Seems like Marcus Mariota played at Oregon forever, but now he’s gone and it’s time to start thinking about next year’s best Quarterbacks.
Who will be the next Mariota, or Jameis Winston, or Johnny Manziel the last 3 Heisman winners?
1. Trevone Boykin – TCU: Boykin was pretty average the last couple of years, but just exploded in 2014. The purpose of this list is not to present the top NFL prospects, but the best college football Quarterbacks. If Boykin is not the best college Quarterback in 2015, he should be really close. In 2014, Boykin threw for 3,901 yards and 33 Touchdowns on 301 completions out of 492 passing
attempts. Boykin is a former Wide Receiver so he is a top athlete. He demonstrated that by running for 707 yards and 8 Touchdowns. Boykin also caught 2 passes for another 53 yards and yet another Touchdown. The TCU Horn Toads were a mediocre 4-8 in the 2013 season and pretty much an afterthought going into 2014. But, Boykin and his TCU teammates shocked the nation and finished up an impressive 12-1 2014 season with a 42-3 beating of the formerly highly ranked Ole Miss Rebels. Trevone Boykin will be a 6-2, 205 senior in 2015 and could be the top Quarterback in the nation.
2. JT Barrett – Ohio State: If not Boykin as the nation’s top Quarterback, why not JT Barrett of the national champions Ohio State Buckeyes? In similar fashion as Boykin, Barrett came out of nowhere to become one of the bigger stars of 2014. Barrett won the back up job for the Buckeyes in the Spring of 2014. Returning starter Braxton Miller went down with a shoulder injury right before the season got started and redshirt freshman JT Barrett was thrown into the starting lineup for the Buckeyes.
Barrett was not without his struggles as the Buckeyes lost to the Virginia Tech Hokies in their second game.
The struggles didn’t last as the Buckeyes came on strong and Barrett led them to the Big 10 East championship. Barrett was injured during the Ohio State victory over traditional rival, Michigan in their last game. Before the injury, Barrett passed for 2,834 yards from 203 completions out of 314 attempts which resulted in 33 Touchdowns.
Barrett also ran for 938 yards and an additional 11 Touchdowns. If not for missing the last 3 games, Barrett’s statistics would have been even more sensational. The 6-1, 220 redshirt freshman from Wichita Falls, Texas should have a bright future if he can even start for the Buckeyes next season.
3. Cody Kessler – USC: The Trojan senior is not the prototype NFL Quarterback at 6-2, 210, but he’s a very accurate passer. Kessler threw the ball 452 times in 2014 and completed 315 passes for 3,826 yards and a very impressive 39 Touchdowns against only 5 Interceptions. Kessler is mobile enough but will never put up good rushing numbers and he did take some sacks. What’s even more impressive about Kessler’s performance in 2014 was that the Trojans often started 3 true freshmen in the Offensive Line and had many other younger players playing with him on offense.
Kessler has thrown for approximately 7,000 yards with the opportunity to go beyond 11,000 passing over his career for the USC Trojans.
The senior from Bakersfield, California has turned into an outstanding Quarterback for the Trojans. He probably won’t be a high NFL draft pick because of his lack of height, but he has the talent and the leadership capabilities to make a good Quarterback at the next level.
4. Justin Thomas – Georgia Tech: One of the more fun players to watch this past season. Justin Thomas is an old school 5-11, 190 Quarterback that runs the option offense like a master. He is an absolute magician with the ball in his hands and he is perfect for the Georgia Tech Flex Bone Offense. The junior to be from Prattville, Alabama threw for a modest 1,719 yards and 18 Touchdowns. But, that’s the offense that Georgia Tech runs so he will not put up huge passing numbers.
But, Thomas will put up big running numbers in that option offense and he rushed for 1,086 yards and 8 Touchdowns.
Thomas is the perfect Quarterback for coach Paul Johnson’s offense and the Rambling Wreck of Georgia Tech went 11-3 in 2014 and beat the Mississippi State Bulldogs in the Orange Bowl by a very convincing 49-34 score and Thomas was impressive in that game.
Again, this list is not necessarily about who will become an NFL Quarterback after he finishes up with his college football playing days, but about the best college Quarterbacks. Justin Thomas is one of the best college Quarterbacks for the 2014 season and probably during the 2015 season.
5. Cardale Jones – Ohio State: The 6-5, 250 junior from Cleveland Cardale Jones did not even start for the Ohio State Buckeyes last season until JT Barrett went down against Michigan. In the Big 10 Title game, Jones showed the nation what he can do with a 12 completions out of 17 attempts performance which went for 257 yards and 3 Touchdowns. The Ohio State Buckeyes stomped the Wisconsin Badgers with an impressive 59-0 beating which propelled them into the brand new playoff system.
In the playoffs, Jones lit up Alabama with 243 yards rushing and against Oregon he threw for 242 yards.
Cardale Jones is a huge Quarterback with a huge arm and outstanding running ability. The problem Jones does have is that JT Barrett is returning at Quarterback and so is Braxton Miller, apparently. People wanted Jones to declare for the NFL draft after playing 3 whole games and he decided to return to Ohio State because he was not ready yet. I totally agree with his decision even with the return of Barrett and Miller. This guy has unlimited potential.
6. Dak Prescott – Mississippi State: At one point last season, Dak Prescott was one of the favorites to win the Heisman Trophy. The SEC took a bit of a hit the past 2 years which may have cost Prescott some favor with the national media. Plus, they lost to Alabama and then lost badly to rival Ole Miss in the annual Egg Bowl.
Prescott has been compared to former Florida Quarterback Tim Tebow and his coach, Hugh Mullen, was Tebow’s Quarterback coach at Florida.
Prescott, at 6-2, 230, is a super strong runner and toted the ball for 986 yards and 14 Touchdowns in the 2014 season. Plus, he threw the ball for 3,449 yards and 27 Touchdowns. Not bad numbers and he possibly could enter the Heisman race again in 2015.
Prescott also caught 2 passes for 35 yards and another Touchdown. Prescott led his Mississippi State Bulldogs to their first ever #1 national ranking and a 9-0 start before losing to Alabama in Tuscaloosa and falling to 10 – 3 in the season. Still, the best team the Bulldogs have had and Prescott is one of their all time great players and Quarterbacks.
7. Braxton Miller – Ohio State: Braxton Miller was the 2012 and 2013 starter at Quarterback for the Ohio State Buckeyes and injured his shoulder before the 2014 season. Everyone has talked that he would transfer to another university to play football for his senior season. But, apparently, he has decided to remain at Columbus and compete for a starting position. Many think that JT Barrett and Cardale Jones have bypassed Miller and are more talented. But, time and Spring time competition should tell us more.
I have been watching college football for many, many years and I have never seen a Quarterback situation like what is going on at Ohio State right now. They have 3 Quarterbacks that could start for most universities. He has thrown for over 5,000 career yards for the Buckeyes and run for around 3,000 yards. Braxton Miller is nothing to sneeze at.
8. Taysom Hill – BYU: The Brigham Young Quarterback was all the rage last season and was entering the Heisman race before he was injured against Utah State. Hill had passed for 975 yards and 7 Touchdowns and run for 463 yards and 8 Touchdowns.
The Cougars were 4-0 with Hill in the lineup and then promptly lost 4 games in a row without him. Back up Quarterback Christian Stewart finally got it together and led the Cougars to 4 wins in a row to recover somewhat from the disaster of losing Hill. The Cougars finished the season 8-5 with the promise of a good 2015 season.
Senior to be Taysom Hill is an older and experienced Quarterback after going on a two year mission for his church. The Pocatello, Idaho native should have a good season in 2015 and has improved as a passer over the last couple of seasons. Built much the same as Tebow and Dak Prescott.
9. Patrick Towles – Kentucky: The 6-5, 240 strong armed Patrick Towles is a physical specimen with a great arm and some great feet. One would never think a Quarterback of his size can run so well, but then there is Cam Newton. Towles is no Cam Newton, but he can run really well for a large Quarterback.
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The Wildcats were extremely young last season on offense with Towles being a sophomore and many of their players either true freshmen or redshirt freshmen.
Patrick Towles is the grandson of Hall of Fame Pitcher Jim Bunning. His uncle played college football so he has the genes. Towles led his high school football team to 3 straight state championships while compiling a 38-1 record.
Towles is a winner and the Wildcats should make a major move in 2015. Then, he should be a top draft pick in the following draft.
10. Paxton Lynch – Memphis: The 6-7, 230 Quarterback from Deltona, Florida, Paxton Lynch is another one of my favorites from 2014 and going into the 2015 season. Nobody wanted him out of high school and he has already proven to be a top talent.
In the 2014 season, Lynch threw 413 passes and completed 259 for 3,031 yards and 22 Touchdowns. The nice thing about Lynch other than the arm strength is his mobility. For a tall Quarterback, Lynch can really run. He only ran for 321 yards in 2014, but he scored 13 Touchdowns. Lynch improved dramatically from his freshman season and so did the Memphis Tigers. Memphis finished 3-9 in the 2013 season but turned it around to 10-3 in 2014. The losses were close losses to UCLA and Houston and then they lost to Ole Miss early in the season when they were ranked really high.
Memphis head coach Justin Fuente and Paxton Lynch put the Tigers back on the college football map in 2014 and hopefully will have more of the same this season with Lynch becoming a legitimate star.
11. Gunner Kiel – Cincinnati: Gunner Kiel was the highest rated QB coming out of the high school ranks in 2012. Kiel was from Columbus, Indiana and first committed to home state school Indiana. He switched his commitment to LSU and then later switched to Notre Dame which is where he signed. He transferred from Notre Dame to Cincinnati. Some may consider Gunner Kiel a little flaky, but the guy can throw a football. I was anxious to see Kiel play last year in his first for the Cincinnati Bearcats and came away very impressed.
In 2014, Kiel threw for 3,254 yards and 31 Touchdowns on 233 completions out of 390 passing attempts. He’s not known as a runner, but Kiel ran enough to gain 142 yards and a Touchdown with sacks mixed in.
He is listed as 6-4, 210, but standing next to Peyton Manning he looks more like 6-1, or 6-2. But, he is still a talent.
13. Maty Mauk – Missouri: People keep writing Missouri off since they joined the SEC and they keep winning the Eastern division. Mauk does not have the numbers that some Quarterbacks have, but he lead his team into the SEC Championship Game against the Alabama Crimson Tide.
The 6-0, 200 Mauk from Kenton, Ohio threw for 2,648 yards and 25 Touchdowns. Mauk is not called on to run all that much but he went for 373 yards and 2 Touchdowns.
On Missouri’s Eastern championship run, Maty Mauk had to step up and take over for starting Quarterback James Franklin and the Tigers hardly missed a beat. Mauk was forced to start 4 games as a freshman with Franklin hurting and threw for about a 1,000 yards as a freshman.
Mauk made a play in a blow out loss to Georgia last season that demonstrated his abilities. He was under heavy pressure from the Georgia defense and he scrambled to his left and made an unbelievable pass of over 60 yards and hit a wide open Wide Receiver right in the hands. Unfortunately, the receiver dropped the ball. Clearly, Maty Mauk is a talent at Quarterback for the Missouri Tigers and tune in next season and see.
14. Jared Goff – California: Goff is a tall skinny kid that can really fling the ball. As a true freshman last season, Goff put up some incredible numbers throwing for just under 3,500 yards. As an experienced sophomore, Jared Goff did even better throwing for just a shade under 4,000 yards and 35 Touchdowns. As a freshman, Goff threw 10 Interceptions against only 18 Touchdowns. This season, he knocked his Interceptions down to 7 while increasing his Touchdowns dramatically.
Goff is the son of a former Cal Berkeley baseball player that played in the Major Leagues for several different teams.
The California Golden Bears finished up at 1-11 in 2013, but improved to 5-7 in 2014 and gave UCLA, Arizona, USC and Oregon about all they wanted. 2015 should be breakout year for the Cal Bears.
15. Jacoby Brissett – North Carolina State: The 6-4, 230 senior began his career at Florida. He played sparingly for the Gators before transferring to North Carolina State and sitting out the 2013 season. Starting for the first time for the Wolfpack of North Carolina State, the big guy out of West Palm Beach threw for 2,606 yards and 23 Touchdowns. Brissett also ran for 529 yards and another 3 scores. Brissett was at his best against Florida State when he threw for 359 yards and 3 scores.
Brissett was once the third rated dual threat Quarterback in the country when he signed with the Gators. He wanted to transfer to Miami but was told there was no room there, supposedly.
This is a guy worth watching in the 2015 season.
Some others that could enter the national picture:
Brad Kaaya – Miami:
Marquise Williams – North Carolina:
Christian Hackenberg – Penn State:
Justin Holman – UCF:
Drew Hare – Northern Illinois:
Mitch Leidner – Minnesota:
Cooper Rush – Central Michigan:
Anu Solomon – Arizona:
Mike Bercovici – Arizona State:
Joshua Dobbs – Tennessee:
Deshaun Watson – Clemson: