Ranking all 68 Power 4 quarterbacks at the midseason mark

This has been the most chaotic college football season in recent memory in all sorts of ways. (Have you talked to your children about top-10 UCLA and top-15 Kentucky yet?) But nowhere has all that unpredictability been more acutely felt than at quarterback, where preseason darlings have already lost their jobs (or come close to it) and little-known names have blossomed into stars before our eyes.

So, with every team having played at least half of their regular-season schedule, what better time to take stock of the most important position on the field? As we get set for what should be a truly wild stretch run, just who has been the best quarterback in the country so far this year?

To answer that question, we ranked every single power-conference starter, from No. 1 all the way through No. 68. Note that we're only ranking current starters, and we are taking injuries into account here — it doesn't much matter where Julian Sayin might fall if Ohio State is going to have to be without him for weeks (if not much longer). Now, without further ado, let's dive in.

All 68 Power 4 quarterbacks, ranked after Week 7

Why Trinidad Chambliss has been college football's most impressive QB so far

Chambliss isn't at the top of the leaderboard in terms of Total QBR; in fact, he's 13th, below several names he ranks above on this list. So yes, I know what the numbers say. But I also know what my eyes tell me, and my eyes tell me that Chambliss has done more for his team on a weekly basis than any other quarterback — heck, maybe even any other player — in the country.

He pulled his team out of the fire in the season opener against Louisville. He was a one-man wrecking crew against an LSU defense that's proven to be pretty salty. Heck, even the Rebels' lone loss against Florida, he went 25-of-34 for 298 yards while also serving as the team's leading rusher. No one carries a heavier burden, especially with Kewan Lacy hampered by injury, and no one's been able to stop him despite it. With questions around other top candidates — Darian Mensah against elite competition, CJ Carr's ceiling, Kamario Taylor's health — he gets my nod.

Why isn't Arch Manning even lower?

By the numbers, putting Arch even in the top 30 is being awfully generous; he's currently 61st among FBS passers in Total QBR, with five picks through six games. So, what gives?

For starters, we have last year as evidence that Manning can, in fact, be a good starting quarterback in the SEC. And I'm simply not willing to pin all of Texas' offensive struggles on him; the Horns can't run the ball on early downs and their offensive line is middling at best, putting Arch in bad situations (situations which, admittedly, he has not handled as well as he should).

Once we get down into the late 20s, everybody has some pretty apparent flaws. I'm willing to hold on to my Manning stock based on what he's shown in the past.

Julian Sayin's injury could be devastating for Ohio State

We've yet to get a concrete prognosis on Sayin after he left Saturday's wild win over Indiana with an elbow injury, but the silence — as well as Ryan Day's postgame assertion that his QB1 would miss "several weeks" — would certainly seem to indicate that this is a long-term (and potentially season-ending) issue. And if that is in fact the case, it's hard to see how Ohio State can keep its Big Ten and national title hopes on course given what the Buckeyes have behind him on the depth chart.

Luke Fahey spelled Sayin in Bloomington, and while it's unfair to read too much into limited work while thrust into a hostile environment, he's a three-star true freshman who looked every bit like it in his first real college action. Maybe he'll prove these rankings wrong, but for now, Ohio State would seem to have the lowest ceiling at the QB position in the country. A brutal turn of events.

Is Tommy Carr the future at Michigan?

Speaking of Big Ten blue bloods turning the keys over to freshmen: Bryce Underwood is officially out at Michigan after a miserable first half against Penn State, while Tommy Carr — yes, Lloyd Carr's grandson — appears to be the new starter after guiding the Wolverines to three second-half touchdowns.

Carr was a four-star recruit in the 2026 class, and he flashed some real athleticism in his first collegiate outing. I'm still exercising caution here, though. For starters, it's always best to not get suckered in by a backup coming off the bench when a defense hasn't had time to prepare for them. He's also still a true freshman, one for whom a learning curve presumably awaits. Michigan should absolutely give Carr a long runway to see what they have, but don't be shocked if there are bumps in the road.

Don't sell stock in Keelon Russell, Gunner Stockton

It was a tough Saturday for two of the SEC's best, as Alabama and Georgia followed up their titanic clash in Tuscaloosa by flopping against Tennessee and Auburn respectively. Bama star Keelon Russell managed just 147 yards while throwing two picks, while Gunner Stockton uncharacteristically coughed up the ball three times in the Dawgs' upset loss.

I'm all too willing to write those performances off as relative flukes, though. Russell has looked like a supernova for most of this season, a rare blend of arm talent and athleticism. Alabama got manhandled up front by a fearsome Vols pass rush, and he no doubt still has things to learn about managing the pocket in the SEC. But I'll bet on this talent every time, and I still believe in what the Tide has shown so far. Stockton, meanwhile, has built his whole game around protecting the ball, even as he's slowly fleshed out his downfield passing game. It seems much more likely that this was a dud on the heels of an awfully physical top-10 showdown.

Marcel Reed has been the most disappointing player in college football

Yes, things really have gotten that bad: Reed is currently 91st in the country in Total QBR. Tait Reynolds, Steve Angeli, Malik Washington, Demond Williams Jr. and Mason McKenzie are the only current power-conference starters below him. And it's not even like he's been facing a gauntlet of a schedule, with Missouri State, Arizona State and the Citadel in non-con and an SEC slate that's consisted of Missouri, LSU, Kentucky and Arkansas.

Reed has always been a scattershot passer from the pocket. But I don't think anyone realized just how much Collin Klein (plus very good weapons and a veteran offensive line) was propping him up last year. Without any of that support system in place, he's completely fallen apart. Do you think the Aggies regret choosing him over Conner Weigman right about now?

Don't sleep on LaNorris Sellers down the stretch

Sellers inside the top 25 might be aggressive, given the vibes around South Carolina's season to date. But it feels like the Gamecocks figured something out across a heartbreaking loss to Kentucky — a loss that looks a whole lot better now that the Wildcats are ranked in the top 15 — and a road stomping of Florida in the Swamp. Sellers, in particular, has been dynamite with both his arm and his legs.

Now they're coming out of their bye as healthy as they've been all year, and with home dates against Tennessee and Georgia still to go, they could wreak havoc on the SEC title race. Sellers has all the tools to be a top-10 pick in next spring's draft; if this offense has finally caught a rhythm, look out.

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