Cade Klubnik leads ACC quarterback rankings heading into 2025 season as Clemson aims for national title return. The senior signal-caller tops our list of ACC quarterbacks, which includes six returning starters and seven first-year transfers across 18 schools.
Klubnik made significant progress from his first to second year as starter, increasing his touchdown passes from 19 to 36 while reducing interceptions from 9 to 6 during Clemson’s College Football Playoff run.
The ACC quarterback landscape features several intriguing transfers, including Miller Moss who left USC to join Louisville under quarterback developer Jeff Brohm.
Ranking ACC QBs for 2025
1. Clemson
Starter: Senior Cade Klubnik (28 starts)
Backup: Sophomore Christopher Vizzina (0 starts)
Situation: Klubnik projects as one of the top QBs in the nation and top prospects for next year’s NFL Draft. The former five-star led Clemson to the College Football Playoff with an ACC title in his second season as starter. His third season could be his best yet. Vizzina is a former four-star who has yet to see significant action.
2. Georgia Tech
Starter: Senior Haynes King (31 career starts; 24 at Georgia Tech, 7 at Texas A&M)
Backup: Freshman Aaron Philo (0 starts)
Situation: King returns for his sixth season and third as the Yellow Jackets’ starter. He played through a shoulder injury last season that limited his throwing in wins over Miami and NC State. His signature performance came in an overtime loss at Georgia where he threw for 303 yards and 2 TDs while rushing for 110 yards and 3 TDs. Philo performed well when King couldn’t throw downfield against NC State and Miami.
3. Miami
Starter: Senior Carson Beck (27 career starts at Georgia)
Backup: Sophomore Emory Williams (2 career starts)
Situation: Beck reportedly received $4 million in NIL money from Miami when transferring from Georgia to replace No. 1 NFL Draft pick Cam Ward. Beck missed spring practice with an elbow injury suffered in the SEC Championship game against Texas but should be ready for fall. His numbers declined from 2023 to 2024, with completion percentage dropping from 72 to 65 and interceptions increasing from 6 to 12 without NFL targets Brock Bowers and Ladd McConkey.
4. SMU
Starter: Junior Kevin Jennings (13 career starts)
Backup: Tyler Van Dyke (10 career starts at Miami)
Situation: Jennings led the Mustangs to a surprising CFP berth in their first ACC season. The third-team All-ACC selection averaged 245 passing yards per game with 65% completion rate, 23 touchdown passes, 5 rushing touchdowns and 11 interceptions. His season ended with a three-interception game against Penn State in the CFP. SMU added experienced backup Van Dyke, who served as QB2 at Wisconsin last season after previously starting at Miami.
5. Louisville
Starter: Senior Miller Moss (10 career starts at USC)
Backup: Freshman Deuce Adams (0 career starts)
Moss lost the starting job at USC late last season after a 3-interception game at Washington. Before his benching, he averaged 284 yards per game with 64% completion rate, 18 TDs and 9 INTs, though USC went just 4-5 in his starts. Louisville coach Jeff Brohm has sent his last three quarterbacks to the NFL: Aiden O’Connell (Raiders), Jack Plummer (Panthers) and Tyler Shough (Saints). Moss was rated higher than all of them coming out of high school.
6. Duke
Starter: Sophomore Darian Mensah (13 career starts at Tulane)
Backup: Junior Henry Belin IV (2 career starts)
Situation: Mensah earned a reported multi-million dollar NIL deal from Duke after one season starting at Tulane. He averaged 209 passing yards with 66% completion rate, 22 touchdowns and 6 interceptions while going 9-4 as a starter. Though not a rushing threat, his accuracy and low interception rate made him valuable in the transfer portal. He has three seasons of eligibility remaining.
7. Notre Dame
Starter: Freshman CJ Carr (0 career starts)
Backup: Sophomore Kenny Minchey (0 career starts)
Situation: Notre Dame turns to homegrown talent after three straight years of one-year transfer portal rentals: Jack Coan (2021), Sam Hartman (2023) and Riley Leonard (2024). Carr, grandson of longtime Michigan coach Lloyd Carr, appears to be QB1 heading into camp. The freshman combines a strong arm with mobility but faces a challenging start with Miami and Texas A&M in the first two games. Steve Angeli transferred after spring practice when he didn’t win the starting job.
8. Virginia
Starter: Senior Chandler Morris (21 career starts; 12 at North Texas, 9 at TCU)
Backup: Sophomore Daniel Kaelin (0 career starts)
Situation: Morris joins his fourth school after stints at Oklahoma, TCU and North Texas. He ranked seventh nationally in passing yards per game (290) and sixth in touchdown passes (31) at North Texas last season, leading the Mean Green to a 6-6 record with four 400-yard performances. Morris provides a significant boost for Tony Elliott’s passing offense, which ranked 12th in the ACC last year.
9. Virginia Tech
Starter: Senior Kyron Drones (20 career starts)
Backup: Sophomore William Watson III (2 career starts)
Situation: Drones returns for his third year as starter after regressing from 2023 to 2024. His touchdowns decreased from 17 to 10 while his rushing yards per game fell from 74 to 37. His interceptions doubled from 3 to 6 despite playing four fewer games. Virginia Tech finished 6-7 last season, falling short of expectations.
10. Boston College
Starter: Grayson James (17 career starts, 5 at BC, 12 at Florida International)
Backup: Sophomore Dylan Lonegran (0 career starts)
Situation: James won the starting job from Thomas Castellanos last year in Bill O’Brien’s first season at BC. He led the Eagles to a 3-2 record as a starter and engineered a come-from-behind win over Syracuse off the bench. James averaged 230 passing yards in five starts with 5 TDs and 2 INTs, including a 301-yard performance in the Pinstripe Bowl against Nebraska. Lonegran transferred from Alabama and could compete for playing time if James struggles.
11. Florida State
Starter: Senior Thomas Castellanos (20 career starts at Boston College)
Backup: Sophomore Brock Glenn (7 career starts)
Situation: Castellanos reunites with new FSU offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn, who recruited him to UCF out of high school. The dual-threat quarterback saw his rushing attempts decrease under Bill O’Brien at BC before eventually losing his starting job and leaving the team before season’s end. Castellanos will attempt to revitalize an FSU passing attack that ranked last in the ACC at 180 yards per game last season.
12. North Carolina State
Starter: Sophomore CJ Bailey (9 career starts)
Backup: Sophomore Lex Thomas (0 career starts)
Situation: Bailey replaced injured Grayson McCall early last season as a true freshman and performed well for the Wolfpack. He completed 65% of his passes for 2,413 yards with 17 TD passes, 5 rushing TDs and 10 interceptions in a season he was expected to be the backup. Bailey should continue developing in his second season.
13. North Carolina
Starter: Junior Max Johnson (23 career starts; 1 at UNC, 8 at Texas A&M, 14 at LSU)
Backup: Sophomore Gio Lopez (11 career starts at South Alabama)
Situation: Neither quarterback participated in Bill Bedenbaugh’s first spring practice in Chapel Hill. Johnson suffered a broken leg in UNC’s opener last season but is progressing toward recovery. He released a video in April showing himself working out in full pads at the UNC indoor practice facility. The Tar Heels brought in Lopez after spring practice, setting up a potential competition. Johnson’s best season came in 2021 at LSU with 27 touchdowns and 6 interceptions while completing 60% of his passes. Lopez threw for 2,559 yards and 18 touchdowns last season at South Alabama.
14. Pittsburgh
Starter: Sophomore Eli Holstein (10 career starts)
Backup: Freshman Julian Dugger (0 career starts)
Situation: Holstein had Pitt off to a strong 7-0 start last season after transferring from Alabama. He threw 17 touchdowns with 5 interceptions during that stretch before struggling in three consecutive losses. His season ended with a leg injury against Louisville. Holstein participated in spring practice and has potential to improve in his second season as starter.
15. Syracuse
Starter: Sophomore Rickie Collins (0 career starts)
Backup: Junior Steve Angeli (1 career start)
Situation: Collins arrives after two seasons as a backup at LSU to replace record-setting Kyle McCord. The four-star recruit from Woodlawn High School in Baton Rouge saw limited action with the Tigers. Collins emerged as the clear starter after spring practice despite missing the spring game with a hand injury. The competition intensified when Angeli transferred from Notre Dame, where he appeared in 15 games over two years and led a crucial drive in the Orange Bowl victory against Penn State.
16. Cal
Starter: Junior Devin Brown (1 career start)
Backup: Jeron-Keawe Sagapolutele (0 career starts)
Situation: Brown backed up at Ohio State for three seasons, making one start against Missouri in the Cotton Bowl before injuring his ankle in the second quarter. He emerged as QB1 after spring practice and faces the challenge of replacing Fernando Mendoza, who ranked third in the ACC with 273 passing yards per game last season before transferring to Indiana.
17. Wake Forest
Starter: Senior Robby Ashford (11 career starts; 1 at South Carolina, 10 at Auburn)
Backup: Deshawn Purdie (6 career starts at Charlotte)
Situation: Ashford enters his sixth college season after not playing during two years at Oregon. The dual-threat quarterback spent two years at Auburn, starting for one season, before backing up at South Carolina last year. In his only full season as starter, he completed just 49% of his passes with 7 touchdowns and 7 interceptions while rushing for 710 yards and 7 touchdowns. Auburn went 3-7 in his 10 starts.
18. Stanford
Starter: Freshman Elijah Brown (1 career start)
Backup: Sophomore Dylan Rizsk (4 career starts at UCF)
Situation: Interim coach Frank Reich kept quarterback decisions private during spring practice, suggesting an official starter won’t be named until fall camp. Brown was pulled in his only start last season, finishing the year 28-for-48 for 274 yards with 2 TDs and 3 INTs across three appearances. Four-star freshman Bear Bachmeier transferred to BYU after spring practice, but Rizsk arrived from UCF where he went 1-3 as a starter last year, including a 294-yard, 3-TD performance in a win over Arizona.
