In a recent list of Brad Crawford of 247Sports and five Big 12 quarterbacks made it into the top 25 in the country.
The five quarterbacks who received the honor were Shedeur Sanders of Colorado, Noah Fifita of Arizona, Jalon Daniels of Kansas, Garrett Greene of West Virginia and Cam Rising of Utah.
No. 1 – SHEDEUR SANDERS
“The best of Shedeur Sanders is yet to come,” Crawford wrote. “That may not even happen in the college ranks unless Colorado’s offensive line takes a noticeable step forward in his final season. The truth is, given his skill set, Sanders would start for pretty much any team nationally, and his arm is one of the strongest nationally. He officially had 11 starts, but only played a couple of series against Washington State in November before leaving the Buffaloes’ second-to-last game with an injury. He will have a chance this season to move up to the top quarterback list ahead of the 2025 NFL Draft if Colorado gains bowl eligibility thanks to his leadership.”
No. 9 – NOAH FIFITA
“After a stellar sophomore season, Noah Fifita stayed in Arizona despite his head coach Jedd Fisch transferring to Washington at the end of the season,” Crawford said. “According to PFF, Fifita was best under pressure last season, earning one of the highest passer ratings in the country. And on money downs, Fifita’s grade of 90.3 was No. 3 nationally. The young signal-caller has the potential to play as one of the most talented sub-6-foot passers in college football.”
No. 11 – Jalon Daniels
“Can Jalon Daniels stay healthy? That’s the big question almost everyone is asking about the veteran Big 12 quarterback, who only played in three games last season after having a statistically successful season for the Jayhawks in 2022,” Crawford wrote. “At full strength, there’s hardly anyone better than Daniels in big situations, but he hasn’t played 10 games in any season so far. The loss of his OC to Penn State is also something to keep an eye on.”
No. 14 – Garrett Greene
“The advanced analytics suggest that 2024 Garrett Greene is the most underrated returning quarterback in college football after bursting onto the scene for the Mountaineers last season,” Crawford said. “He led the FBS in big-time throws (10.2%) last fall, according to PFF, and is rarely sacked due to his mobility when under pressure. It’s a dangerous comparison for sure, but Greene is the closest quarterback we’ve seen in the power conference ranks in several years to Johnny Manziel. He’s deadly on the move and can move the chains with his feet or find guys on the second level when the secondary starts to close in.”
NO. 19 CAM RISING
“It’s rare for a quarterback with two conference championships to return for a seventh season,” Crawford said. “But Rising has given it one more try after missing the 2023 season with a knee injury. The Utes enter the Big 12 and are a playoff contender by most projections as one of the league’s new leaders. Rising has made big plays at key moments in his career and has seen just about everything as a starting quarterback.”
In addition to the five players listed above, three players from the Big 12 Conference received honorable mentions, including Avery Johnson of Kansas State, KJ Jefferson of UCF and Donovan Smith of Houston.
