Can't Wait For Saturday Who is the best QB in the Big Ten? Just Sayin it's the dude in Columbus
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May 20—***
If the Big Ten wants to win a fourth consecutive College Football Playoff title, it will again need stellar play from its quarterbacks.
No problem the last thee times out, with J.J. McCarthy (Michigan), Will Howard (Ohio State) and Fernando Mendoza (Indiana) leading their teams to the promised land. McCarthy and Mendoza were part of perfect seasons.
Who is it going to be in 2026? The Big Ten is deep and talented at quarterback, with a handful of candidates to follow Mendoza as Heisman Trophy hoister.
Luke Altmyer's replacement at Illinois, East Carolina tranfser Katin Houser, made the cut at No. 8.
With over three months before the season opens, here is my list:
In a close call over No. 2.
He completed a ridiculous amount of passes while becoming a Heisman finalist.
Lots of change in Columbus with a new offensive coordinator and Carnell Tate off to the NFL. But his security blanket Jeremiah Smith should catch more than 100 passes.
If not for a low number of college starts — and the prospect of getting picked by the Jets — the Ducks star might have entered the recent NFL draft.
Coming back will serve him and the Ducks well. Especially if Oregon wins its first national title and Moore moves to No. 1 in the 2027 draft. Both are good bets.
Moore threw 30 TD passes last season while leading Oregon to the CFP semifinals. He started his career at UCLA.
What do you got for us Curt Cignetti? After last year's miracle, the king of Google brought in the TCU transfer.
He has been highly productive for the Horned Frogs with big numbers of scoring passes and yards. If Hoover guides the team to another CFP title, might be time to name Cignetti as Indiana governor. Though he will have to take a pay cut.
Thanks to his potent quarterback, coach Lincoln Riley might be ready to achieve the greatness projected for him when he took over the Trojans. The roster, including a monster recruiting class, is the best of the Riley era.
Illinois got its fill of the Huskies star during a loss last season at Seattle. Williams threw for 280 yards and four scores and ran for another 66. Yes, Illinois is glad Williams and Washington arern't on the schedule this season.
One tricky part for the quarterback: getting back in the good graces of his coaches and teammates after trying to leave the program. His huge NIL deal wouldn't allow it.
The key to a smooth transition for new coach Kyle Whittingham is a positive relationship with the star quarterback. Underwood seems to have bought in, realizing the importance of Whittingham for his future.
Highly touted going in 2025, he improved each week. His potential upside is "Heisman Trophy winner."
Cyclones East brought almost the entire Iowa State team to play for Matt Campbell.
Becht was a four-year starter who gives Campbell a short cut to early success in Happy Valley.
Not only is he coming off a big year with the Pirates, but Houser also has experience in the Big Ten. He started his career at Michigan State and will get to visit East Lansing with his new team on Oct. 10.
Mike Locksley's latest star threw for almost 3,000 yards as a first-year freshman. Give him credit for sticking with the Terps when he certainly had chance to go elsewhere.
It was a rough offseason for the quarterback room in Lincoln. First, Dylan Raiola left for Oregon, then Notre Dame transfer Kenny Minchey signed with Kentucky after seeming headed to Nebraska.
Colandrea is coming off a 10-win season at UNLV, where he led with his arm and his legs
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