The college football landscape differs significantly from the NFL in terms of building stars. Two major factors change how we look at quarterbacks in both leagues. Having such a strict time limit on their college careers gives these players only so much time to make an impact, and it forces much more quarterback turnover, opening up opportunities for future superstars. Also, there are more than 100 quarterback jobs to fill, giving more players a chance to prove themselves.
When we look at the greatest college quarterbacks in history, we look back at some of the statistical anomalies like Steve McNair, who had more than 16,000 passing yards in college. There are quintessential winners like Danny Wuerffel and Tommie Frazier. There are the legends who continued their dominance in the NFL, like Joe Montana, Dan Marino, and Peyton Manning.
Looking at the past 25 years of college football, finding the 10 best players at the position is as great an argument as there is in sports. You can literally get 100 different lists from 100 different analysts. There has arguably never been as much change in any sport as there has been in college football in the 21st century, with the addition of the College Football Playoff and the addition of NIL, but it hasn’t stopped absolute legends from coming up.
10. Jason White
Oklahoma Sooners
1999-2004
There is no player in football history who has been unnecessarily lost to history like former Oklahoma Sooners quarterback Jason White. He was absolute nails when he was chanting Boomer Sooner. White won a National Championship, a Maxwell Award, and the Heisman Trophy all in different seasons (although his role on the championship team was small). He was as consistent and incredible as there was at the time.
White started his career slowly, which was normal back in 2000. Teams allowed players to develop into stars. White actually didn’t get his chance until Nate Hybl got injured against Texas, forcing White to take over in his team’s biggest rivalry game against the #5 team in the country. He went 16-of-23 for 108 yards and ran 12 times for a team-high 38 yards.
White suffered multiple knee injuries, and he lost all of his mobility, which makes his 2003 season even more insane. Because of the knee injuries, White could only play in the shotgun position, and he still put up insane numbers. It kind of changed how college football looked at offensive playbooks. Good offensive coordinators can find ways to call plays around its quarterback’s flaws.
In his 2003 season, White had more than 3,800 yards and 40 touchdowns. He came out the next year and put up 3,200 yards and 35 touchdowns. Each season, he had a QB rating over 158. White is one of three players in college football history to win back-to-back Davey O’Brien Awards, and he came close to being one of two players with two Heisman Trophies, coming in third place in 2004. Knee injuries ruined any shot of an NFL career, which is part of the reason he doesn’t get the recognition as other QBs on this list.
9. Tua Tagovailoa
Alabama Crimson Tide
2017-2019
We talked about Jason White taking over in Oklahoma’s rivalry game and how important that was. There’s not much more important a place to take over the starting job than the middle of the National Championship Game. That’s what Tua Tagovailoa did, taking over for Jalen Hurts in the 2018 College Football National Championship Game. He threw the game-winning 41-yard touchdown pass in overtime, showing Nick Saban’s bold move paid off.
Tagovailoa continued his great play under center, putting up insane passing numbers we hadn’t seen under Nick Saban before this. Usually, we had players like Greg McElroy and A.J. McCarron winning games by handing the ball off really well and making timely throws. Tagovailoa was making insane throws on the run.
In 2018, his first season as starter, he broke the NCAA record for passer rating in a season, breaking 199 for the first time. He brought Alabama back to the National Championship Game, but this time lost to Clemson. He threw for just under 4,000 yards that season and 43 touchdowns, being honored as the Consensus All-American at quarterback.
In 2019, Tagovailoa suffered multiple injuries, including a high-ankle sprain that needed surgery and a hip injury that ended his college career. The hip injury came with Alabama up comfortably 35-7 against Mississippi State. It was insane that he was still in the game, and now Alabama had to go forth with backup Mac Jones. The injuries hurt his legacy, but we have to recognize that this dude was untouchable for like 22 months.
8. Baker Mayfield
Oklahoma Sooners, Texas Tech Red Raiders
2013-2017
Candidly, Baker Mayfield was really hard to rank on this list. He could easily be in the top five, and there’s an argument that he’s taking the spot of guys like Marcus Mariota and Robert Griffin III (who were the last cuts on this list). However, Mayfield has multiple seasons where he was the top quarterback in the country despite most having little to no expectations for his career. After winning the Big 12 Conference Freshman Offensive Player of the Year award with the Red Raiders, an issue with Texas Tech head coach Kliff Kingsbury caused him to leave campus and head for a rival.
Mayfield went to Oklahoma, but he didn’t discuss things properly with Oklahoma, so he had to earn his spot on the roster. Because of that, and some incredible play, he’s the first walk-on player in the history of college football to win the Heisman Trophy. He walked on to the Sooners after a season with Texas Tech, took over the starting job after sitting out due to transfer rules, beat Tennessee on the road in double OT in his second game ever with Oklahoma, and his legend grew from there.
Mayfield brought Oklahoma to the Orange Bowl in his first season, one of the four teams in the College Football Playoff, but they lost to a Clemson team ready for primetime. Mayfield came back even better, finishing third in Heisman Trophy voting. He dropped 66 points on his old team Texas Tech, who was now quarterbacked by a guy named Mahomes.
His 2017 season started with controversy when he planted OU’s flag in the middle of the other O, the one on the 50-yard line in Columbus. He beat Ohio State in an early-season classic. He finished the season with 198.9 QB rating, a then record, and 43 touchdowns. His performance finally earned him a Heisman Trophy after coming close twice before. Only five players have more career passing touchdowns in college football history, and none of them were as talented and needed as Mayfield.
7. Cam Newton
Auburn Tigers, Florida Gators, Blinn College
2007-2010
Cam Newton took a route to this list unlike anyone else mentioned. He needed Juco to get his career back on track. After being the clear heir apparent to Tim Tebow’s historic tenure in Gainesville, Newton suffered injuries, academic issues, and even an arrest before announcing he was transferring after his sophomore season. He dominated at Blinn College, and Gus Malzahn saw something special in the kid.
Newton was named the starter off the jump, and he proved to be one of the best quarterbacks in the country. There are countless memories from his first season with the Tigers, but two stand out. His win over Georgia put Auburn back on the map in that rivalry, and it secured a spot in the SEC Championship Game.
Then, there was the Iron Bowl. Every year, the Auburn-Alabama game is must-see TV. It doesn’t matter the record; this is almost always a great game. Newton’s first year was better than a great game. It might be the best comeback in regular-season college football history. Newton was down 24-0. He roared back, scoring a touchdown right before the half to give the Tigers hope. He faced a fourth-and-3 at around midfield in the fourth quarter, and his teamwas trailing by six. Newton converted with a nine-year pass to Darvin Adams and eventually threw a touchdown to Philip Lutzenkirchen.
Newton’s statline is insane. Thirty passing touchdowns and 20 rushing touchdowns. Putting up 1,400 yards on the ground and adding 2,800 passing yards. He finished his college career by etching out Oregon for the National Championship, winning 22-19. After the Ducks tied the game with 2:19 left, Newton was given a chance to play hero again. He drove the Tigers 73 yards down the field, setting up a 19-yard field goal to win as time expired.
6. Jameis Winston
Florida State Seminoles
2012-2014
While a player like Mayfield failed to win the title, the opposite is true for Jameis Winston. The Florida State standout lost one game in his college career. One!!!! Winston went 26-1 in his two-year stint as starter for the Seminoles. In his first game as starter, he threw just two incompletions on 27 attempts. It wasn’t like he was playing a powderpuff, either. He was playing the University of Pittsburgh.
He led his team to an undefeated season, going 13-0, and winning every possible award along the way. He won the Manning Award, Davey O’Brien Award, Walter Camp Player of the Year Award, Consensus All-American, and the Heisman Trophy. He brought his team to the National Championship Game, beating Auburn 34-31. Winstron threw the game-winning touchdown to Kelvin Benjamin with 13 seconds left and down four.
Winston was already a legend in Tallahassee, but he was trying to go back-to-back in 2014. He once again went 13-0, setting a matchup with Oregon in the first-ever College Football Playoff. He ended up losing pretty badly in that game, as the Ducks dropped 59 on Florida State to advance against eventual champion Ohio State (who also won the first-ever 12-team Playoff).
It’s tough to end on a loss, but it’s even tougher to end your career on your first loss. Winston said goodbye to Florida State and was the first-overall pick in the NFL Draft.
5. Johnny Manziel
Texas A&M Aggies
2011-2013
One thing we noticed when researching this article is Johnny Manziel is considered overrated for his impact on college football, but that’s incorrect revisionist history. Manziel was not great simply because we wanted him to be or because he was a polarizing figure, he was the embodiment of “showing up when it matters” and played the gauntlet that was the SEC schedule every year despite not having a laundry list of five-stars on his roster like Alabama or Georgia.
Manziel’s most famous moments came in the rivalry with Alabama. As a freshman, Maziel went down to Tuscaloosa and dropped 21 points on the Crimson Tide in the first quarter. He helped his team hold onto a 29-24 victory, and his name was forever etched in stone. We talk about him being the first freshman to win the Heisman Trophy in 2012, but he also became the first freshman to throw for 3,000 yards and rush for 1,000 yards. That’s wildly impressive from a player who didn’t get much hype coming in the door. On top of that, he threw for 26 touchdowns and rushed for 21 more.
Manziel also had multiple games with 500 yards of total offense, a record that he continued to break. Many were bothered by Manziel’s antics both on and off the field, and he became somewhat of a villain among college football circles. This caused many to say they expected a sophomore slump.
It didn’t really happen, and his performance against Alabama is one of the best of this century. He threw for 464 yards against the top team in the country. Unfortunately, his defense failed him, and he lost 49-42 despite throwing five touchdowns. Manziel finished the season with more than 4,000 yards passing and 37 touchdowns.
4. Joe Burrow
LSU Tigers, Ohio State Buckeyes
2015-2019
Joe Burrow is the greatest example of a “change of scenery” player in the history of college football. There are many examples, like Jayden Daniels who also went to LSU, who needed to find the right home. It was night and day for Joe Burrow coming from Ohio State and going to LSU. He lost his starting competition in Columbus to the late Dwayne Haskins, and he left.
Burrow rushed to finish his degree so he could be eligible as a graduate transfer. He was immediately eligible at LSU, starting the 2018 season. Burrow had a few good moments, including beating No. 7 Auburn and playing in the seven-overtime classic with Texas A&M. He led the Tigers to finish sixth overall in the final standings, setting up what would be the greatest college season for a team of all time.
The 2019 LSU Tigers would be every team ever assembled. We absolutely believe that. This team had Burrow, Ja’Marr Chase, Justin Jefferson (just the two best receivers in the NFL today), Clyde-Edwards Helaire, Terrace Marshall Jr., Patrick Queen, Derek Stingley Jr., and the absolutely insane Ed Orgeron as head coach. Every piece fell into place beautifully, and they went 15-0. Burrow won the Heisman Trophy by the largest margin in the history of the award, beating Oklahoma quarterback Jalen Hurts by 1,800 voting points. He had 841 first-place votes. To put it into perspective, DeVonta Smith won the award with 447 first-place votes the next season.
Burrow didn’t just beat nobody teams on his way to a National Championship. He faced Texas, Florida, Auburn, and Alabama, who were all ranked in the top ten at kickoff. The beat up on Oklahoma in the National Semi-final, putting up 63 points on the Sooners. Burrow threw for seven touchdowns in the first half. He went to the National Championship and threw for 463 yards and five touchdowns (adding another one on the ground). Burrow was unstoppable, and he raised the National Championship trophy before heading to the NFL.
3. Vince Young
Texas Longhorns
2002-2005
Vince Young’s legendary run to beat USC and win the National Championship will live on in the memories of all of us who had the privilege of watching it live. It was a simple play on paper, but the ability to pull it off was all Vince Young. He looked like a larger-than-life figure when he was in college. Not in a problematic way, but more in a way where he truly felt like Superman.
Rewinding a little bit, Young’s rushing ability was immediately clear. As a redshirt freshman, his dynamic skills had him taking over the starting job in the middle of the season over Chance Mock. Despite not starting for most of the season, Young still rushed for just under 1,000 yards.
During his first full season as the starter, Texas opened up the offense, had Young play in the shotgun, and they pulled from a playbook that now had three wide receiver sets. Texas was really good, throwing for 1,849 yards and rushing for 1,189 yards.
In his junior season, Young became a legend. He led the Longhorns to an 11-0 record and a spot in the National Championship Game against USC. It was a shootout, with Texas winning 41-38 on that Vince Young nine-yard scamper we’re all thinking of. It was actually his third rushing touchdown of the game. Young ended USC’s 34-game winning streak, beating what many thought was an unbeatable team.
2. Matt Leinart
USC Trojans
2001-2005
Sometimes, the way these lists come out is tragic in its irony. We just talked about Vince Young taking down the big bad wolf that is the USC Trojans. Well, Matt Leinart was the leader of that wolf. He learned from one of the best, redshirting the season that Carson Palmer won the Heisman Trophy. It’s crazy to think that Leinart was once considered just a placeholder for John David Booty.
Leinart beat Matt Cassel and Brandon Hance for the starting job in 2003. In their first game of the season against Auburn, Leinart threw a touchdown on his first-ever pass. It was a sign of things to come. He got them to No. 3 in the nation before an upset loss to Cal in triple overtime. In one of the many controversies of the BCS poll, USC finished 11-1 and first in the AP Poll, but the BCS chose Oklahoma and LSU to play for the National Championship.
In 2004, USC started No. 1 in the polls, and they never relinquished that honor. Going undefeated in the regular season, the Trojans wouldn’t let a formula determine their fate. Leinart threw for 33 touchdowns and rushed for three more. He won the Heisman Trophy ahead of a matchup with Oklahoma. It was highly anticipated, with both Leinart and Jason White coming in with Heisman Trophy wins. Leinart destroyed the Oklahoma defense, posting 55 points on the Sooners and won the National Championship.
The next season, Leinart surprised everyone and returned. In the big Notre Dame-USC rivalry game, Leinart led the Trojans to a 34-31 victory after scoring a touchdown with three seconds left. After another successful and undefeated regular season, Leinart once again finished in the top three in Heisman Trophy voting. Then, the Young game happened. We’ll just ignore that part and tell you about him going 37-2 as a starter.
1. Tim Tebow
Florida Gators
2006-2009
Tim Tebow played three seasons of college football. In every season, he either won the Heisman Trophy or won a National Championship. That’s an insane hit rate. He was dominant under center. Even when he was sharing time with Chris Leak, Tebow was the guy everyone was looking forward to. Everyone remembers the jump pass, which was the welcome moment of Tebow’s career.
In 2007, after taking over full-time as a starter, where he had 32 passing touchdowns and 23 rushing touchdowns, he won the top award in college football. His ability as a dual threat made the Gators' offense impossible to stop. They already had some big names on that team, like Percy Harvin and Cornelius Ingram. However, they weren’t able to repeat as National Champions.
After playing through injuries in 2007, Florida was looking for ways to take the load off of Tebow’s shoulders. Then, Florida lost to Ole Miss. Tebow made “The Promise” to the media after the game, apologizing for the team’s and his own performance. The Promise pushed the Gators to winning every other game that season.
Later that season, Tebow rushed for his 37th touchdown against Georgia, beating Emmitt Smith’s career record. He beat Alabama in the SEC Title Game, which gave them a chance to win the National Championship. In the Heisman vote, Tebow received the most first-place votes, which seemingly should have made him just the second player ever to win two such awards, but Sam Bradford walked away due to second and third-place votes. Still, we don’t think Tebow is trading the National Title win for another Heisman.