Oregon State just handed the keys of its rebuild to a guy who spent last season in the FCS. Braden Atkinson, a sophomore who transferred in from Mercer, has officially been named the Beavers' starting quarterback, and he's getting thrown right into the fire.
Sources: Oregon State has named Mercer transfer Braden Atkinson as the starting quarterback, and he’ll debut at No. 23 Houston on Sept. 5. He won the Jerry Rice Award for the top player in the FCS in 2025, and he beat out Maalik Murphy and Brady Jones for the starting job.
Atkinson didn't win the job by accident. He beat out Maalik Murphy and Brady Jones for the starting spot, which is notable considering Murphy has Power 4 starting experience of his own. But Atkinson's resume speaks for itself — at Mercer he threw for 34 touchdowns and completed 20-of-33 passes for 210 yards in a game against Auburn, numbers that helped him take home the 2025 Jerry Rice Award as one of the top players in the FCS.
That award carries real pedigree. Past winners include Cam Ward, who went No. 1 overall in the NFL Draft, and Cooper Kupp, so Oregon State isn't just taking a flier on a small-school arm — they're betting on a track record of guys who've translated FCS dominance into the next level.
Atkinson, a 6-1 sophomore, will be the first starting quarterback in new coach JaMarcus Shephard’s tenure, which opens against ranked teams in Houston and hosting No. 12 Texas Tech. Atkinson threw for 34 TDs last year and had 210 passing yards at Auburn, completing 20-33 passes.
The timing makes this a brutal welcome party. Atkinson's first career start with the Beavers comes on Sept. 5 on the road against a ranked Houston team, and the very next week Oregon State hosts No. 12 Texas Tech at Reser Stadium. That's back-to-back ranked opponents to open the JaMarcus Shephard era — no tune-up games, no room to ease in.
Shephard himself is new to this too. He was hired away from Alabama, where he served as assistant head coach and receivers coach, to replace Trent Bray after Oregon State fired him mid-season. Now Shephard's first decision at the most important position on the roster is a redshirt sophomore who was playing FCS ball a year ago — a swing-for-the-fences call for a program trying to climb back out of a rough stretch.
Whatever happens against Houston and Texas Tech, everyone will know a lot more about this Oregon State team fast. Win either of those and the Atkinson pick looks like a masterstroke; lose both and the questions about throwing a portal FCS quarterback into two ranked road-and-home tests immediately start piling up.