See where Ashton Daniels ranked in The Athletic's quarterback ranking

[ASFN Admin]

The Florida State Seminoles are entering the 2026 season with plenty of pressure as head coach Mike Norvell has arguably the hottest seat in the entire country. He has once again turned to the transfer portal to find FSU's starting quarterback, tabbing former Auburn Tiger and Stanford Cardinal Ashton Daniels as QB1.

While he brings plenty of experience to FSU, he has struggled plenty. That has caused The Athletic to rank him as the No. 60 college quarterback in college football, placing him in their fifth tier, which they define as "quarterbacks teams can win with and who have distinct traits, but they are missing something that can vault them to the next level."

They talked to several ACC front office members about Daniels, and they were torn on the addition. While his passing numbers caused one to be concerned, a second likes his fit in Norvell's offense, which is at its best with a mobile quarterback who is a willing and capable runner.

“Hell of an athlete. Big, can run, he’s physical, he’s not afraid, but he can’t throw the ball?” an ACC front office staffer said.

“Put in situations to succeed, he can be successful,” a second ACC front office staffer said. “When you look at the quarterbacks Mike Norvell has been really successful with, he’s a lot more like a Jordan Travis and Tommy Castellanos than he is a DJ Uiagalelei. I think he’s a good fit for what they do.”

Daniels has started 23 games during his career and played in 37. The veteran has improved each year, completing 60.2% of his passes for 4,783 yards, 24 touchdowns, and 22 interceptions. It was in a limited sample size, but he improved his interception rate from 3.3% at Stanford to 1.7% at Auburn. He has rushed for 1,397 yards and 11 touchdowns in his career.

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This article originally appeared on FSU Wire: See where Ashton Daniels ranked in The Athletic's quarterback ranking

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