An in-depth look at the 130 FBS starting quarterbacks, including transfer info
On3’s Mike Huguenin and Charles Power took a look at the backgrounds of the Game 1 starters at quarterback for each of the 130 FBS schools. Here are some takeaways.
(A list of all the starters and their high schools and previous college, if applicable, follows the takeaways. There also are some takeaways in the state listings.)
+ Forty-nine of the starters (37.7 percent) are transfers, including seven who have transferred twice.
+ Of the 49 transfers, 29 start for Group of 5 programs, with 19 of those having transferred from a Power 5 school. Four of them went to two Power 5 schools, five transferred from other Group of 5 schools and one moved in from a FCS program.
+ Of the 20 transfer starters in the Power 5 ranks, 16 transferred from other Power 5 programs. Two transferred from Group of 5 schools. One had played at a Power 5 and a FCS program, and one had played first at a Group of 5, then a Power 5 before moving on again.
+ Oregon had the most quarterback transfers starting elsewhere, with three. (Coincidentally, Oregon’s starter is a transfer, too.) Boston College, Clemson, Colorado, Michigan, North Carolina, Oklahoma, UCF, Washington and West Virginia each had two.
+ The state of Texas has produced the most starters, with 20 who went to high school in the Lone Star State. California is second with 18 and Florida third with 11.
+ California had the most Power 5 starters, with 10. Texas was second with nine. The only other state with more than five? Try Arizona, with six.
+ Of the Power 5 starters from California, only one plays college ball in the state (Cal’s Chase Garbers). One factor with California and West Coast quarterbacks in general: They’re leaving the Pac-12 footprint at historic rates. Alabama’s Bryce Young, Clemson’s D.J. Uiagalelei, Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud, Ole Miss’ Matt Corral, Oklahoma’s Spencer Rattler and several others chose to head east out of high school.
+ Four high schools produced two starters: Santa Ana Mater Dei in California (Georgia’s J.T. Daniels and Alabama’s Bryce Young), Holmdel St. John Vianney in New Jersey (Oregon’s Anthony Brown and Air Force’s Haaziq Daniels), Austin Lake Travis in Texas (Texas’ Hudson Card and Utah’s Charlie Brewer) and Denton Ryan in Texas (Memphis’ Seth Henigan and Oklahoma State’s Spencer Sanders).
+ Three of the six starters from Arizona went to high school in Gilbert, a Phoenix suburb. And six of the seven starters from Arizona are from the Phoenix area.
+ Surprisingly low was Pennsylvania, with one. That’s the same as, among other states, Connecticut, Kansas, Nebraska and New York.
+ Many of the top Group of 5 quarterbacks who aren’t transfers didn’t leave their native regions. Cincinnati’s Desmond Ridder, Nevada’s Carson Strong, Coastal Carolina’s Grayson McCall and Marshall’s Grant Wells stayed relatively close to home. That’s likely due to them being good local finds by their respective programs.
Here’s a state-by-state look at where the quarterbacks are from. The listing includes the home state of each starting quarterback, the university he starts for and the high school he attended.
Alabama (7)
Jake Bentley, South Alabama, from Opelika High (South Carolina and Utah transfer)
Cornelious Brown IV, Georgia State, from Calera High
Malik Cunningham, Louisville, from Montgomery Park Crossing
Tyler Johnston, UAB, from Spanish Fort High
Bo Nix, Auburn, from Pinson Pinson Valley
Taulia Tagovailoa, Maryland, from Alabaster Thompson (Alabama transfer)
*Jack West, Stanford, from Saraland High
(*—West has lost his starting job; Tanner McKee will start for the Cardinal in Week 2.)
OF NOTE: Two of the starters from Alabama, Tagovailoa and Bentley, were move-ins. Both moved to the state because of college football connections. Tagovailoa’s family moved from Hawaii because Taulia’s older brother, Tua, was playing at Alabama. Bentley’s family moved from upstate South Carolina to Auburn when his father was working as an analyst under Gus Malzahn.
Arizona (7)
Gunner Cruz, Arizona, from Gilbert Casteel (Washington State transfer)
Jack Plummer, Purdue, from Gilbert High
Brock Purdy, Iowa State, from Gilbert Perry
Spencer Rattler, Oklahoma, from Phoenix Pinnacle
Rhett Rodriguez, ULM, from Tucson Catalina Foothills (Arizona transfer)
Tyler Shough, Texas Tech, from Chandler Hamilton (Oregon transfer)
Kedon Slovis, USC, from Scottsdale Desert Mountain
OF NOTE: Plummer’s younger brother, Will, is the backup at Arizona, and played some in the Wildcats’ opening-game loss to BYU. As far as we can tell, the last time brothers started at quarterback in the same week was in 2002, when Casey Clausen started for Tennessee and Rick Clausen for LSU.
Arkansas (2)
Gerry Bohannon, Baylor, from Earle High
Taylor Powell, Troy, from Fayetteville High (Missouri transfer)
California (18)
Hank Bachmeier, Boise State, from Murrieta Murrieta Valley
Jordan Brookshire, San Diego State, from Santa Rosa Cardinal Newman
Braxton Burmeister, Virginia Tech, from La Jolla Country Day (Oregon transfer)
Sean Chambers, Wyoming, from Kerman High
Matt Corral, Ole Miss, from Long Beach Poly
Jayden Daniels, Arizona State, from San Bernardino Cajon
J.T. Daniels, Georgia, from Santa Ana Mater Dei (USC transfer)
Chase Garbers, California, from Newport Beach Corona Del Mar
Jake Haener, Fresno State, from Danville Monte Vista (Washington transfer)
Jonah Johnson, New Mexico State, from Madera South
Tyler Lytle, UMass, from Anaheim Servite (Colorado transfer)
Adrian Martinez, Nebraska, from Fresno Clovis West
Matt McDonald, Bowling Green, from Mission Viejo High (Boston College transfer)
Spencer Petras, Iowa, from San Rafael Marin Catholic
Carson Strong, Nevada, from Vacaville Wood
C.J. Stroud, Ohio State, from Rancho Cucamonga High
D.J. Uiagalelei, Clemson, from Bellflower St. John Bosco
Bryce Young, Alabama, from Santa Ana Mater Dei
OF NOTE: Tanner McKee, from Corona Centennial, will start for Stanford in Week 2; he replaces Jack West.
ALSO OF NOTE: We’re obviously seeing a SoCal quarterback renaissance. There are a bunch of factors at play. The area always has pumped out quarterbacks, but we’re seeing more athletes and complete players. There are fewer robotic, stationary passers. This isn’t because of private coaching (which always has been there, and arguably is an issue in overhyping certain quarterbacks) but more so the infusion of spread offenses and emphasis on athleticism at quarterback. It’s similar to what we saw in Texas in the past five or 10 years. We saw similar things in Georgia recently.
Connecticut (1)
Will Levis, Kentucky, from Middletown Xavier (Penn State transfer)
Florida (11)
James Blackman, Arkansas State, from Belle Glade Glades Central (Florida State transfer)
Carter Bradley, Toledo, from Jacksonville Providence School
Todd Centeio, Colorado State, from Palm Beach Gardens Dwyer (Temple transfer)
Tai Lavatai, Navy, from St. Johns Creekside
Joe Milton, Tennessee, from Orlando Olympia (Michigan transfer)
Kato Nelson, Akron, from Pembroke Pines Flanagan
Michael Penix Jr., Indiana, from Tampa Bay Tech
N’Kosi Perry, FAU, from Ocala Vanguard (Miami transfer)
Michael Pratt, Tulane, from Deerfield Beach High
Jeff Sims, Georgia Tech, from Jacksonville Sandalwood
Jordan Travis, Florida State, from North Palm Beach Benjamin School (Louisville transfer)
OF NOTE: Quarterback clearly is a weak spot in the state of Florida. College programs in that state have to leave for passers and offensive linemen. Florida is flush with top athletes, especially receivers and defensive backs. But from an overall perspective, it’s not as well-rounded positionally as Texas or Georgia.
Georgia (8)
Chase Brice, Appalachian State, from Loganville Grayson (Clemson and Duke transfer)
Cade Fortin, USF, from Suwanee North Gwinnett (North Carolina transfer)
Bailey Hockman, Middle Tennessee State, from Powder Springs McEachern (NC State transfer)
Max Johnson, LSU, from Watkinsville Oconee County
Emory Jones, Florida, from Franklin Heard County
Steven Krajewski, UConn, from Norman Park Colquitt County
*Zeb Noland, South Carolina, from Watkinsville Oconee County (Iowa State and North Dakota State transfer)
Malik Willis, Liberty, from Roswell High (Auburn transfer)
(*—Noland started because presumptive starter Luke Doty was injured; Doty is expected back this week.)
Hawaii (2)
Chevon Cordeiro, Hawaii, from Honolulu St. Louis School
Dillon Gabriel, UCF, from Mililani High
OF NOTE: Hawaii native McKenzie Milton, a UCF transfer, could start at quarterback this week for Florida State. Like Gabriel, he went to Mililani High.
Illinois (1)
Payton Thorne, Michigan State, from Naperville Central
Indiana (3)
Max Bortenschlager, FIU, Indianapolis Cathedral (Maryland transfer)
Hunter Johnson, Northwestern, from Brownsburg High (Clemson transfer)
Brandon Peters, Illinois, from Avon High (Michigan transfer)
Iowa (2)
Max Duggan, TCU, from Council Bluffs Lewis Central
Rocky Lombardi, Northern Illinois, from West Des Moines Valley (Michigan State transfer)
Kansas (2)
Graham Mertz, Wisconsin, from Overland Park Blue Valley North
Jace Ruder, North Texas, from Norton High (North Carolina transfer)
Kentucky (2)
Tanner Morgan, Minnesota, from Union Ryle
Desmond Ridder, Cincinnati, from Louisville St. Xavier
Louisiana (2)
Levi Lewis, Louisiana, from Baton Rouge Scotlandville Magnet
Justin Rogers, UNLV, from Shreveport Parkway (TCU transfer)
Michigan (1)
D’Wan Mathis, Temple, from Oak Park High (Georgia transfer)
Mississippi (2)
K.J. Jefferson, Arkansas, from Sardis North Panola
Will Rogers, Mississippi State, from Brandon High
Missouri (3)
Kaleb Eleby, Western Michigan, from St. Louis Pattonville
Brett Gabbert, Miami (Ohio), from St. Louis Christian Brothers
Skylar Thompson, Kansas State, from Independence Osage
Nebraska (1)
Noah Vedral, Rutgers, from Wahoo Bishop Neumann (UCF and Nebraska transfer)
Nevada (2)
Cade McNamara, Michigan, from Reno Damonte Ranch
Dorian Thompson-Robinson, UCLA, from Las Vegas Bishop Gorman
New Jersey (6)
Anthony Brown, Oregon, from Holmdel St. John Vianney (Boston College transfer)
Haaziq Daniels, Air Force, from Holmdel St. John Vianney
Tommy DeVito, Syracuse, from Ramsey Don Bosco Prep
Jarrett Guarantano, Washington State, from Oradell Bergen Catholic (Tennessee transfer)
Devin Leary, NC State, from Sicklerville Timber Creek
Kenny Pickett, Pitt, from Oakhurst Ocean Township
New Mexico (1)
Gavin Hardison, UTEP, from Hobbs High
New York (1)
Jack Coan, Notre Dame, from Sayville High (Wisconsin transfer)
North Carolina (6)
Holton Ahlers, East Carolina, from Greenville Conley
Gunnar Holmberg, Duke, Wake Forest Heritage
Sam Howell, North Carolina, from Monroe Sun Valley
Austin Kendall, Louisiana Tech, from Waxhaw Cuthbertson (Oklahoma and West Virginia transfer)
Grayson McCall, Coastal Carolina, from Indian Trail Porter Ridge
Chris Reynolds, Charlotte, from Mocksville Davie County
OF NOTE: Howell and McCall are from the Charlotte suburbs, and their high schools are big rivals. Howell and Sun Valley beat McCall and Porter Ridge when both were seniors in 2018.
Ohio (7)
Brennan Armstrong, Virginia, from Shelby High
Connor Bazelak, Missouri, from Dayton Archbishop Alter
Sean Clifford, Penn State, from Cincinnati St. Xavier
Dustin Crum, Kent State, from Grafton Midview
Preston Hutchinson, Eastern Michigan, from Mason High
Drew Plitt, Ball State, from Loveland High
Kyle Vantrease, Buffalo, from Stow-Munroe Falls
Oklahoma (1)
Terry Wilson, New Mexico, from Oklahoma City Del City (Oregon and Kentucky transfer)
Oregon (1)
Sam Noyer, Oregon State, from Beaverton High (Colorado transfer)
Pennsylvania (1)
Phil Jurkovec, Boston College, from Gibsonia Pine-Richland (Notre Dame transfer)
South Carolina (1)
Sam Hartman, Wake Forest, Mt. Pleasant Oceanside Collegiate
OF NOTE: Luke Doty, from Myrtle Beach (S.C) High, was injured and missed South Carolina’s opener; he is expected to start this week for the Gamecocks.
Tennessee (1)
Trey Lowe, Southern Miss, from Bolivar Central (West Virginia transfer)
Texas (20)
Jason Bean, Kansas, from Mansfield Lake Ridge
Logan Bonner, Utah State, from Rowlett High (Arkansas State transfer)
Charlie Brewer, Utah, from Austin Lake Travis (Baylor transfer)
Davis Brin, Tulsa, from Boerne Champion
Hudson Card, Texas, from Austin Lake Travis
Jarret Doege, West Virginia, from Lubbock Cooper (Bowling Green transfer)
Wiley Green, Rice, from Plano Prestonwood Christian
Frank Harris, UTSA, from Schertz Clemens
Seth Henigan, Memphis, from Denton Ryan
Amare Jones, Georgia Southern, from Frisco Heritage (Tulane transfer)
D’Eriq King, Miami, from Manvel High (Houston transfer)
Haynes King, Texas A&M, from Longview High
Brendon Lewis, Colorado, from Melissa High
Brady McBride, Texas State, from Coppell High (Memphis transfer)
Tanner Mordecai, SMU, from Waco Midway (Oklahoma transfer)
Spencer Sanders, Oklahoma State, from Denton Ryan
Ken Seals, Vanderbilt, from Weatherford High
Nick Starkel, San Jose State, from Argyle Liberty Christian (Texas A&M and Arkansas transfer)
Clayton Tune, Houston, from Carrollton Hebron
Bailey Zappe, Western Kentucky, from Victoria East (Houston Baptist transfer)
OF NOTE: There hasn’t been as much recent elite talent at quarterback in Texas, but the overall numbers are strong. That should continue to be the case, given the quality of offense we see from the state. In terms of offensive sophistication at the high school level, Texas, Georgia and California are at the top.
ALSO OF NOTE: Doege and King are the two transfer starters who began their careers at Group of 5 schools before moving to a Power 5 program.
Utah (1)
Jaren Hall, BYU, from Spanish Fork Maple Mountain
Virginia (2)
D.J. Mack, Old Dominion, from Norfolk Norview (UCF transfer)
Tyhier Tyler, Army, from Newport News Woodside
Washington (2)
Dylan Morris, Washington, from Graham Graham-Kapowsin
Jacob Sirmon, Central Michigan, from Bothell High (Washington transfer)
West Virginia (1)
Grant Wells, Marshall, from Charleston George Washington
Canada (1)
Kurtis Rourke, Ohio U., from Oakville (Ontario) Holy Trinity
OF NOTE: It’s doubtful we’ll see many, if any, successful starting international quarterbacks who didn’t play high school football in the United States, at least any time soon. The jump from European club ball to FBS and especially Power 5 football is extremely difficult. It’s basically a different sport. We haven’t seen hardly any of those prospects hit it big in college football without first moving to the U.S. for a year or two of high school football. Quarterback is much more difficult than other positions. It’s highly spatial, with live reps against real defenses being crucial.