NCAAF · 2 months ago

2026 College Football QB Rankings: Ranking the Top 10 Quarterbacks

TJ Inman

Host · Writer

Heisman Watch: Ranking the Top 10 College Football QBs for 2026
2026 Heisman Trophy Odds
- Arch Manning: +800
- Josh Hoover: +1100
- Julian Sayin: +1300
- Sam Leavitt: +1300
- Dante Moore: +1300
- Jayden Maiava: +2000
- Byrum Brown: +3500
- Demond Williams Jr.: +4000
- Kevin Jennings: +6500
- Darian Mensah: No Odds Currently
Who Is No. 1? Ranking the 10 Most Explosive QBs for the 2026 Season
The confetti has barely finished falling in Miami Gardens, and fans of the Indiana Hoosiers will be celebrating the school's first College Football National Championship for weeks and months to come. Still, it's never too early to begin looking ahead to the 2026 season. Several star quarterbacks are returning, and numerous players are poised for breakthrough campaigns.

Transfer quarterbacks have dominated the College Football Playoff recently. Will Howard's Ohio State Buckeyes knocked off Riley Leonard's Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the 2024 title game in a matchup of two transfers, and former Cal QB Fernando Mendoza led IU to the win over former UGA QB Carson Beck and the Miami Hurricanes on January 19, 2026. Will we see more of the same in 2026? The top ten features six quarterbacks returning to the same team they led in 2025 and four who were hot commodities in the transfer portal.

Who are the top 10 quarterbacks for the 2026 college football campaign?
1. Dante Moore - Oregon Ducks
Dante Moore 2026 Preseason Player Profile
- Class: RS Junior
- 2025 Team: Oregon Ducks
- Height: 6'3"
- Weight: 206 Pounds
- Passing Yards: 3,565
- Touchdown Passes: 30
The 2025 season did not end the way Dante Moore wanted, as the Indiana Hoosiers squashed his Oregon Ducks in the Peach Bowl. Moore could have been the likely number-two pick in the 2026 NFL Draft, but he opted to return to Eugene and should be one of the best players in the country, possibly the best quarterback, heading into the season. In his first full season as a starter for Oregon, Moore completed nearly 72 percent of his passes and had 32 total touchdowns with more than 3,600 yards. Those numbers are awe-inspiring because the Oregon receiver room was beat up and at least somewhat depleted for much of the season. Cutting down on his turnovers (ten INTs) will be a key to elevating his stock even further.
3. Sam Leavitt - LSU Tigers
Sam Leavitt 2026 Preseason Player Profile
- Class: RS Junior
- 2025 Team: Arizona State Sun Devils
- Height: 6'2"
- Weight: 205 Pounds
- Passing Yards: 1,628
- Touchdown Passes: 10
There has been plenty of speculation about the end of Sam Leavitt’s tenure at Arizona State, but he is an undeniably talented quarterback who should be a terrific fit in Lane Kiffin’s offensive system. Kiffin, now the head coach at LSU, went hunting for a big-time talent to lead his offense for his first season in Baton Rouge, and he eventually landed a player who reminds many of former Ole Miss quarterback and Kiffin product Jaxson Dart. His numbers in 2025 weren’t great, even before his injury (only a 60.7 completion percentage), but he was fantastic in 2024. Leavitt had 29 total touchdowns and ran for nearly 500 yards for the Sun Devils, and LSU has bolstered the talent around him in the transfer portal. Lane Kiffin’s quarterback is going to put up big numbers, and if Leavitt can improve his consistency and accuracy a bit, he’ll be a top-five QB in 2026.
4. Julian Sayin - Ohio State Buckeyes
Julian Sayin 2026 Preseason Player Profile
- Class: RS Sophomore
- 2025 Team: Ohio State Buckeyes
- Height: 6'1"
- Weight: 208 Pounds
- Passing Yards: 3,610
- Touchdown Passes: 32
Ohio State went into the Big Ten Championship Game with a perfect 12-0 record, but fell to the Indiana Hoosiers and then lost to the Miami Hurricanes in the College Football Playoff Quarterfinal. It is fair to criticize Julian Sayin for his lackluster play against OSU’s three toughest opponents (including Texas), and it often felt like Ryan Day and Brian Hartline were holding his hand and kept playcalling on cruise control, but Sayin’s accuracy was outstanding, particularly for a player in his first season starting. He completed 77 percent of his passes and only turned the ball over eight times with 32 passing touchdowns. The only real downside is that Sayin offers nothing in the running game, and that definitely limited OSU’s offense against the best defenses the Buckeyes faced.
5. Josh Hoover - Indiana Hoosiers
Josh Hoover 2026 Preseason Player Profile
- Class: RS Senior
- 2025 Team: TCU Horned Frogs
- Height: 6'2"
- Weight: 200 Pounds
- Passing Yards: 3,472
- Touchdown Passes: 29
Josh Hoover enters his senior season as the current active leader in career passing yards after a pair of prolific seasons in Fort Worth as the starting quarterback for the TCU Horned Frogs. He would have been in the top 20 if he had remained at TCU, but he rocketed up to number five after transferring. Hoover will now be the starting quarterback for the reigning national champion Indiana Hoosiers, and the quarterback in a Curt Cignetti and Mike Shanahan offense gets a major boost in my eyes. Hoover threw for 3,472 yards with 29 touchdowns while completing 65.9 percent of passes in 2025 and 3,949 yards with 27 touchdowns in 2024. He’s mobile enough to pick up first downs when needed. He’ll have a much better receiver corps (Charlie Becker and Michigan State transfer Nick Marsh are a fantastic duo, and Shazz Preston is an excellent addition from Tulane), plus a tremendous offensive line, while leading a system with a long history of producing great quarterback play. The only thing that could Hoover back is turnovers. He threw 24 interceptions in the past two seasons. Of course, Fernando Mendoza threw 16 interceptions at Cal.
6. Darian Mensah - Transfer Portal (Expected Miami)
Darian Mensah 2026 Preseason Player Profile
- Class: Junior
- 2025 Team: Duke Blue Devils
- Height: 6'3"
- Weight: 205 Pounds
- Passing Yards: 3,973
- Touchdown Passes: 34
Right up until the final moments of the transfer portal, Darian Mensah would have been listed as the leader of ACC Champion Duke. This is not the place to pick apart the late move into the transfer portal or the reasons all signs point to him eventually joining conference rival Miami; we will focus on the player's quality and his fit at number six on this list. Mensah threw for nearly 4,000 yards with 34 passing touchdowns and only six interceptions. That season came on the heels of an outstanding freshman campaign at Tulane, and the only question, if he joins Miami, is whether his performances can scale up when Miami plays top opposition (at Notre Dame on November 7) and possibly in the College Football Playoff.
7. Jayden Maiava - USC Trojans
Jayden Maiava 2026 Preseason Player Profile
- Class: Senior
- 2025 Team: USC Trojans
- Height: 6'4"
- Weight: 230 Pounds
- Passing Yards: 3,711
- Touchdown Passes: 24
Lincoln Riley has a great history with quarterbacks, and he appears to be in the process of making another star at the position with rising senior Jayden Maiava. Maiava split time with Miller Moss in 2024 and was the full-time starter in 2025, throwing for 3,711 yards and accounting for 30 total touchdowns. Maiava does have his work cut out for him in 2026, as star receivers Ja’Kobi Lane and Makai Lemon depart and the Trojans play at least three preseason top-ten teams (Oregon, Ohio State, and Indiana).
8. Kevin Jennings - SMU Mustangs
Kevin Jennings 2026 Preseason Player Profile
- Class: RS Senior
- 2025 Team: SMU Mustangs
- Height: 6'0"
- Weight: 192 Pounds
- Passing Yards: 3,641
- Touchdown Passes: 26
Nationally, not many pay attention to the SMU Mustangs, but Kevin Jennings is a star and deserves his respect. Rhett Lashlee is one of the best offensive coaches in the country, and the Mustangs had a serious rebuilding job at receiver, so it was really impressive to see Jennings throw for 3,641 yards with 30 total touchdowns. For whatever reason, Jennings did not run the ball much last season, but we know that trick is in the bag, plus the Mustangs added some help at receiver via the portal for 2026. He’s an under-the-radar one to watch as a third-year starter.
9. Demond Williams Jr. - Washington Huskies
Demond Williams Jr. 2026 Preseason Player Profile
- Class: Junior
- 2025 Team: Washington Huskies
- Height: 5'11"
- Weight: 190 pounds
- Passing Yards: 3,065
- Touchdown Passes: 25
In a different universe, Demond Williams Jr. would be the projected starting quarterback for the LSU Tigers, and Sam Leavitt would be lined up to play at somewhere like Tennessee. However, shortly after entering the transfer portal, Williams Jr. found the exit door firmly locked, and he’s back as the dynamic starter for Jedd Fisch and the Washington Huskies. No one has any idea how this drama will play out with his teammates, but it’s a good offensive system to return to, and Williams is a great player. He completed nearly 70 percent of his passes, had more than 3,600 total yards, and 31 total touchdowns. Williams Jr. has only nine interceptions in his collegiate career, and he’s an explosive runner who’s dangerous every time he takes off. If the team can put the offseason drama behind them, number nine might be underestimating him.
10. Byrum Brown - Auburn Tigers
Byrum Brown 2026 Preseason Player Profile
- Class: RS Senior
- 2025 Team: South Florida Bulls
- Height: 6'3"
- Weight: 231 pounds
- Passing Yards: 3,158
- Touchdown Passes: 28
It’s unknown how Byrum Brown will translate from the American Athletic Conference to the SEC, but he’s an electric athlete who Alex Golesh will lean on to get the Auburn Tigers back to relevance quickly. Brown was at South Florida with Golesh and threw for 3,158 yards while running for 1,008 yards and accounting for 42 touchdowns. Those are ridiculous numbers, but he was only 23 of 36 for 263 yards against Florida and just 20 of 36 against Miami with only two passing touchdowns combined. His other subpar game was against Memphis, and it would not be an exaggeration to say that he beat up on bad or average defenses to accumulate those stats. Brown is going to be a fascinating wild card to watch in 2026.
Honorable Mentions: The Best of the Rest
Who's Next?

Which quarterbacks will crack our top 15 when we update our 2026 quarterback rankings next week?
- Micah Alejado - Hawai'i
- CJ Bailey - North Carolina State
- Rocco Becht - Penn State
- CJ Carr - Notre Dame
- Noah Fifita - Arizona
- John Mateer - Oklahoma
- Drew Mestemaker - Oklahoma State
- Marcel Reed - Texas A&M
- Jaron-Keawe Sagapolutele - California
- LaNorris Sellers - South Carolina
- Brendan Sorsby - Texas Tech
- Gunner Stockton - Georgia
- Bryce Underwood - Michigan
Heisman Watch: Ranking the Top 10 College Football QBs for 2026
2026 Heisman Trophy Odds
- Arch Manning: +800
- Josh Hoover: +1100
- Julian Sayin: +1300
- Sam Leavitt: +1300
- Dante Moore: +1300
- Jayden Maiava: +2000
- Byrum Brown: +3500
- Demond Williams Jr.: +4000
- Kevin Jennings: +6500
- Darian Mensah: No Odds Currently
Who Is No. 1? Ranking the 10 Most Explosive QBs for the 2026 Season
The confetti has barely finished falling in Miami Gardens, and fans of the Indiana Hoosiers will be celebrating the school's first College Football National Championship for weeks and months to come. Still, it's never too early to begin looking ahead to the 2026 season. Several star quarterbacks are returning, and numerous players are poised for breakthrough campaigns.

Transfer quarterbacks have dominated the College Football Playoff recently. Will Howard's Ohio State Buckeyes knocked off Riley Leonard's Notre Dame Fighting Irish in the 2024 title game in a matchup of two transfers, and former Cal QB Fernando Mendoza led IU to the win over former UGA QB Carson Beck and the Miami Hurricanes on January 19, 2026. Will we see more of the same in 2026? The top ten features six quarterbacks returning to the same team they led in 2025 and four who were hot commodities in the transfer portal.

Who are the top 10 quarterbacks for the 2026 college football campaign?