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PFF ranked all 130 QBs in the FBS. Here’s where the B1G starters landed
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A lot of times in college football, the outlook for a team can be determined by who’s taking snaps under center. Having a good quarterback doesn’t always result in wins, but it usually helps.
Which quarterbacks are considered the best heading into the 2021 season? It’s a tough topic to debate, but Pro Football Focus (PFF) ranked all 130 of the projected starting quarterbacks for the upcoming year. Not many B1G passers found their name near the top.
Indiana’s Michael Penix Jr. was the highest-rated quarterback out of the B1G, coming in at No. 5 on the list. That was a full 15 spots ahead of the B1G’s second-highest-ranked quarterback, Ohio State’s C.J. Stroud.
That’s a pretty sizable gap.
No other B1G quarterbacks cracked the Top 25 and only two others were listed inside the Top 50 — Graham Mertz (Wisconsin) and Tanner Morgan (Minnesota). Two quarterbacks — Iowa’s Spencer Petras and Northwestern’s Ryan Hilinski — were both ranked lower than No. 100.
Here’s a look at where all 14 projected B1G starting quarterbacks ranked, according to PFF:
5. Michael Penix Jr., Indiana
20. C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
26. Graham Mertz, Wisconsin
36. Tanner Morgan, Minnesota
37. Taulia Tagovailoa, Maryland
60. Jack Plummer/Aidan O’Connell, Purdue
62. Payton Thorne/Anthony Russo, Michigan State
70. Cade McNamara/Alan Bowman, Michigan
75. Adrian Martinez, Nebraska
88. Sean Clifford, Penn State
94. Noah Vedral, Rutgers
96. Brandon Peters, Illinois
112. Spencer Petras, Iowa
116. Ryan Hilinski, Northwestern
You can view the complete list of all 130 college quarterbacks from PFF here.
Dustin grew up in the heart of Big Ten country and has been in sports media since 2010. He has been covering Big Ten football since 2014. You can follow him on Twitter: @SchutteCFB