No major conference in college football featured as many quarterback competitions during spring practice as the Big Ten. Multiple battles remain undecided heading. That is what makes projecting the league’s starters in 2024 — and power ranking them — a not-so-enviable task this time of year.
Relying on team information and reporting, there is at least some semblance of expectations for the position at each program, even the schools expected to struggle in the expanded conference featuring many of the nation’s title contenders.
Big Ten quarterback projections are based on how they could finish in 2024 amongst their peers in terms of efficiency, impact and overall numbers. That said, talent around them matters, including the situations at wide receiver and up front for respective offensive lines. For the most part, expect these guys to be their team’s starting quarterback when August rolls around prior to competitions commencing once again.
RELATED: Post-spring Big Ten power rankings by team
Here are post-spring ranking of the Big Ten’s projected starters at quarterback:
Spring takeaway: Losing projected starter Brendan Sullivan to the portal post-spring was an unexpected blow.
Considering Sullivan shined at times, most assumed he would be the guy in 2024 after sharing reps this spring with Jack Lausch, but he’s gone. That leaves the Wildcats with three options at the position. Ryan Hilinski and Aidan Gray are still on the roster and Hilinski has substantial starting experience during his lengthy career at multiple schools. New Northwestern offensive coordinator Zach Lujan could also tap into the transfer market and see if there’s a fit for his scheme where he’d feel comfortable bringing someone in for fall camp with an immediate tag to compete for the job.
Spring takeaway: Sophomore Donovan Leary is ready to rock and roll if Altmyer struggles early.
Bret Bielema exited spring at Illinois feeling confident he would get better quarterback play in 2024 between his top two options at the position, former Ole Miss transfer Luke Altmyer and Leary, the brother of former NC State and Kentucky quarterback Devin Leary. Both players threw multiple touchdown passes in the spring game.
Spring takeaway: The Terps’ quarterback competition is not yet decided.
Maryland is “still a long way from naming a starter” at the position according to Mike Locksley, who got a good look the last few weeks at redshirt junior Billy Edwards Jr. and redshirt sophomore MJ Morris, a transfer from NC State, to succeed Taulia Tagovailoa. Morris said after the spring game he expects Locksley to make the call just before the season opener. Competition is a good thing, but without any separation between the two similar signal callers, there are more questions than answers for Maryland after replacing the Big Ten’s career leader in passing yards.
Spring takeaway: New Hampshire graduate transfer has already earned captain status with the Golden Gophers.
It didn’t take long for Max Brosmer to win over his Minnesota teammates. With last season’s starter Athan Kaliakmanis at Rutgers, this is Brosmer’s offense. He was a finalist for the Walter Payton Award last year — which is given to the nation’s top player at the FCS level — and has a strong arm. Brosmer has to adjust to a balanced, more pro-style look at his Big Ten school rather than throwing the football just about every down last season. Minnesota tried giving him a variety of looks this spring to get him acquainted to a different speed of the game at the Power conference level.
Spring takeaway: DeShaun Foster’s success in Year 1 hinges on a variety of factors, including quarterback play.
Ethan Garbers led the first-team offense throughout UCLA’s spring showcase to conclude new coach DeShaun Foster’s first few months on campus with the Bruins. After losing former five-star signee Dante Moore to the transfer portal this cycle to Oregon, UCLA’s redshirt junior immediately became the next guy in line to start. He threw 11 touchdown passes last fall and did not have an interception over UCLA’s final four games. Garbers and the Bruins face a brutal slate this fall to open their Big Ten era.
Spring takeaway: The Minnesota transfer was good enough this spring to chase Gavin Wimsatt to the portal.
Greg Schiano handed over the keys to his offense to Athan Kaliakmanis, last season’s starter at Minnesota who had mixed results with P.J. Fleck and the Golden Gophers. Kaliakmanis unseated last year’s starter for the Scarlet Knights, not all that surprising despite Wimsatt rushing for 11 touchdowns. He was too inconsistent as a passer for Rutgers to feel good about its situation under center heading into 2024, so the program took a chance on Kaliakmanis for depth and competition. Kaliakmanis had four games with at least two touchdown passes, which was three more than Wimsatt.
Spring takeaway: The situation’s worrisome under center for the Hawkeyes under new OC Tim Lester.
With Deacon Hill entering the transfer portal, Iowa has three scholarship options at the position — McNamara, Marco Lainez III and true freshman four-star James Resar, who arrives this summer. The Hawkeyes desperately need another body given McNamara’s injury history. He has been lost for the season consecutive years and won’t be a “full go” until June, according to Kirk Ferentz. Iowa is reportedly interested in former Northwestern quarterback Brendan Sullivan and Oklahoma’s General Booty, who are both on the market post-spring. It’s hard to imagine either of those guys potentially unseating McNamara, but another signing is vital at the position.
Spring takeaway: No starter has been named, but there’s an obvious pecking order.
Given the snap breakdown in Indiana’s final scrimmage and much of spring practice, it appears new coach Curt Cignetti will roll with Ohio transfer Kurtis Rourke as his starter this season with former Tennessee transfer Tayven Jackson in the No. 2 slot. The competition remains open approaching summer according to Cignetti, who liked what he saw from both players the last few months. Rourke looks like he’s the guy who will trot out with the 1s for the Hoosiers when fall camp arrives and will be featured in a quarterback-friendly offense.
Spring takeaway: The former Texas transfer is settling in for Year 2 with the Boilermakers and has a coaching boost.
After throwing for 2,387 yards and 15 touchdowns as a first-time starter in the Big Ten, Card is back with intention of turning things around for Ryan Walters and Purdue. Card should have his best season in 2024 with assistance from Purdue’s new offensive coordinator and former Texas Tech quarterback Graham Harrell. He worked with several high-skill players at the position and could be the key to unlocking greatness from the former four-star recruit.
Spring takeaway: First-year coach Jonathan Smith brought his guy with him to East Lansing for a reason.
Aidan Chiles, a sophomore transfer from Oregon State, is the most talented option in the Spartans’ quarterback room and exits spring as QB1 of the offense. North Dakota transfer Tommy Schuster is the depth option behind him who also showed glimpses of talent in Michigan State’s spring game, but it’s pretty clear Chiles will be one of the leaders of this new-look program in the Big Ten.
Spring takeaway: The expectation around Ann Arbor is Alex Orji will start, unless things go awry.
Still unproven as a passer in game situation, Orji showed flashes of athleticism on the move last season as the primary backup to J.J. McCarthy during the Wolverines’ unbeaten run to their first national championship since 1997. He’s still raw in other areas like most of the quarterbacks on Michigan’s roster, but the coaching staff did like the way he handled first-team reps during the spring game last month and showed accuracy through the air. Heralded freshman Jadyn Davis is the future for Sherrone Moore, but it’s not his time yet.
Spring takeaway: Tyler Van Dyke gives the Badgers a downfield thrower with accuracy.
Per Badger247, Wisconsin offensive coordinator Phil Longo stayed consistent with quarterback reps throughout spring practice, divvying them up equally between Van Dyke and Braedyn Locke. The expectation is Van Dyke starts and Locke serves as the second-team option within an offense that should feel pretty good about its depth at the position. Van Dyke fits like a glove in Longo’s scheme and is hoping to generate some of the buzz he received a couple years ago at Miami as one of the ACC’s top players.
Spring takeaway: Sooner or later, the Nebraska offense will belong to the five-star freshman.
Dylan Raiola dazzled in the spring game with 239 yards passing and two touchdowns. He has the “it” factor. Heinrich Haarberg might be the safer pick to start, at least right now, but Raiola is too talented to keep off of the field very long. Haarberg’s the only quarterback on Nebraska’s roster with experience in that department and played well down the stretch last fall. It would not surprise anyone if Haarberg starts the opener, but there’s an entire fall camp for Raiola to keep improving and learning Marcus Satterfield’s offense. The feeling around Nebraska is anticipation for Raiola. That’s sort of what happens when you’re most heralded recruit in program history.
Spring takeaway: Proving to be one of the more underrated signal callers from this transfer portal cycle.
This is a new-look Huskies offense, a shell of last year’s team that reached the College Football Playoff national championship under former coach Kalen DeBoer. Approaching Michael Penix’s atmospheric numbers through the air might be too optimistic for Rogers, but the former Mississippi State star is certainly capable of a noteworthy campaign under Jedd Fisch. Before his development as a passer halted in a pro-style scheme, Rogers was a prolific Air Raid threat with the Bulldogs with 71 total touchdown passes under late-coach Mike Leach over the 2021 and 2022 seasons in the SEC.
Spring takeaway: Lincoln Riley would’ve liked to have seen a better spring game outing from his QB1.
Miller Moss became a national name with his explosive effort in USC’s bowl win over Louisville, a passing of the torch of sorts from Caleb Williams to the next man in charge. That said, he was up and down at times during the spring and struggled a bit against the Trojans’ new-look and revised defensive scheme in the spring game. Moss is a talented player and judging by the success of other quarterbacks through the years in Riley’s attack, should have no issues putting up sizable numbers.
Spring takeaway: Ohio State’s quarterback room is one of the nation’s best.
There is no announced starter yet for the Buckeyes, but Kansas State transfer Will Howard is the likely pick for Ryan Day, who has a wealth of riches (and depth) in his quarterback room. Five-star freshman transfer Julian Sayin may have turned the most heads with his play this spring, but the chances he would be picked as the guy to lead a top-2 team in August is slim. Howard has a ton of talent around him and with considerable experience previously, should be able to produce.
Spring takeaway: Penn State’s hoping Drew Allar takes the next step and enters the realm of elites.
It’s hard to argue with last season’s raw numbers for Allar, a former five-star whose 2023 was his first as the Nittany Lions’ starter. The passing attack did not generate enough explosive plays. That is an area the program hopes new OC Andy Kotelnicki, the mastermind behind the Kansas Jayhawks’ success in recent years on that side of the football, sparks improvement. Allar has all the tools to be one of college football’s best. Backup Beau Pribula has a role, too.
Spring takeaway: Oregon has not one, but two, capable starters to lead in 2024.
Dillon Gabriel should ball out in Will Stein’s offense this season, as former Auburn transfer and first-round pick Bo Nix managed to do the last couple of years. The Ducks made sure their 2025 plans are finalized at the position as well with the addition of UCLA’s Dante Moore. Gabriel’s career numbers are prolific and he’s the perfect college quarterback to execute Oregon’s timing and tempo-based plan offensively. Gabriel will be a Heisman finalist if he stays healthy.
© 2005-2024 CBS INTERACTIVE ALL RIGHTS RESERVED. CBS Sports is a registered trademark of CBS Broadcasting Inc.
