College Football QB Power Rankings: Bo Nix vaults to No. 1 as Oregon star puts road narrative to bed

USC star QB Caleb Williams also made his return to the rankings after the Trojans snapped their two-game losing skid

By Tom Fornelli

Nov 1, 2023 at 10:34 am ET • 5 min read

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Ladies and gentlemen, we gather here today to say goodbye to an old narrative. We do so not to mourn its loss but welcome its departure. Today, we say goodbye to Road Bo Nix.

It's a dead narrative, and honestly, it's been on life support for a while. Nix finally put a dagger through its deteriorating heart Saturday in Salt Lake City, Utah, where the Ducks quarterback went into Rice-Eccles Stadium, an absolute house of horrors to visiting teams, and shut up over 50,000 Utes before they realized the ball had been snapped.

Nix went 9-of-10 passing and finished with 126 total yards with two touchdowns before the first quarter had come to an end. A few minutes into the second, he tossed another touchdown to make it 21-3 Ducks and the route was on from there. Nix finished with 256 yards and the three touchdowns and could've done more if Oregon needed him to, but with a 35-6 lead after 40 minutes, there was no need.

And it was nothing new. While he didn't have a perfect game in Oregon's loss to Washington in Seattle, Nix finished that game with 337 yards passing and three touchdowns. On the season, Nix's road numbers compare very well against his QB brethren.

Stat	Passing Efficiency	Total TDs	Interceptions	Total Yards
Road Bo Nix (Rank among 119 qualified QBs)	167.3 (10th)	11 (6th)	0 (t-1st)	1,320 (4th)

So, let us say goodbye to the Road Bo Nix narrative. Rest in pieces.

QB Power Rankings

1	Bo Nix Oregon Ducks QB
Now that we've buried the Road Bo Nix narrative, we can raise his ranking here. He climbs to the No. 1 spot this week both because of his performance against Utah and because Jayden Daniels and J.J. McCarthy were off last week. Like so much of life, you can't dismiss timing. (Last Week: 5)
2	Jayden Daniels LSU Tigers QB
Daniels had the week off and falls a spot, but if he helps LSU pull off an upset of Alabama this week, there's a good shot he'll climb back to No. 1. (1)
3	J.J. McCarthy Michigan Wolverines QB
McCarthy and the Wolverines were off last week, and I don't anticipate either having too much trouble this week against a 2-6 Purdue squad. We're all just waiting to see what McCarthy can do on the road against Penn State's defense in two weeks. (2)
4	Michael Penix Jr. Washington Huskies QB
Penix bounced back from a poor showing against Arizona State, though he still wasn't at his best. Yes, he finished with 369 yards and four touchdowns, but his 55.3% completion rate was the lowest he's had in a game this season and the Huskies refuse to stop letting teams hang around. Penix's turnovers certainly aren't helping the cause. He's thrown four interceptions in the last three games and is up to seven on the season. (4)
5	Jordan Travis Florida State Seminoles QB
Travis and the Seminoles have settled in and are crushing teams. Since trailing Clemson 17-14 at halftime five games ago, the 'Noles have outscored ACC opponents 176-63 in 10 quarters (plus some OT) of play. This weekend at Wake Forest, Travis finished with 388 total yards and four total touchdowns. (7)
6	Caleb Williams USC Trojans QB
Our longtime No. 1 QB returns to the rankings after USC (barely) ended its two-game losing streak. While a lot of people are abandoning Caleb's NFL Draft stock ship, I'm not one of them. I am still of the belief that there isn't another QB in the country capable of doing the things Williams can do. That said, I'm not going to ignore the problems. He's only thrown four interceptions on the season, three coming in the Notre Dame loss, but he's also fumbled 12 times. The Trojans have been lucky enough to recover eight of them, so it doesn't seem like a big deal, but it's an issue that needs tightening. (Not Ranked)
7	Carson Beck Georgia Bulldogs QB
After Georgia's 27-20 win over Auburn a few weeks ago, I asked the Bulldogs to let Carson Beck cook, and this man will soon earn a Michelin star with the way he's played since. He roasted Kentucky alive, toyed with Vanderbilt and stomped Florida on Saturday. Beck only threw for 315 yards in the game, but he averaged 11.3 per attempt, which is his highest YPA in any game this year. And he did it without Brock Bowers. Georgia's biggest games are still to come, and if Beck continues playing like this, you will hear the Heisman Trophy talk follow shortly after. (NR)
8	Noah Fifita Arizona Wildcats QB
I am all about Fifita. He's (generously) listed at 5-11 and 194 pounds, but he's playing like he's 6-6 and 250. He's also taken a firm grasp of the starting job. Before this weekend, there had been questions about whether Jayden de Laura would get the job back when he was healthy, but JDL was healthy on Saturday and it was Fifita who started and led the Wildcats to a 27-24 win over Oregon State. Next week presents another tough test in the UCLA defense, but thanks in large part to the redshirt freshman, the Wildcats are one win away from bowl eligibility. (NR)
9	Kaidon Salter Liberty Flames QB
I know Liberty fans are crying for their team to be ranked, and I get it because the Flames are 8-0 on the season, but the schedule is likely to keep them out of the polls a bit longer. There's room for Salter here, though. Salter has been a dual-threat all season, but he's turned it up a notch lately, rushing for 277 yards in wins against Middle Tennessee and Western Kentucky the last two weeks. With wins over Jacksonville State, New Mexico State and Western Kentucky already on the resume, the Flames have wrapped up a spot in the Conference USA Championship Game. (NR)
10	Haynes King Georgia Tech Yellow Jackets QB
King has been a rollercoaster all season. Odds are this will be the last time you see him ranked here because even though the Yellow Jackets have picked up wins over Miami and North Carolina in the last three weeks, there's a loss to Boston College sandwiched between. Oh, and there's the loss to Bowling Green before it. And if you look at King's performance in the Miami win, it's not like he balled out. But, he did ball out against North Carolina! King finished with 377 total yards and four touchdowns, outplaying Drake Maye. He deserves some recognition for it, even if the pattern of Georgia Tech's season means the Jackets are totally going to lose to Virginia next week. (NR)