The first week of college football is officially finished and we are looking forward to Week 2. UGA Wire already did its own SEC football power rankings.
Now, we rank the quarterbacks for those SEC teams. There were several contrasting matchups in Week 1. Many SEC teams played weak or FCS teams, while others had to play ranked teams. Here’s how every quarterback stacks up statistically ahead of Week 2.
1. Jaxson Dart, Ole Miss (418 yards, 5 TDs, 0 INTs, 272.6 Passer Rating vs. Furman)
Dart lived up to his namesake this week, throwing darts all over the field and leading Ole Miss to a 76-0 win. They have a relatively easy schedule for a while, with their SEC opponent being Week 5 vs. Kentucky.
2. Payton Thorne, Auburn (322 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs, 253.6 Passer Rating vs. Alabama A&M)
Not many people expected to see Payton Thorne up here, but he balled out on Saturday. Once again, it was against an FCS team and Auburn doesn’t get an SEC opponent until Week 4 against Arkansas.
3. Nico Iamaleava, Tennessee (314 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs, 208.1 Passer Rating vs. Chattanooga)
Same ordeal as the first two. Iamaleava had an excellent performance against an FCS team. However, they have to play No. 24 NC State next week, so don’t be shocked if Iamaleava sinks a bit.
4. Blake Shapen, Mississippi State (247 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs, 228.2 Passer Rating vs. Eastern Kentucky)
I put Iamaleava over Shapen due to having more passing yards, but Shapen was ultra efficient in his 21 attempts.
5. Jalen Milroe, Alabama (200 yards, 3 TDs, 0 INTs, 374.5 Passer Rating vs. Western Kentucky)
His insanely high passer rating is due to throwing nine times. It feels crazy for putting him this high despite the volume, but he also had two touchdowns running, giving him five total on the day.
6. Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt (190 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs, 216.0 Passer Rating @ Virginia Tech)
Pavia’s passing stat line looks just okay, but combine that with his 104 yards and 2 touchdowns rushing, and you see how Vanderbilt was able to look like an actual SEC team for once.
7. Taylen Green, Arkansas (229 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs, 181.9 Passer Rating vs. AR Pine Bluff)
Taylen Green goes above Ewers because of his 88 yards and 2 touchdowns rushing.
8. Quinn Ewers, Texas (260 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INTs, 184.2 Passer Rating vs. Colorado State)
9. Carson Beck, Georgia (278 yards, 2 TDs, 0 INTs, 160.5 Passer Rating vs. No. 14 Clemson)
It speaks to how dominant Georgia was that Carson Beck wasn’t jaw-dropping and still orchestrated an efficient performance in a 31-point blowout.
10. Brock Vandagriff, Kentucky (169 yards, 3 TDs, 1 INTs, 189.4 Passer Rating vs. Southern Miss)
If not for the game being cut short due to lightning, Vandagriff would be even higher on this list. He was on pace to pass for 225 yards and four TDs.
11. Jackson Arnold, Oklahoma (141 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs, 168.2 Passer Rating vs. Temple)
Arnold had four touchdowns but only throwing 141 yards on 25 attempts dings him a bit. He had a ton of short fields to work with, as his defense forced six turnovers.
12. Garrett Nussmeier, LSU (304 yards, 2 TDs, 1 INT, 155.6 Passer Rating vs. No. 23 USC)
Nussmeier’s debut as LSU’s signal caller was mixed. He didn’t do enough to lose the game, but certainly not enough to win either. It was evident as they lost to USC on a last second rushing score.
13. Brady Cook, Missouri (218 yards, 1 TD, 0 INT, 135.4 Passer Rating vs. Murray State)
Brady Cook had a mediocre day against Murray State, but he isn’t the biggest reason why Missouri is No. 11.
14. LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina (114 yards, 0 TDs, 0 INTs, 85.1 Passer Rating vs. Ole Dominion)
Now we get to quarterbacks who were actively bad. It’s rare that a team barely wins against an FCS team, but South Carolina did just that against Old Dominion, and it was mostly thanks to Sellers playing terribly.
15. Graham Mertz, Florida (91 yards, 0 TDs, 1 INT, 83.2 Passer Rating vs. No. 19 Miami)
Mertz had an awful day. He had this stat line and he even suffered a concussion. Florida’s season is on life support, especially if he misses time or keeps playing terribly.
16. Conner Weigman, Texas A&M (100 yards, 0 TDs, 2 INTs, 54.7 Passer Rating vs. No. 7 Notre Dame)
Weigman’s stat line seems almost unfathomable, but what might be more unbelievable is that despite his awfulness, Texas A&M still had a chance to win late against Notre Dame. A truly terrible performance, and if he can’t rebound, Texas A&M is in trouble.
