FORT WORTH, Texas – Texas State's Brad Jackson has been named to the 2026 Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award Preseason Watch List, the Davey O'Brien Foundation announced Thursday. The honor comes as the award celebrates its 50th anniversary season and recognizes 30 of the nation's top returning college quarterbacks.

Jackson enters his sophomore season following a record-setting 2025 campaign. The Armed Forces Bowl MVP started all 13 games for the Bobcats and accounted for 3,968 yards of total offense, setting a Texas State single-season record while also establishing program records for total offense per game (305.2) and touchdowns responsible for (38).

Jackson completed 251-of-352 passes for 3,224 yards and 21 touchdowns while posting a school-record 71.3 completion percentage and 164.0 passing efficiency. His completion percentage ranked fifth nationally, while his passing efficiency ranked seventh. His 3,224 passing yards rank third in Texas State single-season history.

On the ground, Jackson rushed for a school-record 17 touchdowns on 174 carries for 744 yards. His TD total ranked fifth nationally.

This season, Jackson has already been recognized on watch lists for the Allstate AFCA Good Works Team and Wuerffel Trophy as well as the Maxwell Award, presented annually to the outstanding player in college football.

The preseason watch list was selected by a subset of the Davey O'Brien National Selection Committee based on previous Division I career performance and expectations entering the 2026 season.

The Davey O'Brien Midseason Watch List will be announced Tuesday, Nov. 3, and will feature active starting quarterbacks from the preseason list, players selected as weekly Great 8 recipients through the first nine weeks of the season and additional quarterbacks approved by the selection committee.

The Davey O'Brien QB Class of 2026 will be announced Tuesday, Nov. 10, with fan voting once again providing bonus selection committee votes during the semifinalist, finalist and winner voting rounds. Semifinalists will be announced Tuesday, Nov. 17, followed by the announcement of the three finalists Tuesday, Nov. 24.

The 2026 Davey O'Brien Award winner will be unveiled live on ESPN on Friday, Dec. 11, during The Home Depot College Football Awards.