The 10 best college football QB's in the entire world for 2018 (USA Today)

[tomcat1]

He sucked a fat one for us for sure and while I completely disagree with #3 on this list, he certainly has done a nice job for NC State. He seems like a good dude too. He’s an ex-Boise State kid and Phoenix native which is where I live now so I’m definitely pulling for him. His little brother is going into his junior year of high school and has a bunch of teams eyeing him. Tons of FBS quarterbacks coming out of Phoenix these days. It’s crazy.

I agree completely with you that Finley is ranked too high at #3. He does seem like a good dude doing a lot to help those in need in our community. Thanks for telling me about his little brother which I did not know. Isn't it kind of amazing about what a change in scenery will do for many athletes?

I'm jealous because you live in a great area of our nation!

 

[TROJAN-MAN]

The 10 best quarterbacks in college football

1. Trace McSorley, Penn State
McSorley will get his chance to shine as a solo artist without Saquon Barkley owning the spotlight in Penn State’s quarterback-friendly scheme. He’ll respond well to the challenge. Much like Baker Mayfield, McSorley combines top-level awareness, underrated athleticism and an impeccable grasp of his team’s offense in an undersized package. But also like Mayfield, he possesses a drive you can’t measure in yards, touchdowns or inches.

2. McKenzie Milton, Central Florida
How UCF fares as a team in the transition from Scott Frost to Josh Heupel is one of college football’s most intriguing story lines heading into September. One thing is sure, however: Milton’s going to put up numbers. The best quarterback on the Group of Five level and an outstanding fit for the Knights’ system — which will look slightly different under Heupel — Milton is a true Heisman contender coming out of the American Athletic Conference.

3. Ryan Finley, North Carolina State
Finley has what the NFL is looking for: intelligence, experience, a strong arm and familiarity with a pro-tempo system. That he protects the football as well as any quarterback in the country is a plus. He could stand to add some weight, but Finley has the ability and the accompanying skill talent to play his way into an All-America selection.

4. Will Grier, West Virginia
What’s most intriguing about Grier is his clear room for improvement. Not that he’s not already among the elite at his position: Grier threw for 3,490 yards and 34 scores in 2017, his first as the Mountaineers’ starter. It’s more about the idea that he’s only now scratching the surface of his potential. Remember that he played in just six games at Florida before stepping into Dana Holgorsen’s offense a year ago. He could explode as a senior.

5. Jarrett Stidham, Auburn
It’s no coincidence that Auburn is nearly unbeatable when Stidham has room to operate. As he goes, so go the Tigers. Like Grier, there’s enormous reason for optimism: Stidham got his feet wet as a freshman at Baylor in 2015 and had his down moments for Auburn in 2017, with the byproduct of this experience almost inevitably a push for all-conference and national recognition.

6. Justin Herbert, Oregon
It would be great to see Herbert for one full and healthy season before he shuttles off to the NFL. What we’ve seen so far are spurts of genius mitigated by the not-unexpected brushes with inefficiency and ineffectiveness. But this is also true: Oregon is garbage without Herbert and a potential top-25 team with the junior in the lineup. If healthy, Herbert will prove in 2018 why NFL scouts are already enamored with the local product’s arm, touch and smarts.

7. Drew Lock, Missouri
On one hand, Lock led the nation with 44 touchdowns a year ago. On the other, 18 of those scores came in games against the powerhouse defenses at Southwest Missouri State, Idaho and Connecticut. He completed 52 percent of his attempts with 11 touchdowns and seven interceptions against winning FBS competition. He hit on 63 percent of his throws on 10.7 yards per attempt with 26 scores against losing teams. So what’s the story? That Lock can pitch it as well as anyone but must also show up and perform at a higher level against the elite opponents on the Tigers’ schedule. The same can be said of Missouri as a whole, obviously.

8. Khalil Tate, Arizona
Tate took college football by storm after moving into the starting lineup one month into last season. His October — a stretch that began with an all-timer performance against Colorado — cemented his place in the Heisman conversation, and also overshadowed a significant decline in production during Arizona’s 1-4 close to the Rich Rodriguez era. The Wildcats’ new coach, Kevin Sumlin, brings along an offense suited to Tate’s skill set; Sumlin’s scheme will play to his dual-threat gifts, a thought that should wobble the knees of opposing Pac-12 defensive coordinators. The strides Tate has made as a passer this offseason will determine whether or not he factors into the end-of-year award mix.

9. Jake Fromm, Georgia
The best is still to come for Fromm, though it’s hard to overestimate the importance of his spending an entire offseason as the Bulldogs’ unquestioned starter. He’ll be better in 2018: more confident, more under control, savvier in the face of SEC defenses. Then again, he’ll have more on his plate as Georgia breaks in a new backfield and a new starter at left tackle. Fromm seems up to the challenge of becoming the face of the Bulldogs’ offense.

10. Jake Browning, Washington
It was just two seasons ago that Browning tossed 43 touchdowns and finished sixth in the Heisman voting. In comparison, that made his 2017 season a disappointment — even as Browning significantly increased his completion percentage and maintained a healthy per-attempt average. He could use some help from a receivers corps that must develop at least one additional deep threat. But the advantage of spending the past three seasons as Chris Petersen’s starter can’t be overlooked.

FIVE JUST OFF THE LIST

Jake Bentley, South Carolina

Alex Hornibrook, Wisconsin

Kyler Murray, Oklahoma

Tua Tagovailoa, Alabama

Clayton Thorson, Northwestern

Whether it's Tagovailoa or Hurt I think you'll have enough to win it all again.

 

[Boise4Life]

I agree completely with you that Finley is ranked too high at #3. He does seem like a good dude doing a lot to help those in need in our community. Thanks for telling me about his little brother which I did not know. Isn't it kind of amazing about what a change in scenery will do for many athletes?

I'm jealous because you live in a great area of our nation!

Good luck this year brother. Like so many other Power 5 teams you have one of our ex-OCs as well and he’s a pretty damn good play caller. I hope you’re able to make some noise in the ACC.

 

[pitman]

Don’t know what happened in that last p

pitman, Thanks for the compliment on Finley. Maybe this guy is color blind going from the blue carpet you play on to live green grass, I don't know. Anyway, he has been very efficient as an NC State QB throwing very few interceptions and it came down to almost the last minute on whether he would stay or enter the NFL draft.

By the way, I have always had a lot of respect for the Boise State football program.

I think he would have gotten better had he not broke his leg. Drinkwitz was in his first year as a OC and was learning a lot him self. By the bowl game Drinkwitz was calling a great game, hated to see him go as I think he is one of the smartest OCs in CBF. It’s nice to see the two of them having the success they have had, could be a big year for you guys

 

[tomcat1]

Good luck this year brother. Like so many other Power 5 teams you have one of our ex-OCs as well and he’s a pretty damn good play caller. I hope you’re able to make some noise in the ACC.

Brother For Sure, I'm not really sure how good my Wolfpack will be this year even with Finley since we lost some good talent to the NFL, and particularly Chubb, who should be a star on that Denver Broncos defense immediately. We have another problem in the ACC which is a team called Clemson who has owned the ACC in recent years and it doesn't help that we've got to play them in their backyard this year called Death Valley. We normally play a close game with them at home or away but we always seem to come up a little short. Best wishes to Boise State this season also!

 

[tomcat1]

Don’t know what happened in that last p



I think he would have gotten better had he not broke his leg. Drinkwitz was in his first year as a OC and was learning a lot him self. By the bowl game Drinkwitz was calling a great game, hated to see him go as I think he is one of the smartest OCs in CBF. It’s nice to see the two of them having the success they have had, could be a big year for you guys

Thanks man and as I said to Boise4Life good luck to Boise State too who I have always had a lot of respect for.

By the way, since I've never had an explanation about it, when did it start and why did it start with that blue carpet that Boise State plays on? Maybe you or Boise4Life can explain it to me because seriously when I first saw this on my TV I thought my picture tube had gone all to hell.

 

[Boise4Life]

Brother For Sure, I'm not really sure how good my Wolfpack will be this year even with Finley since we lost some good talent to the NFL, and particularly Chubb, who should be a star on that Denver Broncos defense immediately. We have another problem in the ACC which is a team called Clemson who has owned the ACC in recent years and it doesn't help that we've got to play them in their backyard this year called Death Valley. We normally play a close game with them at home or away but we always seem to come up a little short. Best wishes to Boise State this season also!

They are a juggernaut but you have played those boys very tough in recent seasons. I was watching the 2016 game in Death Valley at a bar in South Carolina and you had them dead to rights, completely shut down their offense. The Clemson fans were looking awfully grim right up until your dang kicker crapped the bed. So painful. As a Boise fan I know that feeling all too well.

 

[Boise4Life]

Thanks man and as I said to Boise4Life good luck to Boise State too who I have always had a lot of respect for.

By the way, since I've never had an explanation about it, when did it start and why did it start with that blue carpet that Boise State plays on? Maybe you or Boise4Life can explain it to me because seriously when I first saw this on my TV I thought my picture tube had gone all to hell.

It was a gimmick to draw attention back in 1986 when we were a FCS team in the Big Sky. Along with several other factors surrounding the evolution and growth of the program it worked.

 

[pitman]

It was a gimmick to draw attention back in 1986 when we were a FCS team in the Big Sky. Along with several other factors surrounding the evolution and growth of the program it worked.

The first time I saw it I thought WTF is our AD thinking. It took a bit before I warmed up to it. I was a walk on that year

 

[tomcat1]

They are a juggernaut but you have played those boys very tough in recent seasons. I was watching the 2016 game in Death Valley at a bar in South Carolina and you had them dead to rights, completely shut down their offense. The Clemson fans were looking awfully grim right up until your dang kicker crapped the bed. So painful. As a Boise fan I know that feeling all too well.

Boise, I think I had bad dreams almost every night for a couple of weeks after that kick we missed that would have won the game at Death Valley in 2016. I can only imagine you watching that game in a bar in South Carolina and seeing all the faces there turn from sorrow to gladness in a heartbeat. I can assure you the opposite facial expression happened to me as I watched that kick on my TV in my den.

 

[tomcat1]

It was a gimmick to draw attention back in 1986 when we were a FCS team in the Big Sky. Along with several other factors surrounding the evolution and growth of the program it worked.

Boise, Thanks for the explanation because when I first saw that blue field I knew that I either needed to see an eye doctor or my TV needed to go to a shop for repair. Thank goodness neither one turned out to be necessary.

 

[tomcat1]

The first time I saw it I thought WTF is our AD thinking. It took a bit before I warmed up to it. I was a walk on that year

pitman, LOL! Are you saying that when you first saw that blue field you almost went from a walk on to a walk off?

 

[Wamu]

CFB still isn't here.

 

[tomcat1]

CFB still isn't here.

And it's a Saturday on top of that, WTF?

 

[Wamu]

And it's a Saturday on top of that, WTF?

Damn good point. At least we're getting closer to kickoff though.

 

[tomcat1]

Damn good point. At least we're getting closer to kickoff though.

Yeah, but it's still over a month away so how do we get our football fix until then?

 

[Wamu]

Yeah, but it's still over a month away so how do we get our football fix until then?

Not sure. But watching golf or nascar isn't the answer, I just find both boring. Maybe baseball?

 

[Boise4Life]

Not sure. But watching golf or nascar isn't the answer, I just find both boring. Maybe baseball?

It obviously doesn’t compare but the Men’s Wimbledon final and World Cup final tomorrow and the British Open golf tournament next weekend will help.

 

[Wamu]

It obviously doesn’t compare but the Men’s Wimbledon final and World Cup final tomorrow and the British Open golf tournament next weekend will help.

I'll be watching the World cup. Then the Bronx Bozo's @ Indians & Mariners @ Rockies.

 

[pitman]

pitman, LOL! Are you saying that when you first saw that blue field you almost went from a walk on to a walk off?

I was only able to practice for about two weeks before the AD called me in and told me they got my records from SBU and found out I had broke two vertebrae’s in my neck. So he said thank you very much and handed me my walking papers