Quarterback play will be front and center during the 2025 college football season. The hype is building around multiple potential top NFL Draft picks, and Athlon Sports ranked the Top 10 QB units ahead of this year.
Plenty of eyes will be on Austin this year as Arch Manning takes over as Texas’ starting quarterback. The former Five Star Plus+ prospect will take over for Quinn Ewers as the full-time starter after getting some run a year ago as Ewers suffered an injury.
However, there’s still plenty of quarterback talent around the country to watch in 2025. Here are Athlon Sports’ full Top 10 QB units this coming season.
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1. Texas
Arch Manning is getting plenty of buzz this year, but he’s not the only former highly touted recruit in Texas’ quarterback room. The Longhorns also have redshirt freshman Trey Owens and true freshman K.J. Lacey in tow – both of whom were four-stars out of high school – and come in as Athlon Sports’ No. 1 QB unit in 2025.
Manning, though, is set to lead the charge as the starter after two years behind Quinn Ewers. In his limited action, the former No. 1 overall player has 969 passing yards and nine touchdowns while adding 115 rushing yards and four touchdowns on the ground.
2. Clemson
Following a breakout year in 2024, Cade Klubnik will take center stage once again at Clemson. He helped lead the Tigers to the College Football Playoff a year ago and will look to maintain their spot atop the ACC in 2025.
In addition to Klubnik – who threw for 3,639 yards and 36 touchdowns in 2024 – Clemson has another former touted recruit in redshirt freshman Christopher Vizzina. As a result, the Tigers came in at No. 2 in Athlon Sports’ Top 10 QB units for 2025.
3. LSU
LSU got a big boost this year when Garrett Nussmeier said he planned to run it back in Baton Rouge. In the conversation for the No. 1 overall pick in the draft, he’s looking to build on his 4,052 passing yards and 29 touchdowns after taking over for Jayden Daniels as QB1.
The Tigers also brought in a quarterback from an SEC rival, landing former Mississippi State QB Michael Van Buren. Former four-star recruit Colin Hurley is also part of Athlon Sports’ third-ranked quarterback unit this year.
4. South Carolina
One of the top returning quarterbacks in the country, LaNorris Sellers made a strong impression in his first year as South Carolina’s starter in 2024. He threw for 2,534 yards and 18 touchdowns while adding 674 rushing yards and seven touchdowns as a bona fide dual-threat, and he’s back for another go-round.
The Gamecocks made a splash in the transfer portal, as well, as they brought in former Ohio State quarterback Air Noland. A former four-star prospect, he was the No. 5-ranked quarterback from the 2024 cycle, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, a weighted average that utilizes all four major recruiting media companies.
5. Florida
DJ Lagway began his freshman year as a backup at Florida, but ultimately took the starting quarterback job and ran with it. The hype continues to build around the rising sophomore, heralded as one of the top returners in the nation in 2025.
Lagway is part of a quarterback room that also features Louisville transfer Harrison Bailey and 2025 four-star Tramell Jones. That group comes in as Athlon Sports’ No. 5-ranked quarterback unit for this year.
6. Penn State
Although rumors swirled about whether he’d head to the NFL Draft, Drew Allar is back for Penn State in 2025. He’ll look to continue making his case for the 2026 draft and take a leap forward in Year 2 of Andy Kotelnicki’s system.
Allar – a former five-star prospect – is now joined by a former four-star prospect in Ethan Grunkermeyer following Beau Pribula’s departure. Penn State as a whole comes in at No. 6 in Athlon Sports’ top QB units for 2025 and will look to maintain its place toward the top of a loaded Big Ten.
7. Ohio State
The quarterback competition at Ohio State is still coming into focus, but the Buckeyes have some talent in the room. Former five-star Julian Sayin is vying for the job, as is Lincoln Kienholz, and former five-star Tavien St. Clair is also on board.
As a result, the Buckeyes have an up-and-coming quarterback unit in 2025. The race for the starting job is largely between Sayin and Kienholz, head coach Ryan Day previously said, and a decision will come after training camp.
8. Arizona State
Now looking to build off a huge 2024 season, Sam Leavitt is back at Arizona State. He helped lead the Sun Devils to the College Football Playoff after transferring from Michigan State and told On3’s Pete Nakos three plays are helping fuel his bid for the Heisman Trophy.
Leavitt threw for 2,885 yards and 24 touchdowns and ran for 443 yards and five touchdowns. He’s joined in the quarterback room by former Nebraska and Georgia Tech quarterback Jeff Sims as part of a Top-10 unit, according to Athlon Sports.
9. Miami
With Carson Beck on his way in, Miami made another splash in the transfer portal this year. Add in Emory Williams and four-star Luke Nickel, and the Hurricanes have one of Athlon Sports’ top-10 QB rooms.
Beck is coming off an impressive run at Georgia, although he went through a rough patch in 2024. He still threw for a career-high 28 touchdowns along with 3,481 yards before heading to Miami for his final year of college football.
10. Oregon
With Dillon Gabriel in the NFL, the expectation is Dante Moore will be next man up at Oregon. They both arrived in Eugene via the transfer portal last year, with Moore looking to develop behind the experienced Gabriel.
Now, Moore is ready to go and told On3’s Pete Nakos about the impact Gabriel had on him as he prepares to assume the starting job. Four-star Akili Smith will now look to learn from Moore, and they help boost Oregon into Athlon Sports’ Top 10 QB units in 2025.
With just a few months left before the 2025 season gets underway, quarterback play will continue to be front and center. These 10 units are considered some of the best in the country, as well, with training camp on the horizon.
