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Currently, just three former five-star quarterbacks play in the SEC, and two of them are true freshmen (Alabama’s Blake Barnett and Texas A&M’s Kyler Murray).
Quarterback does not represent the most impressive single-position collection of talent within the SEC.
Here’s a look at the team-by-team talent, followed by a few observations:
| Team | Total 4 or 5-star QBs | Avg. Rating | Other QBs |
|---|---|---|---|
| Alabama | 3 | 3.8 | 2 |
| Arkansas | 2 | 3.5 | 2 |
| Auburn | 2 | 3.7 | 1 |
| Florida | 2 | 4.0 | 0 |
| Georgia | 2 | 3.7 | 1 |
| Kentucky | 2 | 3.7 | 1 |
| LSU | 2 | 3.7 | 1 |
| Mississippi State | 0 | 3.0 | 5 |
| Missouri | 2 | 3.4 | 3 |
| Ole Miss | 1 | 3.3 | 3 |
| South Carolina | 1 | 3.3 | 3 |
| Tennessee | 4 | 4.0 | 0 |
| Texas A&M | 2 | 5.0 | 1 |
| Vanderbilt | 1 | 3.3 | 3 |
- Mississippi State is the only SEC school without a four- or five-star quarterback on its 2015 roster. Yet the Bulldogs return All-SEC signal-caller Dak Prescott, the favorite for best in the conference this fall.
- Tennessee leads the SEC with four different quality players at quarterback. But three of those are true freshmen. If the Vols keep recruiting like this (there’s another four-star quarterback on the way in 2016), Butch Jones’ team is going to be stacked three and four deep at every position within a few years.
- Texas A&M essentially has two quality quarterbacks, including the aforementioned Murray, in part due to Kenny Hill’s transfer to TCU. They’re both underclassmen, but the Aggies claim two of the SEC’s three five-star players at the position.
- Alabama, one of the schools with the biggest question marks at quarterback entering the fall, is second in the SEC with three quality talents (four or five stars) at the position. None of those three is named Jacob Coker.
- South Carolina (Lorenzo Nunez) and Vanderbilt (Kyle Shurmur) each have one four-star quarterback, and both of them are true freshmen who did not enroll early.
- Mississippi State, Ole Miss, South Carolina and Vanderbilt are the bottom four schools in terms of the average talent rating among the team’s scholarship quarterbacks in the SEC, based solely on high school recruiting rankings.
Here’s a team-by-team breakdown of the scholarship quarterbacks in the SEC. Star ratings listed below are based on the 247Sports composite rankings.
Alabama Crimson Tide
5: Blake Barnett
4: Cooper Bateman, David Cornwell
3: Jacob Coker, Alec Morris
Arkansas Razorbacks
4: Austin Allen, Ty Storey
3: Brandon Allen, Rafe Peavey
Auburn Tigers
4: Jeremy Johnson, Sean White
3: Tyler Queen
Florida Gators
4: Will Grier, Treon Harris
Georgia Bulldogs
4: Brice Ramsey, Jacob Park
3: Faton Bauta
Kentucky Wildcats
4: Drew Barker, Patrick Towles
3: Reese Phillips
LSU Tigers
4: Anthony Jennings, Brandon Harris
3: Justin McMillan
Mississippi State Bulldogs
3: Damian Williams, Elijah Staley, Dak Prescott, Nick Fitzgerald, Nick Tiano
Missouri Tigers
4: Maty Mauk, Drew Lock
3: Marvin Zanders, Eddie Printz, Corbin Berkstresser
Ole Miss Rebels
4: Ryan Buchanan
3: Devante Kincade, Chad Kelly, Jason Pellerin
South Carolina Gamecocks
4: Lorenzo Nunez
3: Connor Mitch, Michael Scarnecchia
N/R: Perry Orth
Tennessee Vols
4: Joshua Dobbs, Quinten Dormady, Jauan Jennings, Sheriron Jones
Texas A&M Aggies
5: Kyle Allen, Kyler Murray
N/R: Jake Hubenak
Vanderbilt Commodores
4: Kyle Shurmur
3: Shawn Stankavage, Johnny McCrary, Wade Freebeck
An itinerant journalist, Christopher has moved between states 11 times in seven years. Formally an injury-prone Division I 800-meter specialist, he now wanders the Rockies in search of high peaks.
