Eight quarterbacks named Manning Award Stars of the Week

Fans Vote on Facebook to Select Overall Manning Player of the Week

NEW ORLEANS – The Manning Award, sponsored by the Allstate Sugar Bowl, has named eight quarterbacks as its “Stars of the Week.” College football fans can now go to the Allstate Sugar Bowl Facebook page to vote for what they think was the best performance from this past weekend. When voting closes on Wednesday at 11 a.m. (Central), the top vote-getter will be announced as the Manning Award Quarterback of the Week.

VOTE HERE

The Manning Award was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in 2004 to honor the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. It is the only quarterback award that includes the candidates’ bowl performances in its balloting. Since the Manning Award started recognizing Stars of the Week in 2011, 464 different quarterbacks from 129 schools have been recognized. Sixty-three different quarterbacks have been honored so far during the 2021 season.

This week’s eight Manning Award Stars of the Week are:

Holton Ahlers, East Carolina (27-of-32, 405 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INT, QBR: 96.6)

Ahlers, who also runs for 48 yards, tosses the game-tying touchdown pass with 5:01 to go and then connects on a 46-yard pass with under a minute to play to set up the game-winning field goal as the Pirates upend Navy, 38-35, in an AAC road game.

Malik Cunningham, Louisville (18-of-25, 303 yards, 5 TDs, 0 INT, QBR: 99.8)

Cunningham also runs for 224 yards (on just 11 carries) and a pair of touchdowns as he becomes the second FBS player this year with a 300/200 game – and he didn’t play the final 12 minutes of the game as the Cardinals blow out Duke, 62-22, in an ACC road game.

Michael Pratt, Tulane (19-of-24, 311 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INT, QBR: 97.2)

Pratt, who tallies a career-high for passing yards, helps the Green Wave to four first-quarter touchdowns as they jump in front en route to a 45-14 victory over USF in AAC action.

Desmond Ridder, Cincinnati (17-of-23, 274 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INT, QBR: 99.3)

Ridder, who also runs for 46 yards and a touchdown, adds his first career receiving touchdown as the undefeated Bearcats roll to a key AAC victory, 58-14 over SMU.

C.J. Stroud, Ohio State (32-of-35, 432 yards, 6 TDs, 0 INT, QBR: 98.7)

Stroud, who sets a school-record by completing 17 straight passes, also ties the OSU-record for touchdown passes (all in the first half) as the Buckeyes crush No. 7 Michigan State, 56-7 in Big Ten action.

Dorian Thompson-Robinson, UCLA (16-of-22, 349 yards, 4 TDs, 2 INT, QBR: 95.1)

Thompson-Robinson, who also runs for 46 yards and two touchdowns, leads the Bruins to a 62-33 blowout of archrival USC – the most points ever allowed by the Trojans.

Bryce Young, Alabama (31-of-40, 559 yards, 5 TDs, 0 INT, QBR: 95.4)

Young sets the school-record for passing yards in a game (second most in SEC history) while helping the Crimson Tide clinch a spot in the SEC Championship game with a 42-35 victory over No. 21 Arkansas.

Bailey Zappe, Western Kentucky (39-of-49, 470 yards, 6 TDs, 2 INT, QBR: 89.5)

Zappe, who has his fifth game with five or more touchdown passes this year despite sitting the bulk of the fourth quarter, leads the Hilltoppers to a 52-17 victory over FAU in C-USA play.

The Manning Award selected 32 quarterbacks for its preseason Watch List and then added 15 additional quarterbacks in October. Finalists will be selected in December and the winner is scheduled to be announced following the College Football Playoff National Championship.

In its first 17 years, the Manning Award has recognized the top names in college football. It has honored quarterbacks from 13 different schools and from four different conferences. The Southeastern Conference (Mac Jones, Joe Burrow, Johnny Manziel, Cam Newton, JaMarcus Russell and Tim Tebow) leads the way with six Manning Award honorees, while the Big 12 Conference (Kyler Murray, Baker Mayfield, Vince Young, Colt McCoy and Robert Griffin III) has had five winners. The Atlantic Coast Conference (Deshaun Watson twice, Matt Ryan and Jameis Winston) has had four Manning Award winners. LSU (Burrow and Russell), Oklahoma (Murray and Mayfield) and Texas (McCoy and Young) have each had two different winners.

All the Manning Award winners follow in the footsteps of the Mannings themselves. In college, Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning combined for over 25,000 passing yards and 201 touchdowns while playing in 10 bowl games and earning four bowl MVP awards. Archie was the No. 2 pick in the NFL Draft, while both Peyton and Eli were selected No. 1 overall.