Who’s stock is up, and who’s is down?
The 2024 college football season is really starting to heat up. We just finished Week 12 of the season and are inching closer to Rivalry Week, Championship Weekend, and then the College Football Playoffs.
The NFL’s draft process is also getting ready to spin up, as teams start to separate and we get some clarity in the draft order.
It’s looking increasingly likely that the New York Giants will be in the market for a new quarterback in 2025. What we don’t know, at least not yet, is whether the Giants will like the 2025 quarterback class enough to draft one of them. To that end, we’re keeping an eye on the top quarterback prospects and tracking their draft stock as the draft class takes shape.
Cam Ward (Miami)
Stock: Down
Ward is still QB1 in this draft, and one game doesn’t eclipse his prior body of work since 2022. However, his issues were on display in Miami’s loss to Georgia Tech. Ward’s ability to extend and go big play hunting has been an asset for the Hurricane, but in this game it was a liability. Ward’s playmaking instincts were the reason why Miami was in position to win, but he also took unnecessary hits and put the ball on the ground in a crucial situation that lead to the loss.
Teams interested in drafting Ward will need to dive into those negative plays and cold stretches to find out exactly why they happen. The challenge with Ward will be harnessing and focusing his game to create those big plays within the structure of the offense without dulling his edge.
Next game: Miami vs. Wake Forest (11/23)
Shedeur Sanders (Colorado)
Stock: Up
Between wild lead changes and flying tortillas, Colorado’s game against Texas Tech was certainly chaotic. It also showed off Sanders’ strengths — and weaknesses — at quarterback. His bloodline conjures up images of world-class athleticism, but Shedeur isn’t the same kind of dynamic athlete as his father and looks a bit awkward when running the ball himself. He also benefitted from some poor defensive play by Texas Tech.
However, Shedeur also showed off his patience in the pocket, field vision, and accuracy. He completed some legitimately impressive passes over the course of the game, attacking tight windows and placing the ball with precision. He also showed good anticipation when throwing downfield.
Next game: (20) Colorado vs. Utah (Fox, noon – 11/16)
Jalen Milroe (Alabama)
Stock: Up
The conditions for Alabama’s game against LSU weren’t conducive to quarterback play. It was raining hard and handling the ball was a problem. That, however, gave Milroe the opportunity to show off his prodigious athleticism and run for 185 yards and four touchdowns on 12 carries (15.4 yards per carry). Milroe manages to be quick, fast, agile, and powerful as a runner — and unlike other powerful runners like Cam Newton or Josh Allen, he doesn’t subject himself to unnecessary hits. He did a good job of getting out of bounds or getting down instead of pushing his luck for every possible inch.
That discretion also extended to his passing. The Alabama passing attack doesn’t put much on him, but he did do a good job of quickly getting to his check-downs when his options down the field weren’t there. Milroe has elite arm strength and is able to make off-platform throws, but this game didn’t give him many opportunities as a passer. That’s going to be a complicated aspect of his evaluation.
Next game: (11) Alabama vs. Mercer (11/16, ESPN+, 2 p.m.)
Garrett Neussmeier (LSU)
Stock: Down
LSU relied on Neussmeier heavily in this game, and he didn’t step up in response. He completed 64.3 percent of his passes for 239 yards (5.7 per attempt) and threw two interceptions to a single touchdown.
As mentioned above, conditions were tough for both quarterbacks, so we should take that into account. However, Neussmeier’s 4th quarter interception in the end zone was simply bad. He lead the Alabama linebacker to the spot with his eyes and didn’t see that he was there. Neussmeier has the raw tools to be an NFL quarterback, but it increasingly looks like he would benefit from using his final year of eligibility to develop before the draft.
Next game: Florida vs. (15) LSU (11/16, CBS – 3:30 p.m.)
Jaxson Dart (Mississippi)
Stock: Neutral
The big question with Jaxson Dart has been whether he could get it done against top competition. He got his chance against Georgia, and it started disastrously with an interception and an ankle injury.
Dart eventually returned to the game and was able to piece together a 13 of 22, 199-yard (9.0 yards per attempt), 1 TD, 1 INT performance. He also ran for 50 yards on eight carries. It’s worth noting that the interception wasn’t exactly his fault, as he was hit as he threw, and he was clearly bothered by the ankle injury after returning. Dart wasn’t able to use his footwork in the pocket, though he was still able to generate velocity and throw with adequate accuracy in the intermediate area of the field.
Dart didn’t have the game we hoped for, but he also didn’t play poorly enough (all things considered) to negatively impact his stock.
Next game: Florida vs. (16) Ole Miss (11/23, noon)
Carson Beck (Georgia)
Stock: Down
Carson Beck completed 64.5 percent of his passes, but that’s the extent of his good work this game. He was sacked five times and only threw for 186 yards with notouchdowns and an interception.
Beck looks like an NFL quarterback, but his draft stock has collapsed this year. He’s been holding the ball too long, taking too many sacks, and his accuracy has suffered without great receivers to adjust to off-target passes. Beck will likely get a chance from a team that believes they can develop him, but he looks much more like a Day 2 quarterback than a Day 1 player.
Next game: (3) Georgia vs. (7) Tennessee (11/16, ABC – 7:30 p.m.)
Quinn Ewers (Texas)
Stock: Up
The Florida Gators are not a good football team, but Ewers did what he was supposed to and took care of business. He had a great statistical game, though the on-field performance wasn’t as good as the box score.
Ewers wasn’t asked to attack coverage often and much of Texas’ scheme involved bubble screens or quick-passes with schemed separation. It’s also true that breakdowns in the Florida defense led to some wide-open receivers. But when Ewers was forced to attack coverage he generally put the ball in good spots to give his receiver the best chance to make a play.
He still holds the ball a bit too long and can get stuck on reads down the field. However, his traits were on display and he didn’t do anything to hurt himself.
Next game: Arkansas vs. (5) Texas (11/16, ABC – noon)
Kurtis Rourke (Indiana)
Stock: Up
Michigan isn’t what they’ve been the previous two years, especially on offense. However, they still have some very good players on their defense and this was a good chance for Rourke to build his resume.
He didn’t light up the box score, going 17 of 28 (60.7 percent) for 206 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception. However, he did so in the face of a heavy pass rush and one of the very best cornerbacks in the upcoming draft. Rourke showed some impressive accuracy and anticipation, in addition to his arm strength and understated mobility. He’s been something of a secret on the national level and has been graded on a bit of a curve.
That could change in a hurry if he has a strong performance in two weeks against Ohio State.
Next game: (2) Ohio State vs. (8) Indiana (11/23)
Drew Allar (Penn State)
Stock: Up
Allar took care of business against a poor Washington team. He’s a big, strong-armed quarterback with good athleticism for his size, and looked like it this past week.
His game against Ohio State is going to be a black mark on his resume, but showing off his traits and upside will help evaluators overlook it. Games like this one, where he effortlessly fires the ball downfield or runs over defenders, will get scouts excited for his upside and coaches itching to work with him. The comparisons to Buffalo’s Josh Allen will likely flow whenever Allar decides to come out.
The Penn State offense doesn’t ask Allar to many — or complex — reads, and there were still issues with decision making when the play broke down or his initial read was covered. He was able to use his athleticism to buy time and arm strength to compensate. That won’t work in the NFL and his best path forward may be to return to school for another year. But if Allar declares this year, his upside definitely earn him fans.
Next game: Purdue vs. (6) Penn State (11/16 – CBS, 3:30 p.m.)
Dillon Gabriel (Oregon)
Stock: Neutral
Gabriel’s stock has reached the point where he’s going to need some truly signature performances to push it up to the upper tier. Gabriel is an experienced quarterback who does a lot of things well and is very consistent on a down-to-down basis. He could be this year’s Russell Wilson, but that also involves being overlooked for reasons might not negatively impact him on the football field.
Winning the Big 10 and taking Oregon deep into the College Football Playoffs will get people talking more about him as a potential top quarterback prospect. But he’ll likely stay under the radar until (or unless) that happens.
Next game: Wisconsin vs. (1) Oregon (11/16 – NBC, 7:30 p.m.)
