Rating QB rooms from Oregon to Arizona

For these unfamiliar with the Quarterback Consolation Quotient, our periodic offseason examination of depth charts throughout the Pac-12, it’s primarily based on the next premise:

The backup quarterback is the least essential participant on the roster … till he’s a very powerful.

In consequence, the QBCQ rating beneath assesses the standard of the starters and the confirmed reliability of the backups.

After scouring rosters, we are able to report the best mixture doesn’t at the moment exist.

That would change in coming months as seniors make stay-or-go choices and the switch portal works its magic. (We’ll revisit the QBCQ following spring follow, then once more on the shut of coaching camp.)

Notes:

— Not all returnees have been listed

— The place incoming transfers are named, I’ve included their former workforce.

— Pac-12 gamers who’ve entered the portal are (for now) thought-about departures.

Earlier installments within the Hotline’s look-ahead collection:
order-of-finish projections
all-conference picks
top-25 rankings

1. Oregon
Who’s gone: Cale Millen
Who’s again: Tyler Shough, Anthony Brown, Jay Butterfield
Who’s new: Ty Thompson (freshman)
Projected starter: Shough
Remark: Shough hardly locked down the job along with his play late final season, however Oregon’s unmatched depth units it aside in a convention devoid of the best tandem talked about above. Brown is a former multi-year ACC starter whereas Thompson and Butterfield have been high-level recruits with important upside. Any of the 4 may begin the opener, which is each good and dangerous for the Geese.

2. UCLA
Who’s gone: N/A
Who’s again: Dorian Thompson-Robinson, Chase Griffin
Who’s new: Ethan Garbers (Washington), Kajiya Hollawayne (freshman)
Projected starter: Thompson-Robinson
Remark: The Bruins are a half-step brief — on a number of fronts — of claiming the highest spot: Thompson-Robinson improved his effectivity final season and appears poised for a breakout season. Griffin was stable in his two begins (Oregon and Arizona), and Garbers, a former four-star signee, is loads respectable as the choice behind door No. 3.

3. Arizona State
Who’s gone: N/A
Who’s again: Jayden Daniels, Daylin McLemore, Trenton Bourguet
Who’s new: Finn Collins (freshman)
Projected starter: Daniels
Remark: We chosen Daniels because the first-team all-conference quarterback — a choice that required a minor leap of religion: That his pocket passing would make the incremental enchancment wanted for elite standing. However the Solar Devils are merely No. 3 due to what lies beneath Daniels: Bourquet, the projected backup, tried simply two passes final season.

4. USC
Who’s gone: Matt Fink*
Who’s again: Kedon Slovis
Who’s new: Miller Moss (freshman), Jaxson Dart (freshman)
Projected starter: Slovis
Remark: We’re itemizing Fink as a departure, however that’s removed from sure — his intentions haven’t been publicly disclosed. His return would add a backup with greater than 100 profession makes an attempt to a place group that features one of many high starters and two prized recruits. (USC would have a powerful case for the highest spot.) With out Fink as insurance coverage, the scenario turns a bit fragile.

5. Washington
Who’s gone: Ethan Garbers, Kevin Thomson, Jacob Sirmon
Who’s again: Dylan Morris
Who’s new: Sam Huard (freshman), Patrick O’Brien (Colorado State)
Projected starter: Morris
Remark: Few groups have skilled as a lot turnover within the quarterback room because the Huskies, the place graduate transfers come and go with out ever taking a snap. Morris was stable in his rookie season however faces a significant problem from Huard, the five-star UW legacy. O’Brien tried greater than 400 passes within the Mountain West and is a stable Plan C.

6. Utah
Who’s gone: Jake Bentley, Drew Lisk
Who’s again: Cam Rising
Who’s new: Charlie Brewer (Baylor), Ja’Quinden Jackson (Texas), Peter Costelli (freshman)
Projected starter: Brewer
Remark: Utah’s choices for 2021 have expanded quickly in latest weeks, because of the switch portal. We’re undecided Jackson’s prepared, and Rising’s shoulder harm (sustained within the opener) will delay his progress. By default, Brewer is the frontrunner — and never a nasty one, both. He threw for two,000 yards and 65 landing passes over 4 seasons within the Huge 12.

7. Washington State
Who’s gone: Gunner Cruz, John Bledsoe
Who’s again: Jayden de Laura, Cam Cooper
Who’s new: Jarrett Guarantano (Tennessee), Xavier Ward (freshman)
Projected starter: Guarantano
Remark: No matter whether or not Guarantano wins the job, he stands as one of many Pac-12’s most essential quarterback arrivals: With out him, the Cougars would face a deeply precarious scenario. In his first season, de Laura confirmed promise but additionally flaws. If nothing else, day by day competitors from a former SEC starter will speed up his progress.

8. Cal
Who’s gone: Devon Modster
Who’s again: Chase Garbers, Spencer Brasch
Who’s new: Kai Millner (freshman)
Projected starter: Garbers
Remark: What would the QBCQ be with out the Bears within the backside half? They appear without end on the verge of improved standing however, for numerous causes, are unable to take the step. We like Garbers usually however, after a four-game season with disruptions to the offensive line, must see extra from his partnership with playcaller Invoice Musgrave.

9. Oregon State
Who’s gone: Nick Moore
Who’s again: Tristan Gebbia, Likelihood Nolan, Ben Gulbranson
Who’s new: Sam Vidlak (freshman)
Projected starter: Gebbia
Remark: Few groups rely as closely on the switch portal as OSU, and we suspect a quarterback will materialize in Corvallis within the coming months. Gebbia, whose personal profession began at Nebraska, is the clear frontrunner over the present group after his stable pre-injury efficiency. However collectively, the place really feel a tad mild.