Through two weeks of the season, there have been quite a few true freshmen who have made their mark in college football. It started in Week 1 with Auburn quarterback Bo Nix helping his team take down Oregon, and has continued throughout other programs with some exciting performances.
There is still a ton of football to be played, but so far, these true freshmen have exceeded expectations and find themselves in the top 10 of the true freshman power rankings.
1. QB Sam Howell, North Carolina
Howell is 2-0 as a starter, helping North Carolina beat South Carolina and Miami in his debut for the Tar Heels. Howell was a big recruiting get for Mack Brown and flipped his commitment from Florida State to UNC.
So far this season, Howell has thrown for 519 yards, four touchdowns and no interceptions. He ranks ninth among all FBS quarterbacks in yards per completion, eighth in pass yards per attempt and 10th in first downs per pass attempt. Howell has had an impressive start to his young career and has done it against some pretty good competition.
2. QB Hank Bachmeier, Boise State
Bachmeier was a very good quarterback prospect in high school, ranked 265th overall in the ESPN 300. He had offers from Power 5 programs but turned them down for Boise State. He has seemingly made a good choice in terms of fit and opportunity, already helping his team beat Florida State and Marshall in the first two games.
The Broncos trailed the Seminoles by 18 at halftime in the first game when Bachmeier helped them come back by throwing for 407 yards. That was only the second time since 1996 a Boise State quarterback threw for 400 yards in a nonconference road game, joining Kellen Moore, who threw for 455 yards in 2011 at Toledo.
3. DE George Karlaftis, Purdue
Purdue fought to keep Karlaftis in its class after other programs tried to persuade him to flip, and he's showing why the staff thought he was so important. In his first game of the season, Karlaftis had two solo tackles, 0.5 sacks and 1.5 tackles for loss, along with 14 pressures.
He was after the quarterback the whole game and followed that up with four total tackles and one pass breakup on fourth down in the second game against Vanderbilt. He has made his presence felt on defense and should continue to only get better.
4. QB Bo Nix, Auburn
The stakes are high at Auburn, considering how disappointing the past few seasons have been for the Tigers. Nix came in and beat out Joey Gatewood for the starting job and had a tough test against Oregon in his first collegiate game.
His stats aren't eye-popping given he threw for 177 yards, two touchdowns and two interceptions while completing 41.9% of his passes. Those numbers are without context, though, as Nix helped lead Auburn in its thrilling comeback win. Through two games, Nix has thrown for 384 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions.
5. DB Derek Stingley Jr., LSU
The hype surrounding Stingley started in high school, then spilled over when he enrolled early at LSU and participated in bowl practices. He has lived up to the hype thus far and has already helped the Tigers' defense in the first two games.
His stats won't stand out against Georgia Southern, because there were only 11 passes thrown against the LSU defense. Stingley did have a presence on special teams, though, returning four punts for 52 yards, including one he brought back 32 yards. The Texas game was a better showing, when he had three tackles and two pass breakups defending Longhorns senior receiver Collin Johnson.
6. LB Henry To'oto'o, Tennessee
There haven't been many positives so far for 0-2 Tennessee, but To'oto'o has been one of the Vols' standouts. Despite the loss to Georgia State, To'oto'o was the first true freshman to lead the Vols in tackles in a season opener since Dwayne Goodrich in 1996, according to the school.
In two games, To'oto'o has racked up 15 total tackles and 1.5 tackles for loss with one quarterback hurry.
7. QB Kedon Slovis, USC
Slovis was on the sideline the first week and now finds himself in the top 10 of the rankings after the second week. An unfortunate injury to J.T. Daniels gave Slovis an opportunity, and he ran with it.
The true freshman was a four-star recruit out of high school but didn't have a ton of major offers outside of USC. None of that matters now, though, and against Stanford, Slovis played like a quarterback whom everyone should have offered. He threw for 377 yards and three touchdowns, completing 84.8% of his passes in a stunning 45-20 win.
8. QB Jayden Daniels, Arizona State
The Sun Devils knew they won big when they signed Daniels in the 2019 class, even though they had another ESPN 300 quarterback committed in Joey Yellen. Daniels was the No. 2-ranked dual-threat quarterback and named the starter for Arizona State before the season started.
Through his first two games, Daniels has thrown for 588 yards and three touchdowns with no interceptions in both wins.
9. DT Tyler Davis, Clemson
Defensive tackle was one position where Clemson needed immediate help from the 2019 class, and Davis has provided that in a big way. Dabo Swinney praised Davis after the first game of the season, saying the freshman graded out best among the Clemson defensive linemen.
Davis has been versatile in how he has been used and has tallied five total tackles and 0.5 sacks in the first two games. He looks to be a big part of Clemson's defense going forward.
10. DT DJ Dale, Alabama
Dale had big shoes to fill as a freshman trying to replace Quinnen Williams along the Alabama defensive line. He has acclimated well through two games and was named SEC player of the week after Week 1, along with teammate Tua Tagovailoa.
Alabama's coaches named him the team's co-defensive lineman of the week as well after he recorded three tackles and 0.5 tackles for loss in Alabama's victory over Duke.