 12 | 6-2 | 219 lb | Buford, GA
2023 Stanford Pac-12 QB 4 No. 12 | 6-2 | 219 lb | Buford, GA
2022 Stanford Pac-12 QB 4 No. 12 | 6-2 | 219 lb | Buford, GA