6′1″ · 190 lb · Byron, GA · Cedar Grove
He has pass attempts in 6 of UTEP’s 7 games: none against Nevada.
10 stories in the last 60 days, from 9 outlets.
EJ Colson
EJ Colson steps into Skyler Locklear's shoes — the gap is the story.
PASSING VALUE · WEPA
+0.16
via your WEPA model · 2026 · 54 plays
AI-generated narrative · may contain errors · not journalism · updated 2026-10-24
Play style
Extends plays with his feet until something opens up.
Closest statistical matches, adjusted for opponent strength.
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Last game (Wk 7): 87 passing yards.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 6 games
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| Wk | Opp | CMP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | YPA | QBR | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | L 0-51@ No. 10 Oklahoma | 6/12 | 52 | 0 | 0 | 4.3 | 41.0 | |
| Wk 2 | W 51-10vs Texas Southern | 14/21 | 239 | 4 | 0 | 11.4 | — | Season-high 239 yds |
| Wk 3 | L 17-52@ No. 19 Michigan | 7/9 | 86 | 2 | 1 | 9.6 | 21.2 | |
| Wk 4 | L 7-33vs Oregon State | 16/23 | 119 | 1 | 1 | 5.2 | 21.1 | |
| Wk 5 | L 7-61@ New Mexico | 6/12 | 45 | 0 | 1 | 3.8 | 14.6 | |
| Wk 7 | L 11-24vs San José State | 6/6 | 87 | 0 | 0 | 14.5 | 49.1 | |
| Total | 55/83 | 628 | 7 | 3 | 7.6 | — |
Oct. 17 · L 11-24 vs San José State, play by play
6 of 6 for 87 yards. He was 1 of 5 on third and fourth down.
64-yard completion to Kam Thomas. First quarter, tied 0-0.
2-yard completion to Jaden Smith on 3rd and 3. First quarter, down 7-0.
2-yard run on 4th and 1. First quarter, down 7-0. Converted.
Sacked for a 4-yard loss on 3rd and 6. First quarter, down 7-0.
6 of 12 for 45 yards and an interception.
Not drawn: the play-by-play doesn’t add up to the box score.
16 of 23 for 119 yards, a touchdown and an interception. He was 3 of 11 on third and fourth down.
Incomplete to Carver Cheeks on 4th and 8. Second quarter, down 17-0. Turnover on downs.
27-yard completion to Carver Cheeks. Third quarter, down 20-0.
2-yard run on 4th and 1. Third quarter, down 20-0. Converted.
Intercepted. Fourth quarter, down 33-7. Picked off by Oregon State’s TJ Crandall.
Each pass sits where it was caught or thrown to, in yards past the line. The play text only says left, middle or right, so inside a lane marks are sorted, not placed.
7 of 9 for 86 yards, 2 touchdowns and an interception.
Not drawn: the play-by-play doesn’t add up to the box score.
14 of 21 for 239 yards and 4 touchdowns. He was 5 of 9 on third and fourth down.
83-yard touchdown pass to Kam Thomas. First quarter, made it 7-0.
1-yard loss on 3rd and 1. First quarter, tied 7-7.
3-yard touchdown run on 3rd and 2. Second quarter, made it 14-10.
Incomplete to Lamar Sperling on 3rd and 4. Second quarter, up 14-10.
Each pass sits where it was caught or thrown to, in yards past the line. The play text only says left, middle or right, so inside a lane marks are sorted, not placed.
Week 2 · 2026
W 51-10
239 yds · 4 TD · 0 INT · 49 rush yds (12 car) · 1 TD
Dominant 41-point win at home against Texas Southern.
With K. Thomas — 2 rec · 92 yds · 1 TD · R. Moore III — 93 rush yds (3 car) · 1 TD
The plays that mattered most
136th in passing yards, among all 434 FBS players with a passing row this season, any position
Conference ranks count every player in the conference with a row in that stat, any position. Career ranks count current FBS players, from the games in our log.
Ratings of the games shown run from -9 to +13 points against an average team (SP+ rating of each opponent).
Pass Profile · True throw depth (charted plays)
Adjusted ANY/A, sack rate, and where the yards came from
Totals here are the box score's. Play-by-play lists 82 passing plays (55 completions) against the box score's 83 attempts (55 completions), and the depth buckets use play-by-play.
Adjusted ANY/A
5.18137 of 170 QBsSack rate
18.6%170 of 170 QBsSacked on 18.6% of dropbacks (170 of 170) and Adjusted ANY/A trails the field (137 of 170).
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
Short · 0–9 air yds
Middle · 10–19 air yds
Deep · 20+ air yds
Overall 66.3% completion on 83 attempts · 36% completion on 11 deep attempts (20+ air yds).
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 6 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | TD/g | YPA | INT/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home3g | 148 | 1.7 | 10.4 | 0.3 |
| Road3g | 61.0 | 0.7 | 5.9 | 0.7 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | TD/g | YPA | INT/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-76g | 105 | 1.2 | 8.1 | 0.5 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Scotty Walden
Pass share
38.2%
157 pass / 254 run
Plays / game
58.7
7 games
Scheme: Run-heavy, slow tempo.
Player standing · 2026
83 pass attempts and 75 carries in 6 games, fewer passes and runs a game than most FBS quarterbacks who play every week.
Recognition
Production · CFB Zeitgeist Score
Three-star recruit. Now #112 at the position.
from 9 outlets
The Galveston County Daily News +1 Aug 28 · 2 outlets
FOX SportsEJ Colson Jr. throws 4 TD passes, runs for score in UTEP's 51-10 victory over Texas SouthernSep 13FOX SportsEJ Colson Jr connects with Carver Cheeks for a 45-yard TD, giving UTEP an early lead over MichiganSep 19FOX SportsUTEP's EJ Colson Jr connects with Lamar Sperling for 18-yard TD, retaking lead vs MichiganSep 19from 10 outlets
The Galveston County Daily News +1 Aug 28 · 2 outlets
FOX SportsEJ Colson Jr. throws 4 TD passes, runs for score in UTEP's 51-10 victory over Texas SouthernSep 13FOX SportsEJ Colson Jr connects with Carver Cheeks for a 45-yard TD, giving UTEP an early lead over MichiganSep 19FOX SportsUTEP's EJ Colson Jr connects with Lamar Sperling for 18-yard TD, retaking lead vs MichiganSep 19FOX Sports
Yahoo SportsEach week: his team’s game, the stories about him that week, and the week’s biggest news headline.
Stories we tracked, by school.
UTEP12 stories2026 to nowMost about: performance and stat line, draft stock, nil and money.
El Paso TimesUTEP Miners football's new hope, QB EJ Colson, takes commandAug 28
UCF3 stories2024Most about: starting job and depth chart, profile and feature.
El Paso Times +2UTEP football names EJ Colson starting quarterbackMay 4Yahoo SportsEJ Colson headlines UTEP’s QB room this springMar 27Stories are headlines grouped by what they are about, counted through Oct 24.
2026 is in progress.
His career
The snaps went the other way.
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
2 coachesPlayed for 2 head coaches at 2 schools: Gus Malzahn and Scotty Walden.
