The Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award® along with presenting sponsor A. O. Smith Corporation announce the 2021 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award Watch List Week 9 Stats. Candidates are chosen based on player performance on and off the field. Candidates are judged on their character, citizenship, scholastic achievement, teamwork and leadership qualities.
| NAME | SCHOOL | GAMES | COMP | ATTEMPTS | % | YDS | TDS | INT | RUSH | SCORE (record) | CONFERENCE | NOTES |
| Brennan Armstrong | Virginia | 9 | 261 | 406 | 64% | 3,557 | 34 | 8 | 271 | L 66-49 BYU (6-3) | ACC | Next: Notre Dame (11/13) |
| Connor Bazelak | Missouri | 8 | 206 | 302 | 68% | 2,138 | 13 | 8 | -4 | W 37-28 Vanderbilt (4-4) | SEC | Next: @ Georgia (11/6) |
| Anthony Brown | Oregon | 8 | 143 | 221 | 65% | 1,797 | 16 | 3 | 365 | W 52-29 Colorado (7-1) | Pac-12 | Next: Washington (11/6) |
| Sean Clifford | Penn State | 8 | 172 | 264 | 65% | 2,008 | 15 | 6 | 134 | L 33-24 Ohio State (5-3) | BIG-10 | Next: @ Maryland (11/6) |
| Jack Coan | Notre Dame | 8 | 136 | 213 | 64% | 1,610 | 13 | 4 | -60 | W 44-34 North Carolina (7-1) | Independent | Next: Navy (11/6) |
| Matt Corral | Ole Miss | 8 | 161 | 244 | 66% | 2,202 | 25 | 2 | 519 | L 31-20 Auburn (6-2) | SEC | Next: Liberty (11/6) |
| Malik Cunningham | Louisville | 8 | 141 | 233 | 61% | 1,903 | 22 | 5 | 556 | L 28-13 North Carolina State (4-4) | ACC | Next: Clemson (11/6) |
| Jayden Daniels | Arizona State | 8 | 139 | 203 | 69% | 1,734 | 11 | 5 | 432 | L 34-21 Washington State (5-3) | Pac-12 | Next: USC (11/6) |
| JT Daniels | Georgia | 3 | 54 | 71 | 76% | 567 | 5 | 2 | -15 | DNP; W 34-7 Florida (8-0) | SEC | Next: Missouri (11/6) |
| Dillon Gabriel | UCF | 3 | 70 | 102 | 69% | 814 | 11 | 3 | 125 | DNP; W 49-7 Temple (5-3) | American | Next: Tulane (11/6) |
| Sam Hartman | Wake Forest | 8 | 163 | 250 | 65% | 2,475 | 28 | 3 | 207 | W 45-7 Duke (8-0) | ACC | Next: @ North Carolina (11/6) |
| Sam Howell | North Carolina | 8 | 153 | 242 | 63% | 2,192 | 25 | 7 | 585 | L 44-34 Notre Dame (4-4) | ACC | Next: Wake Forest (11/6) |
| Emory Jones | Florida | 8 | 129 | 190 | 68% | 1,417 | 13 | 9 | 517 | L 34-7 Georgia (4-4) | SEC | Next: @ South Carolina (11/6) |
| D’Eriq King | Miami | 3 | 81 | 122 | 66% | 767 | 3 | 4 | 96 | DNP; W 38-34 Pitt (4-4) | ACC | Next: Georgia Tech (11/6) |
| Devin Leary | NC State | 8 | 189 | 286 | 66% | 2,161 | 23 | 2 | -37 | W 28-13 Louisville (6-2) | ACC | Next: @ Florida State (11/6) |
| Grayson McCall | Coastal Carolina | 8 | 116 | 158 | 73% | 2,063 | 20 | 2 | 138 | W 35-28 Troy (7-1) | Sun Belt | Next: @ Georgia Southern (11/6) |
| Kenny Pickett | Pittsburgh | 8 | 207 | 299 | 69% | 2,755 | 29 | 3 | 185 | L 38-34 Miami (6-2) | ACC | Next: @ Duke (11/6) |
| Jack Plummer | Purdue | 6 | 86 | 126 | 68% | 862 | 7 | 0 | -7 | DNP; W 28-23 Nebraska (5-3) | BIG-10 | Next: Michigan State (11/6) |
| Brock Purdy | Iowa State | 8 | 159 | 217 | 73% | 1,833 | 13 | 4 | 205 | L 38-31 West Virginia (5-3) | BIG-12 | Next: Texas (11/6) |
| Spencer Rattler | Oklahoma | 7 | 135 | 180 | 75% | 1,438 | 14 | 5 | 86 | W 52-21 Texas Tech (9-0) | BIG-12 | Next: @ Baylor (11/13) |
| Chris Reynolds | Charlotte | 7 | 128 | 193 | 66% | 1,533 | 19 | 5 | 207 | DNP; L 45-13 Western Kentucky (4-4) | C-USA | Next: Rice (11/6) |
| Desmond Ridder | Cincinnati | 8 | 143 | 225 | 64% | 1,847 | 21 | 4 | 171 | W 31-12 Tulane (8-0) | American | Next: Tulsa (11/6) |
| Carson Strong | Nevada | 8 | 253 | 356 | 71% | 2,883 | 24 | 5 | -97 | W 51-20 UNLV (6-2) | Mountain West | Next: San Jose State (11/6) |
| Taulia Tagovailoa | Maryland | 8 | 198 | 282 | 70% | 2,384 | 17 | 8 | 6 | W 38-35 Indiana (5-3) | BIG-10 | Next: Penn State (11/6) |
| Malik Willis | Liberty | 9 | 140 | 210 | 67% | 1,986 | 30 | 6 | 684 | W 62-17 UMass (7-2) | Independent | Next: @ Ole Miss (11/6) |
| DNP = Did Not Play |