Michael Van Buren Jr. packed up and started over at South Florida, and the new tape already reads No.239 4★, national recruit.
6′0″ · 195 lb · Bowie, MD · Saint Francis Academy
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.
How he plays
Operates within the system without forcing anything.
Interceptions: 93rd percentile.
The full scouting readThe numbers
passing yards · 2026 · through week 3
3 games into 2026 so far -- Best game: 239 pass yds, 2 TD, 45 rush yds, at Army
His career numbers, season by seasonThe story
Junior quarterback for South Florida. 2026: 3 games with a box-score line.
Michael Van Buren Jr.
Michael Van Buren Jr. arrives at South Florida with a new fit to prove and an old chapter behind him.
4★ · NATIONAL RECRUIT
No.239
recruiting national rank
AI-generated narrative · may contain errors · not journalism · updated 2026-09-22
His career
Career arc
Badges
Coaching lineage · 2024–2026
3 coachesPlayed under 3 different head coaches: Alex Golesh, Kevin Patrick, and Brian Hartline. Multi-era developmental context.
Where He Ended Up · Transfer
Transferred to South Florida
| Season | Team | |||||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | South Florida | 53 | 80 | 66.2% | 639 | 8.0 | 3 | 0 | 145.7 | -- | -- | -- |
| 2025 | LSU | 94 | 151 | 62.3% | 1,010 | 6.7 | 8 | 2 | 133.3 | 11 | -- | -- |
| 2024 | Mississippi State | 140 | 256 | 54.7% | 1,886 | 7.4 | 11 | 7 | 125.3 | 36 | -- | -- |
| Career | 287 | 487 | 58.9% | 3,535 | 7.3 | 22 | 9 | 131.1 | 31 | -- | -- |
| Season | Team | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2026 | South Florida | 14 | 52 | 3.7 | 2 | -- |
| 2025 | LSU | 48 | 129 | 2.7 | 1 | -- |
| 2024 | Mississippi State | 69 | -12 | -0.2 | 5 | -- |
| Career | 131 | 169 | 1.3 | 8 | -- |
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 19-9vs Florida International | 11/18 | 100 | 0 | 0 | 5.6 | — | |
| Wk 2 | W 28-24@ Army | 19/30 | 239 | 2 | 0 | 8.0 | 82.3 | |
| Wk 3 | W 59-17vs Delaware State | 23/32 | 300 | 1 | 0 | 9.4 | 48.7 | Season-high 300 yds |
| Total | 53/80 | 639 | 3 | 0 | 7.7 | 65.5 |
SIGNATURE GAME · Week 3 · 2026
W 59–17
300 yds · 1 TD · 0 INT · QBR 48.7
Dominant 42-point win at home against Delaware State.
With D. Crowther — 101 rush yds (8 car) · 3 TD · C. Seldon — 6 rush yds (1 car)
Since week 2: +300 passing yards, +1 passing TD.
Season context · Team result + system
Where this profile ranks vs the QB cohort
Box-score percentiles
Elite: interceptions (93rd percentile). Strength: rush tds (84th percentile). Concern: pass tds (13th percentile).
Percentiles versus same-position peers with enough snaps this season, based on box-score rates.
Splits · Per-game
2026 season · 3 games
Home vs Road
| YDS/g | TD/g | YPA | INT/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Home2g | 200 | 0.5 | 7.5 | 0.0 |
| Road1g | 239 | 2.0 | 8.0 | 0.0 |
First half vs Second half
| YDS/g | TD/g | YPA | INT/g | |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Weeks 1-73g | 213 | 1.0 | 7.7 | 0.0 |
Supporting cast · Scheme
Staff and system around the player
Head Coach
Brian Hartline
Pass share
47.7%
83 pass / 91 run
Plays / game
58.0
3 games
Scheme: Balanced, slow 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
Player DNA
Balanced passer who operates within the system, without one standout number carrying the profile.
His 2026 production profile sits closest to Ryan Agnew’s 2019 season.
Matches Ryan on
Through 3 college seasons, his career arc tracks closest to Hauss Hejny’s path through Colorado State.
Andrew Indorf
Matches Hauss on
As a junior, his production profile tracks closest to CJ Ogbonna's junior season at Buffalo (2024).
Differs from CJ on
Heisman Trajectory · 2026
Peaked at #95 this season.
Transfer quarterback who joined the Bulls in January of 2026 having logged 17 games and 12 starts in the SEC at Mississippi State (8 starts) and LSU (4 starts)…came to USF having passed for 2,896 yards, 19 touchdowns and nine interceptions with a 57.5 percent completion percentage and having…