Hi y'all, friendly SMU fan here! I just wrote this about LaNorris Sellers and how he looks as a draft prospect the 2026 NFL draft. I'd love for opinions on things y'all believe I missed or got wrong in my evaluation to keep my eyes on as I watch him this year.
This is the second installment of my 2026 QB prospect profiles, and today, we are looking at South Carolina Gamecock LaNorris Seller. I had no opinion of Sellers before watching, which was strange for me, as my best friend is one of the loudest Cocks fans you’ll ever meet. Sellers is a super intriguing prospect with some of the best highlights in the draft, but I am not sold on him yet.
Background
Sellers was a late bloomer on the recruiting scene in high school. Committed initially to Dino Babers’ squad at Syracuse, Sellers switched to South Carolina after leading his South Florence Tigers to their first-ever SCHSL 4A Championship. He was ranked in the On3 industry ranking as the 254th overall prospect in the country and the 18th overall QB. In his freshman year, he backed up Spencer Rattler and ended up winning the starting job in his redshirt freshman year in 2024. He led South Carolina to a 9-4 record and a Cheez-It Bowl appearance.
Physical Attributes
Sellers is a physically imposing QB. Standing all of 6’3” and weighing in at 240 lbs, he resembles other large QBs like Josh Allen and Cam Newton. His strength while a ball carrier resembles both players, but his ability to stay upright in the pocket while trying to be sacked is Roethlisbergerian. He adds to this with agility that few other QBs, other than maybe Lamar Jackson, exhibit as a ball carrier. He is one of the most physically gifted QBs in recent memory.
Data and Tape
If you are unfamiliar with my radar charts, you can find more information here.
This was a little bit harder to evaluate from a tape perspective, as I did not see a lot of NFL transferable throws in the South Carolina offense. Now, is that because Sellers cannot do it, or is that just the design of the offense? I would not be surprised if it were a bit of both. It looks like PFF thought the same with their 66th overall rating in OFF, a 55th percentile finish for QBs in 2024. If you watched Sellers’ highlight reel, you wouldn’t believe he could be that low.
Against Illinois in South Carolina’s bowl game, he threw a perfectly placed ball 60 yards downfield off his back foot. And you’ve already read what I think of his physical gifts. The variety of ways he hurts defenses, from designed runs to scrambles, is unique for a QB who also has the arm talent that he does. His throwing motion is smooth, if a touch slower than I’d like, and he consistently throws off good bases. He does have this weird thing where he struggles with his fastball but throws touch passes incredibly well. Not often do you see someone with such a big arm have that issue; usually, it’s the opposite. But add in that touch with the arm, and his deep balls are the stuff of dreams. They sometimes look like prime Russ moon shots, they are so pretty. Even on the move, Sellers is very accurate. When throwing with touch, he consistently threw the ball right to where only his receiver could get it. And I seriously cannot get over just how hard it is to get Sellers to the ground, his sack avoidance is a truly special trait of his.
But Duncan, then why is Sellers’ Pressure to sack rate in the 60th percentile? I am glad you asked because this brings up what I am most concerned with when watching and looking at the numbers. Before we go further, it is also important to bring up his horrible 84th percentile turnover-worthy play rate and his 24.2 PFF FUM stat (a grading of fumbling), the WORST in all of the FBS for QBs. Sellers straight up does not see well. Starting from the point that he wore sports glasses in high school and the first two games of the year, it looks like he does not have peripheral vision at times. Especially early in the year, Sellers was prone to get rocked by a DE running at him from a 45-degree angle. And a lot of those times, he would also fumble the ball. In fact, Sellers rarely fumbles the ball when he becomes a runner, and almost always gets strip-sacked because he holds the ball too loosely and far away from his body. Bad plays often become disasters for Sellers. Later in the year, it looked like the peripheral vision issue started to fade as he adjusted to contacts, but you could still see the problems breaking down what was in his sightline while passing. He did not show an ability to adequately throw the ball over the middle at the short to intermediate level. He often did not see a safety or linebacker dropping into coverage, leading to nearly all his interceptions. He usually looked at one or maybe two reads before checking down or running, even if he had more time to continue scanning. The only play that stands out, showing him working through progressions, is the 2-point conversion against Mizzou. Most worryingly, he only throws to open receivers. There is little to no anticipation shown in his game, and he often leaves receivers who could be getting extra yards on crosses, outs, and other throws heading towards the sideline with no room to make a play after the catch.
Grade and Outlook
Sellers is an exciting and flawed prospect. If you believe in the highlights, this is the QB every team in the modern NFL wants. A big athletic arm that throws a super receiver-friendly catchable ball, and a true running threat. The downsides are obvious, though, and he needs to learn to take care of the football and see the field better than he does now. There was improvement within the season, and he will only be 20 by the time of next year’s draft rolls around, so there is still a ton of time left for development. In 10 months’ time, I would not be surprised if he ended up as my QB1 for this year. Though this is grading prospects as they look right now, and I have to hedge my bets because his downsides terrify me, even if the physical tools are tantalizing.
Grade: 6.3 / 10
This is the second installment of my 2026 QB prospect profiles, and today, we are looking at South Carolina Gamecock LaNorris Seller. I had no opinion of Sellers before watching, which was strange for me, as my best friend is one of the loudest Cocks fans you’ll ever meet. Sellers is a super intriguing prospect with some of the best highlights in the draft, but I am not sold on him yet.
Background
Sellers was a late bloomer on the recruiting scene in high school. Committed initially to Dino Babers’ squad at Syracuse, Sellers switched to South Carolina after leading his South Florence Tigers to their first-ever SCHSL 4A Championship. He was ranked in the On3 industry ranking as the 254th overall prospect in the country and the 18th overall QB. In his freshman year, he backed up Spencer Rattler and ended up winning the starting job in his redshirt freshman year in 2024. He led South Carolina to a 9-4 record and a Cheez-It Bowl appearance.Physical Attributes
Sellers is a physically imposing QB. Standing all of 6’3” and weighing in at 240 lbs, he resembles other large QBs like Josh Allen and Cam Newton. His strength while a ball carrier resembles both players, but his ability to stay upright in the pocket while trying to be sacked is Roethlisbergerian. He adds to this with agility that few other QBs, other than maybe Lamar Jackson, exhibit as a ball carrier. He is one of the most physically gifted QBs in recent memory.Data and Tape
If you are unfamiliar with my radar charts, you can find more information here.
This was a little bit harder to evaluate from a tape perspective, as I did not see a lot of NFL transferable throws in the South Carolina offense. Now, is that because Sellers cannot do it, or is that just the design of the offense? I would not be surprised if it were a bit of both. It looks like PFF thought the same with their 66th overall rating in OFF, a 55th percentile finish for QBs in 2024. If you watched Sellers’ highlight reel, you wouldn’t believe he could be that low.
Against Illinois in South Carolina’s bowl game, he threw a perfectly placed ball 60 yards downfield off his back foot. And you’ve already read what I think of his physical gifts. The variety of ways he hurts defenses, from designed runs to scrambles, is unique for a QB who also has the arm talent that he does. His throwing motion is smooth, if a touch slower than I’d like, and he consistently throws off good bases. He does have this weird thing where he struggles with his fastball but throws touch passes incredibly well. Not often do you see someone with such a big arm have that issue; usually, it’s the opposite. But add in that touch with the arm, and his deep balls are the stuff of dreams. They sometimes look like prime Russ moon shots, they are so pretty. Even on the move, Sellers is very accurate. When throwing with touch, he consistently threw the ball right to where only his receiver could get it. And I seriously cannot get over just how hard it is to get Sellers to the ground, his sack avoidance is a truly special trait of his.
But Duncan, then why is Sellers’ Pressure to sack rate in the 60th percentile? I am glad you asked because this brings up what I am most concerned with when watching and looking at the numbers. Before we go further, it is also important to bring up his horrible 84th percentile turnover-worthy play rate and his 24.2 PFF FUM stat (a grading of fumbling), the WORST in all of the FBS for QBs. Sellers straight up does not see well. Starting from the point that he wore sports glasses in high school and the first two games of the year, it looks like he does not have peripheral vision at times. Especially early in the year, Sellers was prone to get rocked by a DE running at him from a 45-degree angle. And a lot of those times, he would also fumble the ball. In fact, Sellers rarely fumbles the ball when he becomes a runner, and almost always gets strip-sacked because he holds the ball too loosely and far away from his body. Bad plays often become disasters for Sellers. Later in the year, it looked like the peripheral vision issue started to fade as he adjusted to contacts, but you could still see the problems breaking down what was in his sightline while passing. He did not show an ability to adequately throw the ball over the middle at the short to intermediate level. He often did not see a safety or linebacker dropping into coverage, leading to nearly all his interceptions. He usually looked at one or maybe two reads before checking down or running, even if he had more time to continue scanning. The only play that stands out, showing him working through progressions, is the 2-point conversion against Mizzou. Most worryingly, he only throws to open receivers. There is little to no anticipation shown in his game, and he often leaves receivers who could be getting extra yards on crosses, outs, and other throws heading towards the sideline with no room to make a play after the catch.
Grade and Outlook
Sellers is an exciting and flawed prospect. If you believe in the highlights, this is the QB every team in the modern NFL wants. A big athletic arm that throws a super receiver-friendly catchable ball, and a true running threat. The downsides are obvious, though, and he needs to learn to take care of the football and see the field better than he does now. There was improvement within the season, and he will only be 20 by the time of next year’s draft rolls around, so there is still a ton of time left for development. In 10 months’ time, I would not be surprised if he ended up as my QB1 for this year. Though this is grading prospects as they look right now, and I have to hedge my bets because his downsides terrify me, even if the physical tools are tantalizing.Grade: 6.3 / 10
