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Ben Finley (American football)

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Ben Finley
Akron Zips – No. 15
PositionQuarterback
ClassRedshirt Junior
Personal information
Born: (2001-01-29) January 29, 2001 (age 23)
Height6 ft 3 in (1.91 m)
Weight195 lb (88 kg)
Career history
College
High schoolParadise Valley (Phoenix, Arizona)

Ben Finley (born January 29, 2001) is an American football quarterback for the Akron Zips. He previously played for the NC State Wolfpack and the California Golden Bears.

Early life and high school

Finley grew up in Phoenix, Arizona and attended Paradise Valley High School where he lettered in football, basketball and tennis. He was rated a three-star recruit and committed to play college football at NC State over offers from Arizona, Arizona State, Colorado State, Iowa State and Nevada.[1]

College career

NC State

Finley was an early enrollee at NC State in early 2020.[2] In week six, Finley made his collegiate debut when he replaced starting quarterback Bailey Hockman in a loss against number 14 ranked North Carolina. In his only appearance in his true freshman season, he finished the game completing 13 out of 20 passing attempts for 143 yards with one touchdown and two interceptions.[3][4] During the 2021 season, he played in four games and finished the season with completing five out of nine passing attempts for 28 yards.[5] In 2022, he played in three games and finished the season with completing 65 out of 123 passing attempts for 741 yards with three touchdowns and three interceptions.[6] He earned his first collegiate start against number 17 ranked North Carolina. Finley led the Wolfpack to a double overtime victory over the Tar Heels where he completed 27 of 40 attempts for 271 yards and two touchdowns.[7] Finley started the following week in the season finale against Maryland where he completed 22 of 48 pass attempts for 269 yards, but threw two interceptions in the loss. On April 11, 2023, Finley announced that he would be entering the transfer portal.[8] On April 26, 2023, he announced that he would be transferring to California.[9]

California

In 2023, Finley competed with Sam Jackson and Fernando Mendoza for the starting job.[10] Jackson won the job, but in week one against North Texas, Finley relieved an injured Jackson where he completed 24 of 34 attempts for 289 yards and one touchdown to one interception.[11] Finley earned the start the following week against Auburn. He completed 7 of 11 attempts for 31 yards, but was replaced by Jackson in the second quarter in the 14–10 loss.[12] The following week, Finley played just a few plays in a win against Idaho. He was named the starter the following week against Washington, but was knocked knocked out and replaced once again by Jackson. He ended the game 17 of 32 for 207 yards and two touchdowns, but was intercepted three times.[13] Finley entered the transfer portal a second time on November 28, 2023.[14][15]

Akron

On January 3, 2024, Finley announced that he would be transferring to Akron.[16] In August, Finley was named the starting quarterback for week one against Ohio State.[17] On the first offensive play of the season, Finley injured his shoulder on a tackle from Buckeyes cornerback Davison Igbinosun.[18] Finley later returned, but was injured yet again on a hit from Buckeyes linebacker Jack Sawyer. Finley exited the game a few plays later and did not return. In his Zips debut, Finley completed 8 of 14 passes for 53 yards and an interception.[19] Finley started week two, where he threw for 129 yards on 14 of 31 attempts. He threw for his first Zips touchdown pass in a loss to Rutgers.[20]

Statistics

Season Games Passing Rushing
GP GS Record Cmp Att Pct Yds Avg TD INT Rtg Att Yds Avg TD
NC State Wolfpack
2020 1 0 0–0 13 20 65.0 143 7.2 1 2 121.6 2 −9 −4.5 0
2021 4 0 0–0 5 9 55.6 28 3.1 0 0 81.7 2 7 3.5 0
2022 3 2 1–1 65 123 52.8 741 6.0 3 3 106.6 6 −8 −1.3 0
California Golden Bears
2023 7 2 0–2 54 94 57.4 572 6.1 3 4 110.6 12 8 0.7 0
Akron Zips
2024 3 3 1–2 50 88 56.8 549 6.2 5 3 121.2 22 1 0.0 0
Career 18 7 2–5 187 334 56.0 2,033 6.1 12 12 111.8 44 −1 0.0 0

Personal life

Finley was born and raised in Phoenix, Arizona. Both of his parents were college athletes at St. Olaf College; his mother, Robin, played women's tennis, and his father, Pat, played football.[15] His older brother, Ryan, played also as a quarterback for the Cincinnati Bengals.[21]

References

  1. ^ "Ben Finley, Paradise Valley, Pro-Style Quarterback". 247sports.com. Retrieved October 11, 2023.
  2. ^ "Ben Finley". NC State Wolfpack.
  3. ^ "Ben Finley 2020 Gamelog". Sports Reference. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
  4. ^ "Four ways NC State football got better from its bye week before playing Miami". Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  5. ^ "Ben Finley 2021 Gamelog". Sports Reference. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
  6. ^ "Ben Finley 2022 Gamelog". Sports Reference. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
  7. ^ "Ben Finley leads NC State past No. 17 UNC in first career start". Retrieved September 13, 2024.
  8. ^ Alexander, Chip (April 11, 2023). "NC State quarterback Ben Finley in NCAA transfer portal". The News & Observer. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
  9. ^ Faraudo, Jeff (April 26, 2023). "Bears Gets Commitment From NC State Transfer Quarterback". Sports Illustrated. Retrieved October 12, 2023.
  10. ^ "Cal names Sam Jackson V starting quarterback". AP News. August 24, 2023. Retrieved August 27, 2023.
  11. ^ "QB Ben Finley Plans to Enter Transfer Portal".
  12. ^ "Cal Football Quarterback Ben Finley to Enter the Transfer Portal".
  13. ^ "Cal keeping quiet about QB situation ahead of Arizona State showdown".
  14. ^ "2024 College football Transfer Portal".
  15. ^ a b "Ben Finley". California Golden Bears.
  16. ^ @TransferPortal_ (January 3, 2024). "Ben Finley - Transfer Portal" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  17. ^ @PeteThamel (August 21, 2024). "Sources: Akron has named veteran transfer Ben Finley as the starting quarterback, and he'll open for the Zips at Ohio State. He's a former Cal and NC State quarterback who started two games at each school" (Tweet) – via Twitter.
  18. ^ "Ohio State vs. Akron score, takeaways: Buckeyes shake off sluggish start for blowout victory over Zips".
  19. ^ "Jack Sawyer Crushes Ben Finley's Spirit, Computers Are Lower on Ohio State Than Humans and Ryan Day Says the Buckeyes Are "Not in the Excuse-Making Business"".
  20. ^ "Zips Come Up Short Against Rutgers".
  21. ^ Friedlander, Brett (December 18, 2019). "Younger Finley Signs On To 'Blaze His Own Trail' At State". SI.com. Retrieved October 24, 2020.
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