College football rankings: Quarterbacks with most to prove during 2023 season

Nov 19, 2023

The quarterback position is the most scrutinized across college football and there are several signal-callers entering the 2023 season with grand expectations for their respective programs. And how those players perform will go a long way in determining team success in the College Football Playoff and conference championship races.

This group of quarterbacks with the most to prove this fall includes several transfer portal standouts, a few returning starters and two veterans finally getting their opportunity in a first-team role. After gathering intel from team site reporters and analysts, all are expected to shoulder the load offensively at their schools, which certainly adds to the heightened pressure levels.

There's a few who need to hold off challengers on the depth chart during fall practice, too.

College football's top returning quarterbacks for 2023 season

Here's a look at nine signal-callers we consider to fall under the "most to prove" category this season, who have all experienced varying levels of collegiate success and playing time thus far:

Can DJ Uiagalelei have a career resurgence of sorts this season for the Beavers? The former Clemson five-star is the presumptive starter at Oregon State, but will be pressed by incumbent Ben Gulbranson during camp. He reportedly had a smooth transition to a new playbook this spring and is comfortable with his surroundings, good news for a signal-caller who's on-field peak thus far came as a freshman backup to Trevor Lawrence during the 2020 season. The Pac-12 title race will be quarterback-driven with several top-end starters returning, including potential No. 1 overall pick Caleb Williams, but Uiagalelei is the one who will be playing with a chip on his shoulder since he's rarely been mentioned in the elite tier out West this offseason.

NC State transfer Devin Leary had six 300-yard games and 35 touchdown passes for the Wolfpack in 2021 before he was sidelined halfway through the 2022 campaign with an injury. Availability concerns is part of the reason several of the elites didn't pursue one of the transfer portal's top quarterbacks this cycle. However, Leary answered the bell at Kentucky in the spring as a full-go and instantly became one of the team's leaders. At full strength with this speedy wide receiving corps and expected strong ground game with several new additions, Leary could be one of the nation's most impactful passers and the return of offensive coordinator Liam Coen will make sure of it.

Tyler Van Dyke entered the 2022 season as one of the ACC's top returning passers following a 25-touchdown campaign, but managed just 10 touchdown passes in nine games as the Hurricanes' offense struggled mightily. Van Dyke's redemption opportunity comes now.

"Last year’s in the past and that’s fuel to the fire,” Van Dyke told ACC Network earlier this year. "I believe coach (Mario) Cristobal is going to surround all of us with the best coaches, the best talent and that’s what he’s been doing. We're just excited to start spring ball this week and excited for a great year. Coach (Shannon) Dawson’s a wonderful person, great coach and I’m excited to start rolling with him. We’re going to be a well-balanced offense. Great with the run game, great with the pass game, be explosive. There’s a lot of freedom with the system, let players play, so I’m excited for that. With me, it’s more a little bit of my footwork and not over-striding sometimes and being more accurate with the football.”

Can the record-setting quarterback from Wake Forest do it against elite competition for a national brand this season at Notre Dame? He's going to get his shot since the Fighting Irish play Ohio State and USC, not to mention several familiar ACC foes that Sam Hartman has already eviscerated through the air during his career. This is the first time in Hartman's career he's had a legitimate shot at getting to the College Football Playoff, which is one of the reasons he left the Demon Deacons for the bigger spotlight. He has 110 career touchdown passes, more than any returning Power Five quarterback.

Which Spencer Rattler is going to show up this season for the Gamecocks? Will it be the all-star caliber player who threw six touchdowns against Tennessee, snapped Clemson's long home winning streak and nearly toppled Notre Dame during bowl season or the quarterback who struggled with consistency issues and was mired by turnovers (nine interceptions) over the first eight games of the 2022 season? For South Carolina to continue its upward trajectory in Shane Beamer's third campaign, the Gamecocks are going to need Rattler at his best and that's of the five-star quality.

There's considerable optimism from sources between the hedges on Carson Beck and his opportunity this season as Georgia's projected QB1. And when you're given the keys to a Ferrari, the most important directive is keeping it on the road and letting the supercar handle the heavy lifting — in this case, the Bulldogs' returning talent at the skill positions. Beck has impressive tools and has said multiple times this offseason that he's extremely comfortable working alongside offensive coordinator Mike Bobo. As a potential leader for the two-time defending national champions, Beck just needs to control what he can control as a presumptive first-year starter.

In Austin, everyone knows Quinn Ewers is the guy for the Longhorns, but outside of Texas, everyone else is well aware of the talent behind QB1 that is waiting in the wings. This Texas team is final four-capable with this roster and much of the pressure-packed moments are going to fall on the shoulders of Ewers. Steve Sarkisian has sung Ewers' praises throughout the offseason and that continued after Day 1 of training camp this week so there's a level of heightened expectations there. He's a talented player and as a preseason Heisman candidate and possible first-round selection in 2024, all eyes will be on him early this fall.

When you're following a star like Hendon Hooker as the facilitator of college football's fastest offense, there's an assumption that a scheme-friendly attack will make for a smooth transition in terms of productivity. Projected as one of the SEC's top signal-callers, Joe Milton has shined on the summer circuit and has flexed as good of an arm — if not better— than USC's Caleb Williams and UNC's Drake Maye in similar settings. But he's not interested in national quarterback rankings or personal relevance. Milton's all about team performance and continuing Tennessee's march back to national prominence.

"Those guys are great, they've played great football and they're at great, prestigious programs, but I don't compare myself to no one," Milton told 247Sports at SEC Media Days. "I'm kind of just focused on what's ahead. That's the first game, against Virginia. I'm willing to take the team to a victory, just focusing on that and getting my guys around the building more confidence in themselves. I just want to (keep) building that bond."

The challengers: Jalen Milroe, Ty Simpson and Tyler Buchner

College football's No. 1 quarterback competition entering fall practice, three players are on equal footing this month while Nick Saban and new OC Tommy Rees figure out how they want their depth chart to look under center. Saban said this week that "somebody has to take the bull by the horns" and we're guessing the player with the fewest mistakes during camp is going to get the job, at least for the opener against Middle Tennessee. Elite at every other position group, Alabama could unseat Georgia at the top of the SEC if the Crimson Tide are better-than-average at quarterback this fall.