1608 team passing yards leader is what Ethan Hampton has put on film since landing at Southern Miss — the bet is starting to settle.
6′3″ · 220 lb · Elburn, IL · Aurora Christian HS
CFB Index
A single number blending on-field production (an EPA-based value lane) with box-score output for this player's position.
0-100, scaled within each position's own cohort — not directly comparable across positions.
The numbers
passing yards · 2026 · through week 3
3 games into 2026 so far -- Backed by 328 yds · 5 TD -- top 1% passing TDs game. -- Best game: 180 pass yds, 1 TD, 1 INT, vs Alcorn State
The play that turned itSwung Western Illinois from 15% to 47% to win.Western Illinois at Northern Illinois · 54-15
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Senior quarterback for Southern Miss. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
“THE HUDDLE • Re: USM Game Week Thread Southern Miss Starting QB Ethan Hampton likely out vs Tulane, coach Blake Anderson say... ... a-ds=sophi”
Ethan Hampton
Ethan Hampton arrives at Southern Miss with a new fit to prove and an old chapter behind him.
TEAM PASSING YARDS LEADER
1608
Team leader in passing yards (1608).
AI-generated narrative · may contain errors · not journalism · updated 2026-09-22
His career
Nobody recruited him. He earned the honors anyway.
Career arc
Coaching lineage · 2021–2026
4 coachesPlayed under 4 different head coaches: Will Hall, Reed Stringer, Charles Huff, and Blake Anderson. Multi-era developmental context.
Where He Ended Up · Transfer
Transferred to Southern Miss
| Season | Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Southern Miss | 45 | 75 | 60.0% | 419 | 5.6 | 2 | 4 | 105.1 | 37 | -- | -- |
| 2025 | Illinois | 3 | 4 | 75.0% | 27 | 6.8 | 0 | 1 | 81.7 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2024 | Northern Illinois | 143 | 245 | 58.4% | 1,608 | 6.6 | 12 | 6 | 124.8 | 17 | -- | -- |
| 2023 | Northern Illinois | 19 | 33 | 57.6% | 147 | 4.5 | 2 | 2 | 102.9 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2022 | Northern Illinois | 72 | 122 | 59.0% | 798 | 6.5 | 7 | 6 | 123.1 | 51 | -- | -- |
| 2021 | Northern Illinois | 4 | 10 | 40.0% | 23 | 2.3 | 0 | 0 | 59.3 | -- | -- | -- |
| Career | 286 | 489 | 58.5% | 3,022 | 6.2 | 23 | 19 | 118.1 | 29 | -- | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | Southern Miss | 8 | 13 | 1.6 | 0 | -- |
| 2025 | Illinois | -- | -- | -- | -- | -- |
| 2024 | Northern Illinois | 53 | 129 | 2.4 | 2 | -- |
| 2023 | Northern Illinois | 4 | 6 | 1.5 | 0 | -- |
| 2022 | Northern Illinois | 12 | -6 | -0.5 | 0 | -- |
| 2021 | Northern Illinois | 5 | -10 | -2.0 | 0 | -- |
| Career | 82 | 132 | 1.6 | 2 | -- |
Game by game
Point color shows the opponent's defensive strength that week (red = weaker defense, blue = stronger) — dashed line is this player's own season average.
Game log · Week-by-week
2026 season · 3 games
| Wk | Opp | CMP/ATT | YDS | TD | INT | YPA | QBR | Note |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Wk 1 | W 49-3vs Alcorn State | 13/23 | 180 | 1 | 1 | 7.8 | — | Season-high 180 yds |
| Wk 2 | L 8-43@ Auburn | 18/27 | 146 | 1 | 2 | 5.4 | — | |
| Wk 3 | L 20-48vs UConn | 14/25 | 93 | 0 | 1 | 3.7 | 8.7 | |
| Total | 45/75 | 419 | 2 | 4 | 5.6 | 8.7 |
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 1 · 2026
W 49–3
vs Alcorn State
180 yds · 1 TD · 1 INT · 15 rush yds (3 car)
Dominant 46-point win at home against Alcorn State.
With M. Johnson — 13 rush yds (1 car) · D. Zimmer — 36.3 yards per punt · 3 punts · 2 inside the 20
Signature plays · top plays by |EPA|
The plays that mattered most
Since week 2: +93 passing yards, +1 interception.
Season context · Team result + system
Where this profile ranks vs the QB cohort
Box-score percentiles
Concern: pass yards (0th percentile).
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Pass Profile · True throw depth (charted plays)
Adjusted ANY/A, sack rate, and where the yards came from
Adjusted ANY/A
3.61121 of 126 QBsSack rate
1.3%8 of 126 QBsRarely sacked (8 of 126), but Adjusted ANY/A hasn't followed (121 of 126).
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 60.0% completion on 75 attempts · 51% of attempts thrown 0–9 air yds.
Zeitgeist Passer Rating
2026 · our own passing-efficiency number, shown next to the 1979 formula it does not replace.
Thin sample: 75 dropbacks37Zeitgeist Passer Ratingnot ranked until 125 dropbacks
--NCAA passer ratingno box-score line yet
Positive-play rate weight 24%
40.1%12th pct of FBS QBsshare of dropbacks that gained expected points · -3.9% schedule adj.Yards per attempt weight 56%
4.892th pct of FBS QBssacks excluded · -0.8 schedule adj.Sack rate weight 21% (penalty)
1.8%96th pct of FBS QBsthe input passer rating cannot see · +0.4% schedule adj.Opponent-adjusted; garbage time excluded (1 of 76 dropbacks dropped). 50 = FBS average; the number is pulled toward 50 when the sample is thin. Scaled against the 2025 FBS population until enough 2026 QBs qualify. How ZPR is built.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 3 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | TD/g | YPA | INT/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home2g | 136 | 0.5 | 5.8 | 1.0 |
| Road1g | 146 | 1.0 | 5.4 | 2.0 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | TD/g | YPA | INT/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 140 | 0.7 | 5.6 | 1.3 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Blake Anderson
Pass share
52.7%
127 pass / 114 run
Plays / game
80.3
3 games
Scheme: Balanced, fast tempo.
Player standing · 2026
On the two-deep and pushing for snaps.
Play style
Operates within the system without forcing anything.
CFB Index positional classification
The No. 1,704 recruit in the country is starting at quarterback in the Sun Belt as a senior.
Player DNA
Balanced passer who operates within the system, without one standout number carrying the profile.
His 2024 production profile sits closest to Brayden Schager’s 2024 season.
Matches Brayden on
Differs from Brayden on
Through 5 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Ross Bowers’s path through Northern Illinois.
Matches Ross on
As a senior, his production profile tracks closest to Brayden Schager's senior season at Hawai'i (2024).
Matches Brayden on
Differs from Brayden on
Player DNA
2025 (R-Jr.): Appeared in four games in only season at Illinois…Threw for 27 yards on 3-of-4 passing with an interception…Longest pass play of season was 14 yards against Western Illinois (8/29)…2024 (R-So.): Started 10 games at quarterback for Northern Illinois…Completed 144-of-247 passes for 1,...