2025-26 Men's College Basketball Freshman of the Year Rankings

With barely a month remaining in the 2025-26 men's college basketball regular season, the race for USBWA National Freshman of the Year feels just about over.

At this point, it's less a question of whether Cameron Boozer will win it and more a question of where he ranks among the six other players in Duke history who have won it before him.

Boozer still has to ward off maybe the deepest field of viable candidates ever. Nate Ament checks in at No. 9 on our list, and he might have been the unanimous NFOY two years ago. And some of the historical names that we're about to drop in connection with Darius Acuff Jr. and Kingston Flemings might blow your mind a bit.

Maybe they could still make this race a little bit interesting, if Boozer ever slips in the slightest.

Contrary to consideration for National Player of the Year trophies like the Wooden Award, one needn't play for a title contender to have a real shot at winning this one. Team success definitely helps, though, even if it's more of a bonus than a prerequisite for consideration.

Statistics are current through the start of play Friday, Feb. 6.

10. Thijs De Ridder, Virginia

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Season Stats: 16.7 PPG, 6.6 RPG, 1.6 APG, 36.5% 3PT

MVP Performance: 32 points, eight rebounds, three assists at Notre Dame (Jan. 27)

Previous Rank: Honorable Mention

Truth be told, it almost feels unfair having Thijs De Ridder on this list. While everyone in our top nine is a traditional 18-to-20-year-old freshman, De Ridder is a 23-year-old European pro who arrived on campus with a clear experience edge over most first-year players.

Though De Ridder turned 23 last week, he technically is a freshman, technically deserves to be considered for this list and has been the top scorer and rebounder for one of the more unexpected top 20 teams in the nation.

He did, however, have an off night when UVA picked up its best win of the season (at Louisville), and we'll have to wait a few more weeks to see what he can do against Cameron Boozer and the Duke Blue Devils.

At least he is thriving for a tournament-bound team, though. That gets him onto the board at No. 10 ahead of Baylor's Tounde Yessoufou, Stanford's Ebuka Okorie and Washington's Hannes Steinbach.

9. Nate Ament, Tennessee

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Season Stats: 17.1 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 2.5 APG, 1.1 SPG, 31.1% 3PT

MVP Performance: 29 points, seven rebounds, three assists at Alabama (Jan. 24)

Previous Rank: 10

Some freshmen show up and dominate from Day One. Others take a little while to hit their stride.

Nate Ament definitely fell into the latter category.

His build and raw talent made Ament a top five recruit, but scouts did caution there could be a learning curve as the wiry combo forward adjusted to the physicality of college/SEC play.

Well, after averaging a respectable but not remarkable 14.7 points through his first 15 collegiate games, Ament has scored at least 17 in seven straight, averaging 22.1 points and shooting 39.3 percent from three-point range.

Adios, learning curve. Hola, rapidly rebounding draft stock.

Doesn't hurt Ament's case that he just so happened to have his best game of the season at Alabama in what was Charles Bediako's re-debut in college basketball. This future lottery pick put on a show against the former second-round pick. And he'll get another chance to shine in a marquee game this Saturday night at Kentucky.

Unfortunately, for National Freshman of the Year purposes, it's too little too late. Ament has climbed back into our top 10, but even if we're being super generous, it's an eight-horse race at this point.

Maybe he could catch Darius Acuff Jr. for SEC FOY, though?

8. Brayden Burries, Arizona

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Season Stats: 15.3 PPG, 4.5 RPG, 2.9 APG, 1.6 SPG, 37.1% 3PT

MVP Performance: 29 points, five rebounds, four assists, three steals, two blocks at BYU (Jan. 26)

Previous Rank: 9

For well over a month now, we've been patiently waiting for either Brayden Burries or Koa Peat to create some separation and become the singular Freshman of the Year candidate from this still-unbeaten Arizona squad.

And in the past two weeks, Burries may have finally done so.

Peat was more than fine in those recent wins over West Virginia, BYU and Arizona State, but Burries was the KenPom Game MVP of all three, particularly out-shining Peat in that road win over BYU by scoring 13 points barely five minutes into that one.

Since getting out to a rough start in his first five games, Burries has averaged 17.5 points, 5.4 rebounds and 3.1 assists over his last 17 contests, becoming Arizona's year-to-date leading scorer in the process.

And what a golden opportunity at his doorstep: at Kansas, against Darryn Peterson, the day after the Super Bowl in what is essentially a standalone game that the entire college basketball nation will be locked in on.

Put on a show in that one while bringing the Wildcats to 24-0 and, baby, you got a stew going. Burries could surge into the top five in a hurry.

7. Darryn Peterson, Kansas

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Season Stats: 21.1 PPG, 4.3 RPG, 1.8 APG, 1.3 SPG, 43.2% 3PT

MVP Performance: 32 points, six rebounds, one block, one assist vs. TCU (Jan. 6)

Previous Rank: 8

As was the case two weeks ago, it's impossible to say where Darryn Peterson deserves to be ranked.

When he plays, he's electric. Peterson is averaging 45.7 points per 100 possessions. To put that number in context, Kansas' last No. 1 pick in the NBA draft, Andrew Wiggins, averaged 30.3 points per 100 possessions back in 2013-14. Even this year's fellow freshman phenoms Cameron Boozer and AJ Dybantsa are sitting at 41.7 and 41.2, respectively.

And in Monday's road win over Texas Tech, Peterson was the hero, draining both the game-tying and game-winning triples on back-to-back possessions in the final 90 seconds in one of those unforgettable sequences that can carry so much weight in NPOY talk.

However, while Boozer and Dybantsa are both slightly north of 700 minutes played, Peterson is at just 327, perpetually sidelined by cramps and various leg injuries—and you simply never see an MVP or POY who plays in barely half of his team's games.

Heck, in the NBA, players are required to play in at least 65 of 82 games (79 percent) to qualify for major awards, and the best-case scenario for Peterson at this point is 22 of 34 (65 percent).

Maybe he has to be No. 1 on the draft boards, but we still can't justify top five in this ranking. If he plays and thrives in the games against Arizona and Iowa State in the next 10 days, though, perhaps we'll be forced to reconsider that stance before our next update.

6. Darius Acuff Jr., Arkansas

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Season Stats: 20.3 PPG, 6.2 APG, 2.9 RPG, 40.8% 3PT

MVP Performance: 29 points, four assists, three rebounds vs. Tennessee (Jan. 3)

Previous Rank: 7

In 16 consecutive games dating back to Thanksgiving, Darius Acuff Jr. has scored at least 17 points, including a season-high 31 in the recent home win over LSU. He typically also has at least five assists. And on three occasions, he has accumulated at least 10 dimes without committing a single turnover.

One of the big questions heading into the season was whether Acuff would embrace the point guard mentality or simply call his own number most of the time.

Suffice it to say, he has toed that line beautifully, presently ninth in Arkansas history in points per game in a single season while also third in assists per game.

If he keeps this up—and if my research is correct—Acuff would become the first SEC player* to average at least 20 points and six assists since the legendary Pete Maravich went for 44.5 and 6.2, respectively, back in 1969-70.

Kind of wild to think that a "first since the Pistol" type of season isn't even good enough for top five among freshmen, but such is life in this year's absurdly loaded class. Maybe he can climb the ladder a bit with big performances against Auburn and Alabama in the next two weeks.

*Excludes Sharife Cooper, who only played 12 games in 2020-21.

5. Caleb Wilson, North Carolina

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Season Stats: 20.0 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 2.8 APG, 1.5 SPG, 1.3 BPG

MVP Performance: 20 points, 15 rebounds, three blocks, two assists vs. Ohio State (Dec. 20)

Previous Rank: 6

Caleb Wilson slipped a few spots in our previous batch of freshman rankings. It wasn't due to poor individual play, but rather because North Carolina lost three out of four games against SMU, Stanford and California and was starting to look a wee bit bubbly.

The Tar Heels have responded with four consecutive victories—including a marquee road win over Virginia—and Wilson scored at least 20 points in each of them.

Wilson does only have one double-double thus far in 2026, which is an unexpected development after he averaged 12.6 rebounds per game in December. But he's making up for that slippage on the glass with more efficient scoring, more assists and more steals than what he was managing through the first two months.

Up next is the game we've all had circled for months as the ultimate "prove it" opportunity.

It's one thing for Wilson to score 20 points seemingly every time the Tar Heels face a team outside the top 50. But if he can put on a show in a head-to-head battle with Cameron Boozer, that's a game changer.

The only other freshman in our top 10 who has faced Boozer and Duke was Darius Acuff Jr. And though the Razorbacks point guard had a fine night of 21 points and five assists, the Blue Devils big man went for 35-9-3-2 in a victory. This could be the first major step toward Wilson making a case for himself.

4. AJ Dybantsa, BYU

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Season Stats: 23.9 PPG, 6.4 RPG, 3.5 APG, 1.2 SPG, 35.9% 3PT

MVP Performance: 43 points, six rebounds, three assists, one block vs. Utah (Jan. 24)

Previous Rank: 2

Welcome to the portion of the program where we start to put a little extra emphasis on team success.

While Duke (Cameron Boozer) is and has been a clear projected No. 1 seed, Illinois (Keaton Wagler) is all but indisputably the top No. 2 seed and Houston (Kingston Flemings) is perhaps unanimously also a projected No. 2 seed.

But after BYU's Wednesday night loss to Oklahoma State—in which AJ Dybantsa merely put up 36 points in the process of becoming the nation's leading scorer—the Cougars' plummeting projected seed has become a bit of an issue for this potential No. 1 pick in the draft.

Part of the reason the seed is plummeting is that the great teams have figured out how to flummox Dybantsa, at least a little bit.

He scored a season-low 13 points in the loss at Texas Tech, shooting 6-for-17 and getting just one bucket in the final 25 minutes. He was also held to 17 in the loss at Kansas, and didn't score his first points in that one until the Cougars were already down by 19. Dybantsa did have 24 points in the loss to Arizona, but on 6-for-24 shooting, almost too happy to settle for mid-range jumpers.

When he does enter "takeover mode," it's a sight to behold. However, save for the second half against Clemson nearly two months ago at this point, we haven't seen it happen in a win over a quality opponent. And with the competition in this race as fierce as it is this season, that's enough for this superstar to slip out of the top three.

Opportunities abound to change that narrative, though. BYU faces Houston on Saturday, Arizona and Iowa State later this month and Texas Tech to end the regular season.

3. Kingston Flemings, Houston

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Season Stats: 17.0 PPG, 5.5 APG, 3.4 RPG, 1.8 SPG, 38.0% 3PT

MVP Performance: 42 points, six assists, two steals, two rebounds at Texas Tech (Jan. 24)

Previous Rank: 4

Kingston Flemings can score with the best of them, as evidenced by that 42-point showcase at Texas Tech two weeks ago.

But he also does a sensational job of setting up his teammates, tallying at least five assists in each of his last 11 games—a stretch in which he has averaged 19.3 points and 6.0 dimes per game.

Let's also not forget Houston plays at one of the slowest tempos in the country when looking at those per-game numbers. So, his averages either need to be taken with a boulder of salt or cast in a different light.

On a per 100 possessions basis, Flemings has averaged 36.8 points, 11.7 assists, 6.5 rebounds and 2.7 steals in Big 12 play.

Comparatively, Trae Young put up 38.6 points, 11.3 assists, 5.9 rebounds and 2.3 steals per 100 possessions played in his 18 Big 12 games eight seasons ago.

Just saying.

Can he do it in a couple more signature wins, though?

Houston won its home game against Texas Tech and beat Arkansas on a neutral court, and Flemings did shine in both. But the Cougars play at BYU this Saturday, at Iowa State on Feb. 16, vs. Arizona on Feb. 21 and at Kansas on Feb. 23.

That's four massive opportunities for Flemings to propel Houston to the No. 1 seed line while propelling himself at least into Cameron Boozer's rearview mirror.

2. Keaton Wagler, Illinois

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Season Stats: 17.9 PPG, 5.0 RPG, 4.3 APG, 44.4% 3PT

MVP Performance: 46 points, four assists, 9-11 3PT at Purdue (Jan. 24)

Previous Rank: 3

When Kylan Boswell hit the shelf with a broken hand a few weeks ago, we weren't sure how Illinois would fare without him. Not only is he the veteran leader of the team, but the Illini simply don't have much backcourt depth.

It looked like they were going to need Mihailo Petrovic or Brandon Lee to step up in a meaningful way after averaging a combined total of 7.8 minutes played through the team's first 18 games.

Instead, Keaton Wagler discovered an even higher gear, averaging 24.4 points, 6.0 assists and 4.8 rebounds in the team's five games sans Boswell.

Even more impressive is that between the pair of recent marquee road wins over Purdue and Nebraska, he really upped the ante for 74 points, shooting 13-for-22 from distance and 21-for-25 from the charity stripe.

Since the beginning of December, Wagler has been the best player in the country. And as far as Torvik's Points Over Replacement Per Adjusted Game At That Usage (or PORPAGATU!) is concerned, it's not even close.

Wagler also now has Illinois knocking on the door of a possible No. 1 seed with yet another huge game coming up on Saturday at Michigan State. As long as he doesn't get tripped up by Jeremy Fears, he could be the architect of another super quality win for a title contender. And those types of performances go a long, long way in these POY conversations.

1. Cameron Boozer, Duke

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Season Stats: 23.3 PPG, 9.9 RPG, 4.0 APG, 1.9 SPG, 37.5% 3PT

MVP Performance: 30 points, 14 rebounds, three assists, three steals at Stanford (Jan. 17)

Previous Rank: 1

College basketball's human metronome just keeps doing his thing.

In the two weeks since our last freshman rankings, Cameron Boozer has played four games. His season averages have changed by a grand total of 0.1 PPG, 0.0 RPG, 0.1 APG, 0.1 SPG and 0.2% 3PT since then, just churning out similar levels of dominance on a nightly basis.

As we've noted in the past, the only thing that really changes is how many triples fall for Boozer.

He has made multiple three-pointers in 11 of his 22 games, averaging 27.9 points in those contests compared to 18.6 in the other half. Even at that, he has yet to score fewer than 14 points in a game, putting up "Ben Simmons with a perimeter jumper" numbers during this historic campaign.

If Caleb Wilson and North Carolina manage to shut him down on Saturday at Chapel Hill, maybe that opens the door to the possibility of someone else winning this thing. But it has felt for a while now like the only race here is for first runner-up.