Every region has its own version of what we like to call “home cooking.” That affection is especially powerful in the Southeastern United States, which makes for a fun parallel to the quarterback picture in the SEC entering the 2025 season.
If the transfer portal has become college football’s fast, fresh-from-frozen approach to roster building, the top programs in the SEC are heading into a season where the quarterback options are truly farm-to-table. While transfer quarterbacks are commonplace across the Power Four, they’re not just uncommon at the top of the SEC — they’re nonexistent.
“There was not the same influx (of quarterbacks) into the portal (this year),” Georgia coach Kirby Smart said during SEC Media Days. “Not the sweepstakes for a guy. They believe in the guy they got or there was not the supply and demand. There’s a couple guys but the amount of money every school has now has made it harder for — call it the Cam Ward effect — there’s more people competing for those guys. If a kid’s seeking money, he won’t be just looking at the top 4-5 programs. He’ll be looking at every program.”
According to FanDuel Sportsbook, the top seven favorites to win the SEC all feature projected starting quarterbacks who signed with their programs out of high school. Add in LaNorris Sellers from South Carolina — the 10th team on the odds board — and you have an impressive group of eight quarterbacks poised to shape the conference title race. All but one of those quarterbacks were four- or five-star prospects coming out of high school. The exception? Sellers, who might have the brightest NFL future of the bunch with first-round draft potential in 2026.
Though these eight quarterbacks share elite recruiting pedigrees, they enter the season under very different circumstances. Four — Garrett Nussmeier, DJ Lagway, Sellers and Marcel Reed — are returning starters looking to build on last season. Nussmeier and Sellers both spoke at SEC Media Days this week about how an offseason of film study and development has helped prepare them to take the next step.
The other four — Arch Manning, Gunner Stockton, Ty Simpson and Austin Simmons — are stepping into starting roles after sitting behind entrenched starters. Their stories speak to the importance of player retention in the portal era. While programs nationwide often rely on transfers for plug-and-play help, these schools held on to highly rated backups who waited patiently for their turn. Manning, Stockton and Simpson, in particular, stayed put despite having multiple years of eligibility and likely interest from other programs.
This unique concentration of home-grown quarterback talent highlights how the SEC’s top programs continue to dominate high school recruiting — and retain those players. But for the league to bounce back from a disappointing 2024, when it landed just three teams in the 12-team College Football Playoff, quarterback development must match the talent.
Home-grown quarterbacks make for a compelling story, but it won’t matter if those players don’t produce in the spotlight. The conference had no All-American signal callers in 2024 and didn’t receive a single Heisman Trophy vote at the position. That’s a sharp contrast from previous years when four of the five Heisman winners from 2019-23 were SEC quarterbacks: Joe Burrow (2019), Bryce Young (2021) and Jayden Daniels (2023).
Is it a stretch to link the SEC’s quarterback dip to its playoff underperformance? Maybe. But as the league uses Media Days to reassert its dominance after falling behind the Big Ten in CFP representation, it’s worth noting how quarterback regression could be part of the story.
Jaxson Dart capped a fantastic career at Ole Miss, leaving as one of the program’s all-time greats, while Quinn Ewers led Texas to the SEC Championship Game and the CFP semifinals. But even comments from Nussmeier and Sellers reflect a shared understanding — there’s more work to be done.
If the SEC can show meaningful growth at quarterback in 2025, the league might not just match the Big Ten’s four CFP bids. With the collective upside of this quarterback group, the SEC could become the first conference to place five teams in the playoff. The next step in that journey is development — from evaluation to execution.
Not all eight quarterbacks will make the CFP, but a resurgence for the SEC starts under center. Let’s take a look at each of the eight quarterbacks and the next step they need to take to push their teams into contention.
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Returning starters
Garrett Nussmeier, LSU: This one’s simple: Nussmeier’s ceiling is the best quarterback in the country. Long recognized for his arm talent and ability, he struggled taking care of the football in 2024. His 12 interceptions were tied for the most among qualified SEC quarterbacks and the fact that all 12 came against teams with a winning record highlight how costly some of those turnovers were to LSU’s efforts in big games.
DJ Lagway, Florida: Florida’s offense found another gear with Lagway under center last season, which is why the program’s leadership prioritized keeping the group intact in Gainesville for 2025. After facing some limitations during spring practice, health once again emerges as the key concern. Still, the Gators have surrounded Lagway with the kind of talent needed to become the Gators’ next breakout star at quarterback.
LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina: As soon as the NFL Draft wrapped up, attention shifted to 2026 — and it didn’t take long for evaluators to take notice of the South Carolina quarterback. Whether it was his late-game heroics against Clemson or the flashes of pocket movement throughout the season, LaNorris Sellers emerged as a special talent with a high ceiling.
For South Carolina to contend for the SEC title or a CFP berth in 2025, Sellers will need to be even better. But this is a conference that has seen players like him take define an entire season with highlight-reel moments and game-changing performances.
Marcel Reed, Texas A&M: The back-and-forth between Conner Weigman and Marcel Reed created an incomplete grade for both in 2024. Now Reed has the opportunity to take the best of his rookie season and try to build on that success. His playmaking shined in a three-touchdown effort against LSU but accuracy and efficiency have some room for improvement, particularly against the best teams on the schedule.
New QB1s
Arch Manning, Texas: The Manning era has been long-awaited, but in reality he probably doesn’t need to shoulder as much as some of the other quarterbacks in order for Texas to compete for an SEC title in 2025. The real intrigue comes if he does ascend to his No. 1 overall prospect hype and what that would mean for a proud program competing for its first national title in 20 years.
Gunner Stockton, Georgia: Kirby Smart spoke glowingly about his backup after the Rabun County native stepped in for the injured Carson Beck last year, bragging on how the team rallied around Stockton and lifted their play to meet the moment. Now he steps in as the face of an offense with a chip on its shoulder, looking to bounce back after struggling to punch it in the end zone (in regulation at least) in the final games of the season.
Ty Simpson, Alabama: Simpson come up short in previous starting quarterback battles at Alabama, but seems like Kalen DeBeor and new/old offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb have coronated him as the next QB1 for the Tide. A recruiting win from the Nick Saban era, Simpson has a chance to lead a passing attack with plenty of room for improvement from last season. Of all the quarterbacks listed here, Simpson probably has the most upward mobility.
Austin Simmons, Ole Miss: The two-sport star reclassified to the 2024 class to graduate early from high school, so this is really his freshman season. Still, he learned a lot during his first season on campus playing behind Jaxson Dart, and those close to the program are extremely excited about Simmons’ ceiling in Lane Kiffin’s offense.
Not everyone is home-grown
Of course, the SEC quarterback picture isn’t complete without acknowledging the impact transfer players will have on the 2025 season. Oklahoma’s John Mateer and Auburn’s Jackson Arnold are central figures in pressure-packed campaigns for their respective coaches.
Still, when examining the programs and players at the top of the conference, it’s notable that, at least for 2025, the SEC offers a bit of a throwback at the sport’s most important position. Highly recruited players committing out of high school, waiting for their chance and making the most of it is becoming increasingly rare in college football. So enjoy the in-house quarterback play in the league this year. Who knows when we’ll see this much of it again.
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