NEW ORLEANS (September 16, 2024) – The Manning Award, sponsored by the Allstate Sugar Bowl, has named eight quarterbacks as its "Stars of the Week." College football fans can follow the Manning Award on social media (@ManningAward) to vote for what they think was the best performance from this past weekend. After voting closes on Wednesday at 9 a.m. (Central), the top vote-getter will be announced as the Manning Award Quarterback of the Week.
 
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, 519 different quarterbacks from 133 schools have been recognized. Sixty-six players were honored during the 2023 season.
 
This week's eight Manning Award Stars of the Week are:
 
Alan Bowman, Oklahoma State (24-of-31, 396 yards, 5 TDs, 1 INT, QBR: 96.8)
Bowman, who matches his career-best for TD passes while only playing three quarters, leads the Cowboys to a big first half on route to a 45-10 road victory over Tulsa.
 
Dillon Gabriel, Oregon (20-of-24, 355 total yards, 3 TDs, 0 INT, QBR: 99.3)
After a 7-7 first quarter, Gabriel, who began the game with 15 straight completions, ran for a 54-yard score and connected on a 20-yard TD pass to get the Ducks rolling as they ran away from rival Oregon State, 49-14, on the road.
 
Tucker Gleason, Toledo (23-of-28, 325 total yards, 3 TDs, 0 INT, QBR: 94.8)
Gleason led the Rockets to points on four of their first five possessions as they jumped all over Mississippi State in a 41-17 road victory – Toledo's first win over a "Power Four" school in nine years.
 
K.J. Jefferson, UCF (13-of-22, 276 total yards, 3 TDs, 0 INT, QBR: 87.6)
Jefferson connects on a 20-yard touchdown pass with 36 seconds remaining to cap an impressive comeback from a 21-point deficit to knock off Big 12 rival TCU on the road, 35-34.
 
Jalen Milroe, Alabama (12-of-17, 271 total yards, 5 TDs, 0 INT, QBR: 89.9)
Milroe threw for a pair of touchdowns and ran for another as the Crimson Tide took a 21-3 first-half lead and then remained in control as it topped Wisconsin, 42-10, the most lopsided home loss for the Badgers since 2008.
 
Kurtis Rourke, Indiana (25-of-33, 314 total yards, 4 TDs, 0 INT, QBR: 95.5)
Rourke, who was a perfect 9-of-9 for 128 yards on third downs, helped the Hoosiers give UCLA a rude welcome to the Big Ten as they rolled to a 42-13 win on the road.
 
Christian Veilleux, Georgia State (26-of-41, 273 total yards, 4 TDs, 1 INT, QBR: 84.4)
Veilleux, who scored on an 18-yard run early in the fourth quarter, connected on a 25-yard touchdown pass with 15 seconds to go to lift the Panthers to their first victory over an SEC team since 2019, a 36-32 decision over Vanderbilt.
 
Caden Veltkamp, Western Kentucky (27-of-30, 398 total yards, 6 TDs, 0 INT, QBR: 96.3)
Veltkamp, who came off the bench early after an injury to the starter, set a career-best with six total touchdowns (5 passing, 1 rushing) while leading the Hilltoppers to 600 yards of offense in a 49-21 C-USA road victory over Middle Tennessee.
 
While the Manning Award selected 29 quarterbacks for its preseason Watch List, additional quarterbacks are expected to be added to the Watch List later in the season. Finalists will be selected in early December and the winner is scheduled to be announced following the College Football Playoff National Championship.

In its first 20 years, the Manning Award has recognized the top names in college football. It has honored quarterbacks from 14 different schools and from four different conferences. The Southeastern Conference (Jayden Daniels, Stetson Bennett, Bryce Young, Joe Burrow, Mac Jones, Johnny Manziel, Cam Newton, JaMarcus Russell and Tim Tebow) leads the way with nine 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 (Daniels, Burrow, and Russell) now leads the way with three honorees, while Alabama (Bryce Young and Jones), Oklahoma (Murray and Mayfield), and Texas (McCoy and Vince Young) have each produced a pair of Manning Award 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.