Kirk Herbstreit names Josh Hoover, Marcel Reed, Demond Williams as biggest QB sleepers in 2026

The 2026 college football season is still months away. Even so, it’s never too early to start discussing quarterbacks who could be the face of the sport.

ESPN’s Kirk Herbstreit joined ‘Crain and Cone‘ on Monday to discuss some of the most under-the-radar quarterbacks in the country heading into next season. Herbstreit tabbed four guys that he thinks could explode onto the radar, much like Indiana‘s Fernando Mendoza did this season.

“I mentioned already that (Indiana‘s) Josh Hoover could be that guy,” Herbstreit said. “I really think that (Texas A&M‘s) Marcel Reed, not because he’s an MBA guy, but he’s at a school where they’re just scratching the surface of what Mike Elko is going to allow them to become. He happens to have the keys to the car right now.

“So, I wouldn’t be surprised if Marcel created even more buzz than he did this year. The kid at Cal (Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele), did he stay at Cal? Sagapolutele. He’s a freak, man. That kid’s knocking on the door. Demond Williams Jr… I really like his game at Washington. He’s a bit off the radar, but I think he’s another guy that will climb.

With how well quarterbacks have evolved under Curt Cignetti at Indiana (Kurtis Rourke and Fernando Mendoza), it’s no surprise to see Hoover here. The TCU transfer heads to Bloomington as a more polished quarterback than Rourke and Mendoza were when they transferred to the program. Hoover has passed for 9,629 yards and 71 touchdowns with 33 interceptions across four seasons at TCU.

Meanwhile, it’s hard to put Texas A&M‘s Marcel Reed among underrated quarterbacks, as he was certainly in the thick of the Heisman Trophy race until A&M’s loss to Texas in its regular season finale. Reed led the Aggies to the College Football Playoff last season, passing for 3,169 yards and 25 touchdowns with 12 interceptions.

All four quarterbacks will enter season with Heisman Trophy expectations

As for Williams Jr. and Sagapolutele, quarterbacks playing on the West Coast certainly limits a large portion of the country from seeing just how good they were. Williams Jr., who attempted to enter the Transfer Portal until Washington kept him from leaving, was named an All-Big Ten Honorable Mention this season. He passed for 3,065 yards and 25 touchdowns with just eight interceptions last season.

Finally, Sagapolutele surely would have won ACC Offensive Rookie of the Year if it hadn’t been for the stellar play of Miami wide receiver Malachi Toney. Many expected him to enter the Portal, but he stayed pat at Cal to play for newly hired head coach Tosh Lupoi. He was, if not the best, one of the best freshman arms in football last season. He recorded 3,545 passing yards and 18 touchdowns with just nine interceptions.

It will certainly be interesting to look back at in a year from now, as you never know which player is going to explode over the course of the season, just as Indiana‘s Fernando Mendoza and Ole Miss‘ Trinidad Chambliss did in 2025.