Joey Aguilar started the season as Appalachian State’s back-up quarterback. The 6-3, 220-pound junior transfer finished it as the most prolific passer in terms of yards, completions and touchdowns among all college players from North Carolina schools.
NC Football News is putting the finishing touches on the 2023 season by looking at the state’s statistical leaders. Today we’re reviewing the top passers.
Aguilar, from Antioch, Calif., led the Old North State with 3,757 passing yards. He completed 294 of 461 throws and tossed 33 touchdowns. The Sun Belt Conference recognized Aguilar as its Newcomer of the Year. He earned Cure Bowl MVP honors to cap things off, helping the Mountaineers beat an 11-win Miami (OH) squad by a 13-9 score.
Aguilar broke App State’s single-season record for TD passes during the regular season. He’s the new school leader in single-season passing yardage as well. Heading into the post-season, only LSU’s Jayden Daniels (Heisman winner) and Oregon’s Box Nix (third place in the Heisman voting) had more touchdown throws.
Aguilar finished fourth in passing TDs in the FBS (Michael Penix Jr. of Washington passed him during the College Football Playoff). Aguilar was seventh overall in passing yardage.
Some more notes about our top passers in North Carolina:
* Only Aguilar and North Carolina’s Drake Maye (3,608 yards) finished with more than 3,000 passing yards.
* Western Carolina’s Cole Gonzales was third on the overall yardage list with 2,803 passing yards in 11 games. Brevard’s Ethan Beamish (2,727 yards) and Campbell’s Hajj-Malik Williams (2,622 yards) round out the top five.
* The top passers by yardage in each division: Aguilar (FBS), Gonzales (FCS), Catawba’s Preston Brown (D2, 2,565 yards), Beamish (D3), St. Andrew’s Darius Holly (NAIA, 725 yards) and Louisburg’s Dylan Trevillian (JUCO, 555 yards).
* UNC’s Maye was the only player from the state to average more than 300 passing yards per game (300.7). Beamish was next on that list (272.7), followed by Aguilar (268.4) and Gonzales (254.8). Ten quarterbacks in all from the state averaged better than 200 passing yards per game.
* Gonzales threw 28 touchdown passes, second-best from the state. He averaged 2.5 TDs per game, tops among North Carolina signal callers. Maye finished with 24 touchdown throws, while Beamish had 23, North Carolina Central’s Davius Richard 21 and UNC Pembroke’s Colin Johnson 20.
* Lenoir-Rhyne’s talented QB combo of Sean White (18 TDs) and Jalen Ferguson (17 TDs) combined for 3,492 passing yards to help the Bears reach the Division II semifinals.
Duke had two 1,000-yard passers, Riley Leonard (1,102) and Grayson Loftis (1,006).
* Among regular starters/contributors, Ferguson had the highest completion percentage at 72.6. Williams (71.2) and Davidson’s Coulter Cleland (70.2) also had a completion percentage better than 70.
Johnson C. Smith’s Tyrell Jackson made the most of his two game appearances, completing 48 of 66 throws for 485 yards (72.7 percent).
* Donoven Davenport of Elizabeth City State earned roughly 1/12th of his season passing yards on one play. His 95-yard touchdown strike to Quinzel Lockhart in the fourth quarter against Virginia Union in October goes down as the longest completion of the season involving a quarterback from a North Carolina school.
NCCU’s Richard was second on that list, throwing a 91-yard touchdown pass against Delaware State in the season finale (he also had an 85-yard completion in a win over Winston-Salem State).
Shaw’s Silas Cruise also completed an 85-yard throw to Donte Lee Jr. in a game against Virginia Union in October. (Lee also recorded a kickoff 98 yards for a touchdown in that same contest).
Here are passing stat leaders in various categories in spreadsheet form:
Passing Leaders: Total Yards
| PASSING YARDS (SCHOOL) | DIVISION | GM | COMP | ATT | YARDS | TDS | INT | LONG | COMP% | YPG |
| Joey Aguilar (Appalachian State) | FBS | 14 | 294 | 461 | 3757 | 33 | 10 | 77 | 63.8% | 268.4 |
| Drake Maye (North Carolina) | FBS | 12 | 269 | 425 | 3608 | 24 | 9 | 77 | 63.3% | 300.7 |
| Cole Gonzales (Western Carolina) | FCS | 11 | 204 | 310 | 2803 | 28 | 8 | 57 | 65.8% | 254.8 |
| Ethan Beamish (Brevard) | D3 | 10 | 209 | 333 | 2727 | 23 | 9 | 75 | 62.8% | 272.7 |
| Hajj-Malik Williams (Campbell) | FCS | 11 | 235 | 330 | 2622 | 19 | 8 | 70 | 71.2% | 238.4 |
| Preston Brown (Catawba) | D2 | 11 | 203 | 359 | 2565 | 19 | 5 | 78 | 56.5% | 233.2 |
| Brandon Bullins (Methodist) | D3 | 10 | 242 | 411 | 2282 | 14 | 11 | 73 | 58.9% | 228.2 |
| Davius Richard (North Carolina Central) | FCS | 11 | 166 | 273 | 2177 | 21 | 4 | 91 | 60.8% | 197.9 |
| Alec Williams-Carr (Greensboro) | D3 | 9 | 176 | 309 | 2046 | 18 | 6 | 55 | 57.0% | 227.3 |
| Rashad McKee (Chowan) | D2 | 10 | 142 | 269 | 1992 | 11 | 13 | 81 | 52.8% | 199.2 |
| Sean White (Lenoir-Rhyne) | D2 | 13 | 160 | 239 | 1955 | 18 | 5 | 65 | 66.9% | 150.4 |
| JR Martin (Mars Hill) | D2 | 10 | 140 | 246 | 1928 | 16 | 5 | 60 | 56.9% | 192.8 |
| Matthew Downing (Elon) | FCS | 10 | 125 | 216 | 1915 | 19 | 4 | 76 | 57.9% | 191.5 |
| Colin Johnson (UNC Pembroke) | D2 | 10 | 119 | 213 | 1885 | 20 | 10 | 75 | 55.9% | 188.5 |
| Daylin Lee (Winston-Salem State) | D2 | 10 | 154 | 268 | 1858 | 18 | 6 | 56 | 57.5% | 185.8 |
| Brooks Bentley (Wingate) | D2 | 10 | 127 | 193 | 1851 | 13 | 4 | 75 | 65.8% | 185.1 |
| Brennan Armstrong (NC State) | FBS | 12 | 160 | 262 | 1785 | 11 | 7 | 64 | 61.1% | 148.8 |
| Jaquan Lynch (Barton) | D2 | 10 | 107 | 185 | 1607 | 14 | 5 | 75 | 57.8% | 160.7 |
| Alex Flinn (East Carolina) | FBS | 12 | 159 | 290 | 1558 | 6 | 12 | 41 | 54.8% | 129.8 |
| Mitch Griffis (Wake Forest) | FBS | 9 | 124 | 207 | 1553 | 9 | 7 | 69 | 59.9% | 172.6 |
| Jalen Ferguson (Lenoir-Rhyne) | D2 | 10 | 114 | 157 | 1537 | 17 | 2 | 68 | 72.6% | 153.7 |
| Coulter Cleland (Davidson) | FCS | 10 | 120 | 171 | 1423 | 17 | 8 | 50 | 70.2% | 142.3 |
| Bailey Baker (Guilford) | D3 | 8 | 102 | 216 | 1420 | 14 | 9 | 75 | 47.2% | 177.5 |
| Zachary Marquis (NC Wesleyan) | D3 | 8 | 108 | 220 | 1377 | 7 | 14 | 53 | 49.1% | 172.1 |
| Trexler Ivey (Charlotte) | FBS | 11 | 112 | 203 | 1263 | 4 | 10 | 51 | 55.2% | 114.8 |
| Jaylen King (Gardner-Webb) | FCS | 9 | 107 | 201 | 1223 | 11 | 8 | 71 | 53.2% | 135.9 |
| Donoven Davenport (Elizabeth City State) | D2 | 9 | 90 | 196 | 1192 | 12 | 14 | 95 | 45.9% | 132.4 |
| Riley Leonard (Duke) | FBS | 7 | 95 | 165 | 1102 | 3 | 3 | 47 | 57.6% | 157.4 |
| Grayson Loftis (Duke) | FBS | 8 | 91 | 163 | 1006 | 8 | 4 | 46 | 55.8% | 125.8 |
| Joe Owens Jr. (Fayetteville State) | D2 | 9 | 84 | 150 | 966 | 4 | 5 | 60 | 56.0% | 107.3 |
| Marcus Drish (Livingstone) | D2 | 7 | 73 | 153 | 960 | 8 | 4 | 54 | 47.7% | 137.1 |
| Matthew Caldwell (Gardner-Webb) | FCS | 5 | 101 | 177 | 928 | 7 | 3 | 67 | 57.1% | 185.6 |
| Silas Cruise (Shaw) | D2 | 8 | 72 | 141 | 844 | 5 | 6 | 85 | 51.1% | 105.5 |
| Darius Holly (St. Andrews) | NAIA | 10 | 63 | 130 | 725 | 3 | 4 | 43 | 48.5% | 72.5 |
| MJ Morris (NC State) | FBS | 4 | 63 | 113 | 719 | 7 | 5 | 72 | 55.8% | 179.8 |
| Anthony Butler (St. Augustine’s) | D2 | 9 | 73 | 172 | 646 | 2 | 5 | 74 | 42.4% | 71.8 |
| Jalon Jones (Charlotte) | FBS | 10 | 67 | 109 | 646 | 2 | 4 | 48 | 61.5% | 64.6 |
| Noah Bell (Wingate) | D2 | 3 | 55 | 93 | 642 | 3 | 2 | 62 | 59.1% | 214.0 |
| Brenton Hilton (Livingstone) | D2 | 5 | 47 | 87 | 641 | 6 | 4 | 79 | 54.0% | 128.2 |
| Robert Adams (Johnson C. Smith) | D2 | 9 | 60 | 118 | 565 | 1 | 3 | 42 | 50.8% | 62.8 |
| Dylan Trevillian (Louisburg) | NJCAA | 9 | 49 | 122 | 555 | 5 | 5 | 31 | 40.2% | 61.7 |
| Patrick Blake (Shaw) | D2 | 8 | 52 | 96 | 551 | 5 | 2 | 51 | 54.2% | 68.9 |
| Kevin White (North Carolina A&T) | FCS | 7 | 45 | 85 | 507 | 2 | 4 | 75 | 52.9% | 72.4 |
| Tyrell Jackson (Johnson C. Smith) | D2 | 2 | 48 | 66 | 485 | 5 | 5 | 34 | 72.7% | 242.5 |
| Zaveion McCrorey (Louisburg) | NJCAA | 8 | 36 | 85 | 478 | 5 | 1 | 68 | 42.4% | 59.8 |
| Caleb Pierce (UNC Pembroke) | D2 | 4 | 34 | 69 | 447 | 3 | 3 | 55 | 49.3% | 111.8 |
| Walker Harris (North Carolina Central) | FCS | 12 | 37 | 56 | 439 | 5 | 0 | 48 | 66.1% | 36.6 |
| Jamere Cherry (Johnson C. Smith) | D2 | 5 | 34 | 69 | 434 | 5 | 3 | 49 | 49.3% | 86.8 |
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Passing Leaders: Touchdowns
| TOUCHDOWNS (SCHOOL) | DIVISION | GM | TD | INT | TD/GM |
| Joey Aguilar (Appalachian State) | FBS | 14 | 33 | 10 | 2.4 |
| Cole Gonzales (Western Carolina) | FCS | 11 | 28 | 8 | 2.5 |
| Drake Maye (North Carolina) | FBS | 12 | 24 | 9 | 2.0 |
| Ethan Beamish (Brevard) | D3 | 10 | 23 | 9 | 2.3 |
| Davius Richard (North Carolina Central) | FCS | 11 | 21 | 4 | 1.9 |
| Colin Johnson (UNC Pembroke) | D2 | 10 | 20 | 10 | 2.0 |
| Matthew Downing (Elon) | FCS | 10 | 19 | 4 | 1.9 |
| Hajj-Malik Williams (Campbell) | FCS | 11 | 19 | 8 | 1.7 |
| Preston Brown (Catawba) | D2 | 11 | 19 | 5 | 1.7 |
| Alec Williams-Carr (Greensboro) | D3 | 9 | 18 | 6 | 2.0 |
| Daylin Lee (Winston-Salem State) | D2 | 10 | 18 | 6 | 1.8 |
| Sean White (Lenoir-Rhyne) | D2 | 13 | 18 | 5 | 1.4 |
| Coulter Cleland (Davidson) | FCS | 10 | 17 | 8 | 1.7 |
| Jalen Ferguson (Lenoir-Rhyne) | D2 | 10 | 17 | 2 | 1.7 |
| JR Martin (Mars Hill) | D2 | 10 | 16 | 5 | 1.6 |
| Bailey Baker (Guilford) | D3 | 8 | 14 | 9 | 1.8 |
| Brandon Bullins (Methodist) | D3 | 10 | 14 | 11 | 1.4 |
| Jaquan Lynch (Barton) | D2 | 10 | 14 | 5 | 1.4 |
| Brooks Bentley (Wingate) | D2 | 10 | 13 | 4 | 1.3 |
| Donoven Davenport (Elizabeth City State) | D2 | 9 | 12 | 14 | 1.3 |
| Jaylen King (Gardner-Webb) | FCS | 9 | 11 | 8 | 1.2 |
| Rashad McKee (Chowan) | D2 | 10 | 11 | 13 | 1.1 |
| Brennan Armstrong (NC State) | FBS | 12 | 11 | 7 | 0.9 |
| Mitch Griffis (Wake Forest) | FBS | 9 | 9 | 7 | 1.0 |
| Marcus Drish (Livingstone) | D2 | 7 | 8 | 4 | 1.1 |
| Grayson Loftis (Duke) | FBS | 8 | 8 | 4 | 1.0 |
| MJ Morris (NC State) | FBS | 4 | 7 | 5 | 1.8 |
| Matthew Caldwell (Gardner-Webb) | FCS | 5 | 7 | 3 | 1.4 |
| Zachary Marquis (NC Wesleyan) | D3 | 8 | 7 | 14 | 0.9 |
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Passing Leaders: Yards Per Game
| YARDS PER GAME (SCHOOL) | DIVISION | GM | COMP | ATT | YARDS | YPG |
| Drake Maye (North Carolina) | FBS | 12 | 269 | 425 | 3608 | 300.7 |
| Ethan Beamish (Brevard) | D3 | 10 | 209 | 333 | 2727 | 272.7 |
| Joey Aguilar (Appalachian State) | FBS | 14 | 293 | 460 | 3757 | 268.4 |
| Cole Gonzales (Western Carolina) | FCS | 11 | 204 | 310 | 2803 | 254.8 |
| Tyrell Jackson (Johnson C. Smith) | D2 | 2 | 48 | 66 | 485 | 242.5 |
| Hajj-Malik Williams (Campbell) | FCS | 11 | 235 | 330 | 2622 | 238.4 |
| Preston Brown (Catawba) | D2 | 11 | 203 | 359 | 2565 | 233.2 |
| Brandon Bullins (Methodist) | D3 | 10 | 242 | 411 | 2282 | 228.2 |
| Alec Williams-Carr (Greensboro) | D3 | 9 | 176 | 309 | 2046 | 227.3 |
| Noah Bell (Wingate) | D2 | 3 | 55 | 93 | 642 | 214.0 |
| Rashad McKee (Chowan) | D2 | 10 | 142 | 269 | 1992 | 199.2 |
| Davius Richard (North Carolina Central) | FCS | 11 | 166 | 273 | 2177 | 197.9 |
| JR Martin (Mars Hill) | D2 | 10 | 140 | 246 | 1928 | 192.8 |
| Matthew Downing (Elon) | FCS | 10 | 125 | 216 | 1915 | 191.5 |
| Colin Johnson (UNC Pembroke) | D2 | 10 | 119 | 213 | 1885 | 188.5 |
| Daylin Lee (Winston-Salem State) | D2 | 10 | 154 | 268 | 1858 | 185.8 |
| Matthew Caldwell (Gardner-Webb) | FCS | 5 | 101 | 177 | 928 | 185.6 |
| Brooks Bentley (Wingate) | D2 | 10 | 127 | 193 | 1851 | 185.1 |
| MJ Morris (NC State) | FBS | 4 | 63 | 113 | 719 | 179.8 |
| Bailey Baker (Guilford) | D3 | 8 | 102 | 216 | 1420 | 177.5 |
| Mitch Griffis (Wake Forest) | FBS | 9 | 124 | 207 | 1553 | 172.6 |
| Zachary Marquis (NC Wesleyan) | D3 | 8 | 108 | 220 | 1377 | 172.1 |
| Jaquan Lynch (Barton) | D2 | 10 | 107 | 185 | 1607 | 160.7 |
| Riley Leonard (Duke) | FBS | 7 | 95 | 165 | 1102 | 157.4 |
| Jalen Ferguson (Lenoir-Rhyne) | D2 | 10 | 114 | 157 | 1537 | 153.7 |
| Sean White (Lenoir-Rhyne) | D2 | 13 | 160 | 239 | 1955 | 150.4 |
| Brennan Armstrong (NC State) | FBS | 12 | 160 | 262 | 1785 | 148.8 |
| Coulter Cleland (Davidson) | FCS | 10 | 120 | 171 | 1423 | 142.3 |
| Marcus Drish (Livingstone) | D2 | 7 | 73 | 153 | 960 | 137.1 |
| Jaylen King (Gardner-Webb) | FCS | 9 | 107 | 201 | 1223 | 135.9 |
| Donoven Davenport (Elizabeth City State) | D2 | 9 | 90 | 196 | 1192 | 132.4 |
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Passing Leaders: Completion Percentage
| COMPLETION % (SCHOOL) | DIVISION | GM | COMP | ATT | YARDS | COMP% |
| Tyrell Jackson (Johnson C. Smith) | D2 | 2 | 48 | 66 | 485 | 72.7% |
| Jalen Ferguson (Lenoir-Rhyne) | D2 | 10 | 114 | 157 | 1537 | 72.6% |
| Hajj-Malik Williams (Campbell) | FCS | 11 | 235 | 330 | 2622 | 71.2% |
| Coulter Cleland (Davidson) | FCS | 10 | 120 | 171 | 1423 | 70.2% |
| Sean White (Lenoir-Rhyne) | D2 | 13 | 160 | 239 | 1955 | 66.9% |
| Taron Dickens (Western Carolina) | FCS | 2 | 4 | 6 | 127 | 66.7% |
| Walker Harris (North Carolina Central) | FCS | 12 | 37 | 56 | 439 | 66.1% |
| Cole Gonzales (Western Carolina) | FCS | 11 | 204 | 310 | 2803 | 65.8% |
| Brooks Bentley (Wingate) | D2 | 10 | 127 | 193 | 1851 | 65.8% |
| Joey Aguilar (Appalachian State) | FBS | 14 | 293 | 460 | 3757 | 63.7% |
| Drake Maye (North Carolina) | FBS | 12 | 269 | 425 | 3608 | 63.3% |
| Luke Durkin (Davidson) | FCS | 10 | 22 | 35 | 234 | 62.9% |
| Ethan Beamish (Brevard) | D3 | 10 | 209 | 333 | 2727 | 62.8% |
| Jalon Jones (Charlotte) | FBS | 10 | 67 | 109 | 646 | 61.5% |
| Brennan Armstrong (NC State) | FBS | 12 | 160 | 262 | 1785 | 61.1% |
| Davius Richard (North Carolina Central) | FCS | 11 | 166 | 273 | 2177 | 60.8% |
| Mitch Griffis (Wake Forest) | FBS | 9 | 124 | 207 | 1553 | 59.9% |
| Tyler Flippen (Barton) | D2 | 8 | 16 | 27 | 281 | 59.3% |
| Noah Bell (Wingate) | D2 | 3 | 55 | 93 | 642 | 59.1% |
| Brandon Bullins (Methodist) | D3 | 10 | 242 | 411 | 2282 | 58.9% |
| Matthew Downing (Elon) | FCS | 10 | 125 | 216 | 1915 | 57.9% |
| Jaquan Lynch (Barton) | D2 | 10 | 107 | 185 | 1607 | 57.8% |
| Riley Leonard (Duke) | FBS | 7 | 95 | 165 | 1102 | 57.6% |
| Daylin Lee (Winston-Salem State) | D2 | 10 | 154 | 268 | 1858 | 57.5% |
| Matthew Caldwell (Gardner-Webb) | FCS | 5 | 101 | 177 | 928 | 57.1% |
| Alec Williams-Carr (Greensboro) | D3 | 9 | 176 | 309 | 2046 | 57.0% |
| JR Martin (Mars Hill) | D2 | 10 | 140 | 246 | 1928 | 56.9% |
| Preston Brown (Catawba) | D2 | 11 | 203 | 359 | 2565 | 56.5% |
| Joe Owens Jr. (Fayetteville State) | D2 | 9 | 84 | 150 | 966 | 56.0% |
| Colin Johnson (UNC Pembroke) | D2 | 10 | 119 | 213 | 1885 | 55.9% |
| Grayson Loftis (Duke) | FBS | 8 | 91 | 163 | 1006 | 55.8% |
| MJ Morris (NC State) | FBS | 4 | 63 | 113 | 719 | 55.8% |
| Trexler Ivey (Charlotte) | FBS | 11 | 112 | 203 | 1263 | 55.2% |
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Passing Leaders: Longest Completions
| LONGEST PASS (SCHOOL) | DIVISION | GM | LONG |
| Donoven Davenport (Elizabeth City State) | D2 | 9 | 95 |
| Davius Richard (North Carolina Central) | FCS | 11 | 91 |
| Silas Cruise (Shaw) | D2 | 8 | 85 |
| Rashad McKee (Chowan) | D2 | 10 | 81 |
| Brenton Hilton (Livingstone) | D2 | 5 | 79 |
| Malik Laurent (Mars Hill) | D2 | 10 | 79 |
| Preston Brown (Catawba) | D2 | 11 | 78 |
| Drake Maye (North Carolina) | FBS | 12 | 77 |
| Joey Aguilar (Appalachian State) | FBS | 14 | 77 |
| Matthew Downing (Elon) | FCS | 10 | 76 |
| Bailey Baker (Guilford) | D3 | 8 | 75 |
| Brooks Bentley (Wingate) | D2 | 10 | 75 |
| Colin Johnson (UNC Pembroke) | D2 | 10 | 75 |
| Ethan Beamish (Brevard) | D3 | 10 | 75 |
| Jaquan Lynch (Barton) | D2 | 10 | 75 |
| Kevin White (North Carolina A&T) | FCS | 7 | 75 |
| Anthony Butler (St. Augustine’s) | D2 | 9 | 74 |
| Brandon Bullins (Methodist) | D3 | 10 | 73 |
| MJ Morris (NC State) | FBS | 4 | 72 |
| Jaylen King (Gardner-Webb) | FCS | 9 | 71 |
| Hajj-Malik Williams (Campbell) | FCS | 11 | 70 |
| Henry Belin IV (Duke) | FBS | 4 | 69 |
| Mitch Griffis (Wake Forest) | FBS | 9 | 69 |
| Jalen Ferguson (Lenoir-Rhyne) | D2 | 10 | 68 |
| Zaveion McCrorey (Louisburg) | NJCAA | 8 | 68 |
| Matthew Caldwell (Gardner-Webb) | FCS | 5 | 67 |
| Sean White (Lenoir-Rhyne) | D2 | 13 | 65 |
| Taron Dickens (Western Carolina) | FCS | 2 | 65 |
| Brennan Armstrong (NC State) | FBS | 12 | 64 |
| Noah Bell (Wingate) | D2 | 3 | 62 |
| Tyler Flippen (Barton) | D2 | 8 | 61 |
| Joe Owens Jr. (Fayetteville State) | D2 | 9 | 60 |
| JR Martin (Mars Hill) | D2 | 10 | 60 |
| Cole Gonzales (Western Carolina) | FCS | 11 | 57 |
| Daylin Lee (Winston-Salem State) | D2 | 10 | 56 |
| Alec Williams-Carr (Greensboro) | D3 | 9 | 55 |
| Caleb Pierce (UNC Pembroke) | D2 | 4 | 55 |
| Marcus Drish (Livingstone) | D2 | 7 | 54 |
| Luke Durkin (Davidson) | FCS | 10 | 53 |
| Zachary Marquis (NC Wesleyan) | D3 | 8 | 53 |
| Patrick Blake (Shaw) | D2 | 8 | 51 |
| Trexler Ivey (Charlotte) | FBS | 11 | 51 |
| Coulter Cleland (Davidson) | FCS | 10 | 50 |
