2 of PFF’s Top 3 Graded Quarterbacks Play in Morgantown This Weekend

Drew Mestemaker’s Week 2 quarterback matchup against Oregon’s Dante Moore was justly hyped up quite a bit.

Well, this weekend Mestemaker will be in a quarterback duel against PFF’s highest-graded QB from college football’s Week 3.

When the dust settled from the weekend, Pro Football Focus graded West Virginia’s Michael Hawkins as the best quarterback for the weekend, tabbing the Mountaineer at a 94.1. Mestemaker was just two spots back, grading out at 93.1 behind Hawkins and Georgia’s Gunner Stockton (93.5).

Highest Graded Quarterbacks from Week 3🎯 pic.twitter.com/CRoIn8i422

— PFF College (@PFF_College) September 21, 2026

Hawkins looked like he was playing a video game as he led West Virginia to a 38-27 win against then-No. 25 Virginia. Hawkins threw for 190 yards and two touchdowns and ran for another 123 yards and three scores, including a graceful hurdle into the end zone to get the scoring started.

MICHAEL HAWKINS JR. WENT AIRBORNE FOR THE TD ✈️

📺 ACCN pic.twitter.com/CacPhVfEr9

— Big 12 Conference (@Big12Conference) September 20, 2026

He has looked like the perfect guy to run Rich Rodriguez’s offense through his first three games as a Mountaineer. Hawkins has thrown for 477 yards, five touchdowns and no interceptions and ran for another 322 yards and six scores.

Twice already this season Hawkins has thrown for 100 yards and ran for 100 yards in the same game. In the only game he didn’t do that, he threw for 155 yards and ran for 96 yards.

“Mike, he’s a dynamic player, and I think he’s gonna keep getting better,” said Rodriguez after the Virginia game. “It’s just his third game in the system. Obviously the plays he made, but his composure and seeing what was out there. Even on certain other plays that maybe didn’t hit the way we wanted to, he knew exactly what was going on. I think he grew a lot, I think our offense grew a lot today in certain moments. But Mike, he’s electric and I think he showed today he’s got a lot of really good football in front of him, too.”

People in the state of Oklahoma likely remember Hawkins being underwhelming as a Sooner, but recent results might point to that being more on the Sooners. He took part in nine games across two seasons at OU, where he threw for 950 yards, six touchdowns and two interceptions while running for 262 yards and two touchdowns. He’s already ran for more yards in a third of the games as a Mountaineer.

This was the type of success many saw Hawkins achieving at the college level, as he was a four-star prospect in the 2024 class and picked Oklahoma over offers from Alabama, Michigan and others.

The other side of Saturday’s quarterback matchup features a guy who wasn’t heralded coming out of high school but had more expectations on him entering this particular season than Hawkins did.

In two quarters and a drive, Mestemaker completed 91% of his 22 attempts for 324 yards, five touchdowns and no picks in the Cowboys’ dismantlement of FCS Murray State.

Although he’s not viewed as the runner that Hawkins is, Mestemaker is also no stranger to a 100-yard rushing game this season after he scooted for 109 yards on six carries against Oregon less than two weeks ago.

With West Virginia starting 3-0 and OSU proving it is capable of beating Oregon, this Week 4 tilt is a lot more interesting than it was initially anticipated to be, and that extends to the quarterback matchup.