NEW ORLEANS (Oct. 26, 2026) – Noah Fifita of Arizona and Keyone Jenkins of UCF headline this week's eight Manning Award Stars of the Week after leading their teams to impressive victories, including a dominant Arizona shutout and UCF's double-overtime upset of No. 2 BYU.

The other Manning Stars of the Week are Kevin Jennings (SMU), Sam Leavitt (LSU), Gael Ochoa (Rice), Drew Mestemaker (Oklahoma State), Darian Mensah (Miami) and Marcus Stokes (Memphis).

The Manning Award, presented by the Allstate Sugar Bowl, is presented annually to the nation's top quarterback and is the only quarterback award that takes postseason performances into consideration.

Fifita delivered an efficient performance to lead No. 25 Arizona to a 39-3 victory over Iowa State. The Wildcats quarterback completed 27 of 34 passes for 308 yards and two touchdowns without an interception
Jenkins accounted for four touchdowns to lead UCF to a thrilling 39-31 double-overtime upset of No. 2 BYU. He threw for 293 yards and three touchdowns while adding a rushing score. Jenkins delivered the decisive blow in the second overtime, connecting with tight end Grayson Brousseau on a 2-yard touchdown pass to put the Knights ahead before the defense secured the victory.

Jennings completed 16 of 23 passes for 223 yards and three touchdowns to lead No. 23 SMU to a 59-20 victory over California, while Leavitt accounted for four touchdowns in LSU's 38-17 road victory over Auburn.
Ochoa turned in a historic performance in his first collegiate start for Rice, accounting for five touchdowns in a 51-49 loss to Florida Atlantic. He rushed for 259 yards and four touchdowns on just 12 carries, with scoring runs of 55, 52, 74 and 69 yards.

Mestemaker threw for 386 yards and four touchdowns to lead Oklahoma State to a 57-24 victory over Colorado and Mensah completed 31 of 37 passes for 387 yards and four touchdowns to lead No. 1 Miami to a 52-23 victory over Pittsburgh. Stokes accounted for five touchdowns to lead Memphis to a 41-34 overtime victory over East Carolina.

|The Manning Award was created by the Allstate Sugar Bowl in 2004 to honor the college football accomplishments of Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning. Since the Manning Award began recognizing Stars of the Week in 2011, 633 different quarterbacks from 138 schools have been recognized.

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

Noah Fifita, Arizona (27-of-34, 308 yards, 2 TDs) - Fifita delivered an impressive performance, leading No. 25 Arizona to a dominant 39–3 victory over Iowa State. The Wildcats quarterback completed 27 of 34 passes for 308 yards and two touchdowns. Fifita connected with Isaiah Mizell for a 71-yard touchdown on Arizona's second play of the game, giving the Wildcats an immediate spark. 

Keyone Jenkins, UCF (25-of-41, 293 yards, 4 total TDs) - Jenkins delivered a clutch performance, leading UCF to a thrilling 39–31 double-overtime upset over No. 2 BYU. The Knights quarterback threw for 293 yards and three touchdowns, saving his biggest moment for the second overtime when he connected with tight end Grayson Brousseau on a 2-yard touchdown pass to put UCF ahead. 

Kevin Jennings, SMU (16-of-23, 223, 3 TDs) - Jennings led No. 23 SMU to a dominant 59-20 victory over California on October 24, throwing three touchdown passes to become the Mustangs' all-time leader in career passing touchdowns. SMU rallied from a 20-17 halftime deficit by scoring 42 unanswered points in the second half.

Sam Leavitt, LSU (32-of-45, 441 total yards, 4 total TDs) - Leavitt delivered a standout performance, leading LSU to a 38–17 road victory over Auburn. The Tigers quarterback completed 32 of 45 passes for 387 yards and three passing touchdowns, while adding 54 rushing yards and a rushing touchdown. He connected with Jackson Harris for two scores, including a 70-yard touchdown, and found Trey'Dez Green for another touchdown. Leavitt also scored on a 4-yard run just before halftime as LSU built a 31–10 lead. 

Gael Ochoa, Rice (2-of-5, 80 passing yards, 339 total yards, 5 total TDs) - Ochoa put together a historic performance in his first collegiate start for Rice, accounting for five touchdowns despite the Owls falling just short in a wild 51–49 loss to Florida Atlantic. Ochoa rushed for 259 yards and four touchdowns on just 12 carries, ripping off scoring runs of 55, 52, 74 and 69 yards. He also completed 2 of 5 passes for 80 yards, including a 71-yard touchdown strike to Braylen Walker late in the fourth quarter. His 259 rushing yards ranked second-most in Rice football history, and his 21.6 yards per carry set an American Conference record. 

Drew Mestemaker, Oklahoma State (21-of-36, 386 yards, 4 TDs)- Mestemaker threw for 386 yards and four touchdowns to lead Oklahoma State to a dominant 57–24 win over Colorado. He connected with Miles Coleman for a 47-yard touchdown, found Justin Bowick for another score, and later hooked up with Morgan McPhaul and Wyatt Young for touchdowns. After trailing 24–23 at halftime, the Cowboys exploded in the second half, outscoring Colorado 34–0 to seal the victory.

Darian Mensah, Miami (31-of-37, 387 yards, 4 TDs) - Mensah was sensational Saturday, leading No. 1 Miami to a dominant 52–23 victory over Pittsburgh. The Hurricanes quarterback completed 31 of 37 passes for 387 yards and four touchdowns with zero interceptions, completing an outstanding 83.8% of his passes.

Marcus Stokes, Memphis (29-of-43, 320 yards, 5 total TDs) - Marcus Stokes accounted for five touchdowns to lead Memphis to a 41-34 overtime victory over East Carolina on October 22, rallying the Tigers from a 16-3 halftime deficit. He threw for 320 yards and three touchdowns while adding two rushing scores. He then gave Memphis its first lead with a 2-yard rushing touchdown late in regulation before scoring on a 5-yard run in overtime.

The Manning Award selected 40 quarterbacks for its Watch List in the preseason and added an additional 16 quarterbacks on October 23. 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 22 years, the Manning Award has recognized the top names in college football. It has honored quarterbacks from 16 different schools and five 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) and the Atlantic Coast Conference (Cam Ward, Deshaun Watson twice, Matt Ryan and Jameis Winston) have each had five winners.

All the Manning Award winners follow in the footsteps of the Mannings themselves. In college, Archie, Peyton and Eli Manning combined for more than 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.

The Allstate Sugar Bowl has established itself as one of the premier college football bowl games, having hosted 29 national champions, 114 Hall of Fame players, 55 Hall of Fame coaches and 21 Heisman Trophy winners in its 92-year history. The 93rd Allstate Sugar Bowl Football Classic, which will serve as a College Football Playoff Semifinal, will be played on January 15, 2027. In addition to football, the Sugar Bowl Committee annually invests more than $1 million into the community through hosting and sponsorship of sporting events, awards, scholarships and clinics. Through these efforts, the organization supports and honors thousands of student-athletes each year, while injecting more than $2.6 billion into the local economy over the last decade. For more information, visit www.AllstateSugarBowl.org.