After looking at the ACC and Big 12, it's time to examine the significant biographical data of the 16 anticipated SEC starting quarterbacks*. What's immediately clear, but not terribly surprising, is that we're dealing with the top of the recruiting food chain here.
Four 5-star recruits will start at quarterback than the SEC, that's double the combined number of the ACC and Big 12. And one of the two 5-stars in the other conferences (Houston's Connor Weigman) signed with Texas A&M out of high school. Ironically, the only two unrated recruits identified thus far also reside in the SEC in Vanderbilt's Diego Pavia and Tennessee's Joey Aguilar, both of whom started their respective careers at the junior college level. The SEC also has the only seventh-year starter in Kentucky's Zach Calzada, who beat third-year Carolina Panther Bryce Young as Texas A&M's starting quarterback in 2021.
Another thing that's increasingly clear: in a conference with the cachet to recruit nationally, and with a footprint comprised of football-mad states where high school ball is a big deal, SEC schools most often choose to do their QB shopping in Texas. Five Texans will start at quarterback in the SEC; no other state produced more than two. (Ironically, Texas will start a Louisianan and Texas A&M a Tennessean.) We're at 49 named or anticipated starting quarterbacks so far in our tour of FBS, and 16 anticipated starters are from Texas. No other state has more than seven.
* - Only Missouri remains unsettled at this point -- Eli Drinkwitz will use Thursday's game with Central Arkansas as the dress rehearsal -- but we're assuming Penn State transfer Beau Pribula will take the first snap on Thursday night.
Though they are more highly-recruited than their ACC and Big 12 peers, SEC quarterbacks' careers follow the same path as QB1s in other leagues. Almost all of them redshirt. Half of them are transfers, and most are first-time starters. The median SEC starting quarterback has 11 starts, in line with the ACC and well behind the Big 12's 17.
SEC QB1s by Signing Class:
2025: 0
2024: 1
2023: 5
2022: 4
2021: 3
2020: 2
2019: 1
SEC QBs by Home State
5: Texas
2: Louisiana, Georgia, Tennessee
1: California, Florida, New Mexico, Pennsylvania, South Carolina
SEC QBs by Recruiting Ranking
5-star: 4
Top 100 4-star: 1
4-star, 101 or below: 4
3-star: 5
2-star: 0
Unrated: 2
8 of 16 signed with their current school out of high school
9 of 16 are first-time starters at their current school
13 of 16 redshirted at some point in their career
Ty Simpson, Alabama
first-time starter as a redshirt junior; signed with Alabama out of Martin, Tenn.; 5-star recruit in class of 2022
Taylen Green, Arkansas
fifth-year senior with 35 starts (13 at Arkansas); signed with Boise State out of Lewisville, Texas; 3-star recruit in the class of 2021
Jackson Arnold, Auburn
true junior with 10 starts (none at AU); signed with Oklahoma out of Denton, Texas; 5-star recruit in class of 2023
DJ Lagway, Florida
true sophomore with seven starts; signed with Florida out of Willis, Texas; 5-star recruit in the class of 2024
Gunner Stockton, Georgia
redshirt junior with one start; signed with Georgia out of Tiger, Ga.; 4-star recruit in the class of 2022
Zach Calzada, Kentucky
seventh-year senior with 32 starts (none at UK); signed with Texas A&M out of Buford, Ga.; 3-star recruit in the class of 2019
Garrett Nussmeier, LSU
fifth-year senior with 14 starts; signed with LSU out of Flower Mound, Texas; Top 100 4-star recruit in class of 2021
Beau Pribula, Missouri
true senior and a first-time starter; signed with Penn State out of York, Pa.; 3-star recruit in the class of 2022
John Mateer, Oklahoma
redshirt junior with 12 starts (none at OU); signed with Washington State out of Little Elm, Texas; 3-star recruit in the class of 2022
Austin Simmons, Ole Miss
first-year starter as a redshirt sophomore; signed with Ole Miss out of Moore Haven, Fla.; 4-star recruit in the class of 2023
Blake Shapen, Mississippi State
sixth-year senior with 27 starts (four at State); signed with Baylor out of Shreveport, La.; 3-star recruit in the class of 2020
LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina
redshirt sophomore with 12 starts; signed with South Carolina out of Florence, S.C.; 4-star recruit in the class of 2023
Joey Aguilar, Tennessee
fifth-year senior with 30 starts (none at UT); signed with Diablo Valley Community College out of Antioch, Calif; unrated recruit in the class of 2021
Arch Manning, Texas
redshirt sophomore with two starts; signed with Texas out of New Orleans; 5-star recruit in the class of 2023
Marcel Reed, Texas A&M
redshirt sophomore with eight starts; signed with Texas A&M out of Nashville; 4-star recruit in the class of 2023
Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt
sixth-year senior with 58 starts (13 at Vandy); signed with New Mexico Military Institute out of Albuquerque; unrated recruit in the class of 2020
CUMULATIVE DATA
20 of 50 anticipated starters signed with their current school out of high school
27 of 50 are first-time starters at their current school
40 of 50 redshirted at some point in their career
FBS QB1s by Home State
16: Texas
7: California
4: Florida, Georgia
3: Louisiana
2: Alabama, Arizona, Tennessee
1: Hawaii, Kansas, Michigan, Nebraska, New Jersey, New Mexico, Ohio, Oregon, Pennsylvania, South Carolina
FBS QB1s by Signing Class
2025: 2
2024: 2
2023: 13
2022: 14
2021: 11
2020: 7
2019: 1
FBS QBs by Recruiting Ranking:
5-star: 6
Top 100 4-star: 4
4-star, 101 or below: 19
3-star: 18
2-star: 1
Unrated: 2