The Sporting News ranks SEC quarterbacks first to last for 2025 season

The SEC is absolutely loaded this season, with multiple Heisman candidate quarterbacks slated to face off against each other weekly in conference play.

One of the 16 arms will attempt to become the eighth SEC (or now SEC team in Oklahoma‘s case) quarterback to win the Heisman Award this season.

The Sporting News ranked those 16 SEC starting quarterbacks for the upcoming season, featured below.

1. Arch Manning, Texas

Texas‘ Arch Manning enters the 2025 season as The Sporting News‘ No. 1 ranked quarterback in the SEC.

Behind Quinn Ewers in 2024, Manning passed for 939 yards, nine touchdowns and just two interceptions. The Longhorns were 3-0 in games he started in (UTSA, Louisiana-Monroe and Mississippi State), winning by an average of 40 points per game.

2. Garrett Nussmeier, LSU

Garrett Nussmeier is back as LSU‘s starting quarterback after exploding for 4,052 passing yards, 29 touchdowns and 12 interceptions last season.

With Nussmeier at the helm, the Tigers won their final three games of the season, including a 44-31 win over Baylor in the Kinder’s Texas Bowl. “As I spoke about, our team with the expectations coming from within, I obviously have expectations for myself, as well,” Nussmeier said this offseason. “The way that I kind of straddle those and keep those in check is focusing on our team. My main goal is to help lead the LSU Tigers to a national championship and let the rest fall into place.”

3. LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina

South Carolina‘s LaNorris Sellers was one of the biggest surprises in college football last season, as he led the Gamecocks to their best record (9-4) since 2017.

Sellers passed for 2,534 yards, 18 touchdowns and seven interceptions along with 674 yards rushing and seven rushing scores. USA Today named Sellers as their sleeper Heisman candidate to watch this season.

4. DJ Lagway, Florida

DJ Lagway sat behind Wisconsin transfer Graham Mertz to open the 2024 season, but he will be the guy for Florida in 2025.

Lagway became Florida‘s starting quarterback last season on November 16, where he led the Gators to four-straight wins to end the season (including top-25 wins over No. 22 LSU and No. 9 Ole Miss). In total, he passed for 1,915 yards, 12 touchdowns and nine interceptions on 192 attempts.

5. Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt

After winning his eligibility battle against the NCAA, Vanderbilt‘s Diego Pavia is back for one more ride.

Pavia, who was named the 2024 SEC Newcomer of the Year, compiled 2,293 passing yards, 20 touchdowns and just four interceptions last season. He led the Commodores to their first seven-win season since 2013, including a monster upset over No. 1 Alabama on October 5.

6. John Mateer, Oklahoma

Oklahoma hauled in Washington State quarterback John Mateer, who was one of the most prized arms in the Transfer Portal, this offseason.

Mateer was stellar for the Cougars in 2024, passing for 3,139 yards, 29 touchdowns and seven interceptions. “It’s been awesome,” he said this offseason about Oklahoma. “The people are great. The fans are great. They’ve embraced me and teammates and coaches have really embraced me. I’ve built really good relationships. I really like all the guys. The strength test is good. I’ve gained some weight. Probably lost some today, it’s hot, but I’ve gained some weight. Got a little bigger. Getting a little faster.”

7. Taylen Green, Arkansas

Fresh off a 341 passing yard and two touchdown performance in the Arkansas‘ win over Texas Tech in the 2024 Autozone Liberty Bowl, Taylen Green opens the 2025 season as the Razorbacks’ starting quarterback.

The Boise State transfer passed for 3,154 yards, 15 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 13 games last season. “He wants to be a Hog, he wants to play here, he wants to play for the state,” Arkansas head coach Sam Pittman said this offseason. “And that’s nothing against the guys that got in the portal. It isn’t. Their business is their business, but it’s a big deal to me that he wants to stay here and run it back and stay with Bobby [Petrino] and stay with that offense. I think it will be so big and beneficial to him, and it will help us in recruiting as well.”

8. Marcel Reed, Texas A&M

Marcel Reed is once again the starting quarterback for Texas A&M this season after passing for 1,864 yards, 15 touchdowns and six interceptions in 2024.

Reed heated up for the Aggies down the final stretch of the season last year, as he passed for 735 yards (245 YPG), six touchdowns and four interceptions over the final three games. A&M however lost all three games.

9. Gunner Stockton, Georgia

Following the transfer of Carson Beck to Miami this offseason, Gunner Stockton has taken full reign of the Georgia starting quarterback job.

Stockton took over in relief of an injured Beck in the SEC Championship game last season and led the Bulldogs to a 22-19 OT win over Texas, but passed for just 267 yards and one touchdown with four sacks in a 23-10 loss to Notre Dame in the Allstate Sugar Bowl (College Football Quarterfinal).

10. Ty Simpson, Alabama

Ty Simpson has big shoes to fill at the Alabama quarterback position, following Jalen Milroe, Heisman Award winner Bryce Young and Mac Jones.

Over his three seasons with the program, Simpson has passed for just 381 yards on 50 attempts. “[Kalen DeBoer] has a better quarterback, Ty Simpson, you may not have heard of him,” ESPN’s Paul Finebaum said earlier this week. “Jalen Milroe was great and he was also ice cold at times. Simpson, I think is serviceable. He will lead this offense. The defense is the best Alabama has had since about seven or eight years ago. And I think Alabama has a legitimate shot at winning the SEC and the national championship.”

11. Jackson Arnold, Auburn

The Jackson Arnold experiment at Oklahoma last season was a bit of a disaster, but he’ll now look to get a second chance with the Auburn Tigers in 2025.

In 2024, Arnold passed for 1,421 yards, 12 touchdowns and three interceptions, with the Sooners going 5-5 in games he played in. “Just needed, probably, a restart for whatever reason,” Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze said this offseason. “And, um, I’m just excited about what I saw. He’s got the arm talent, he’s got the legs, he’s got the football IQ. And I think he just needs confidence and I think that confidence grew this spring along with his rapport with our receivers.”

12. Joey Aguilar, Tennessee

Appalachian State transfer quarterback Joey Aguilar was entrusted with Tennessee‘s starting role this season following the sudden transfer of Nico Iamaleava to UCLA in April. Aguilar originally committed to UCLA, but will now fill Iamaleava’s role in Knoxville.

Aguilar was solid last season, passing for 3,003 yards, 23 touchdowns and 14 interceptions for a Mountaineer team that finished with a 5-6 record.

13. Austin Simmons, Ole Miss

Redshirt sophomore quarterback Austin Simmons will take over as Ole Miss‘ starter in 2025 following the departure of Jaxson Dart to the NFL Draft.

Simmons attempted 32 passes last season, totaling 282 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions. He was a four-star recruit out of Pahokee, FL in the class of 2023.

14. Blake Shapen, Mississippi State

After suffering a season-ending shoulder injury last season, Blake Shapen will open the 2025 campaign as Mississippi State‘s starting quarterback.

Shapen, who transferred from Baylor prior to last season, passed for 974 yards, eight touchdowns and one interception on 108 attempts in 2024. “It’s been good,” Shapen told Maroon and White about his recovery process. “Obviously, it’s pretty long but I feel good and glad to be back out there.”

15. Zach Calzada, Kentucky

Incarnate Word transfer Zach Calzada will open the 2025 season as Kentucky‘s sixth quarterback to start a game over the past four seasons (Levis, Sheron, Leary, Vandagriff, Boley).

A former SEC quarterback at Texas A&M from 2019-2021, Calzada spent the last two seasons at Incarnate Word, where he passed for 6,342 yards, 54 touchdowns and 18 interceptions. Calzada looks to follow in the footsteps of Cam Ward, who transferred from Incarnate Word to Miami and became the No. 1 overall pick in the 2025 NFL Draft.

16. Beau Pribula, Missouri

Missouri quarterback Beau Pribula, who transferred in from Penn State this offseason, is at the bottom of The Sporting News‘ SEC quarterback rankings.

He has big shoes to fill in former Missouri quarterback Brady Cook, who led the Tigers to a 27-12 record over the past three seasons. Pribula attempted 56 passes over his first two seasons at Penn State, accruing 424 yards, nine touchdowns and one interception. He looks to join former Kentucky quarterback Will Levis as the next Nittany Lion backup to blossom into a star in the SEC.