The Big 12 Conference faces uncertainty at quarterback heading into this season, with six returning starters but questions surrounding the league’s top transfer.
Brendan Sorsby – who led the conference with a 155.1 passer rating at Cincinnati – transferred to Texas Tech but remains under NCAA investigation for sports gambling allegations that threaten his eligibility.
The returning starters include Arizona’s Noah Fifita, BYU’s Bear Bachmeier, Utah’s Devon Dampier, Houston’s Conner Weigman and Kansas State’s Avery Johnson. Fifita and Bachmeier each passed for more than 3,000 yards last season.
Johnson is still developing into the player analysts projected when he came out of high school.
Oklahoma State’s Drew Mestemaker, UCF’s Alonza Barnett III and Baylor’s DJ Lagway headline the transfer quarterbacks. Eight projected first-year transfer quarterbacks could start in the conference this season.
Ranking Big 12 QBs for 2025
1. Utah
Starter: Devon Dampier (25 career starts; 13 at Utah; 12 at New Mexico)
Backup: Sophomore Byrd Ficklin (0 career starts)
Dampier ranked 25th in the FBS with 277.1 yards per game last season. He threw for 2,490 yards with 24 touchdowns and five interceptions while rushing for 835 yards and 10 scores.
He ranked seventh in the Big 12 with a 146.8 passer rating. Morgan Scalley takes over as head coach at Utah, with Utah State offensive coordinator Kevin McGiven working with Dampier.
Ficklin played a key role in the offense with 61 carries for 513 yards and 10 touchdowns. He also completed 301 passing yards with three touchdowns and no interceptions.
2. Arizona
Starter: Senior Noah Fifita (34 career starts)
Backup: Freshman Oscar Rios (0 career starts)
Fifita enters his third season as a full-time starter for the Wildcats. He tied for second in the Big 12 last season with 29 touchdown passes and ranked third with 3,228 passing yards.
He has 73 career touchdown passes and cut his interception total from 12 to six last season.
That experience should help Arizona – which won nine games – stay competitive in the Big 12. Freshman Oscar Rios – a three-star recruit from Downey, California – is expected to serve as the backup quarterback.
3. BYU
Starter: Sophomore Bear Bachmeier (14 career starts)
Backup: Senior Treyson Bourguet (8 career starts at Western Michigan)
Bachmeier is a potential Heisman Trophy candidate as a sophomore. The 6-foot-2, 230-pound quarterback passed for 3,033 yards and rushed for 527 yards with 26 total touchdowns as a freshman.
Bachmeier had 147 rushing attempts and improved as a passer throughout the season. That development showed in his 325-yard performance during a 25-21 victory against Georgia Tech in the Pop-Tarts Bowl.
The Cougars are expected to be the Big 12 preseason favorites. Bourguet provides experienced depth after making eight starts at Western Michigan.
4. Oklahoma State
Starter: Sophomore Drew Mestemaker (15 career starts at North Texas)
Backup: Senior Grant Jordan (11 career starts; 2 at UMass, 9 at Yale)
The Cowboys begin a new era with coach Eric Morris, and Mestemaker should make the transition smoother. The redshirt sophomore followed Morris from North Texas, where he led the FBS with 4,379 passing yards last season.
Mestemaker threw 34 touchdowns against nine interceptions.
The 6-foot-4, 211-pound quarterback could generate NFL interest with a strong junior season in the Big 12. Jordan is a two-time transfer quarterback who earned All-Ivy League honorable mention at Yale in 2024.
5. Houston
Starter: Senior Conner Weigman (26 career starts; 13 at Houston; 13 at Texas A&M)
Backup: Freshman Keisean Henderson (0 career starts)
Weigman – a Texas A&M transfer – ranked fifth in the Big 12 in passer rating (147.1) and passing touchdowns (25). He finished seventh with 2,705 yards.
He’s experienced a resurgence under coach Willie Fritz as one of the top returning quarterbacks in the conference.
Houston also has Henderson, a five-star quarterback who stayed close to home. The Cougars are coming off a 10-win season and are considered a College Football Playoff sleeper.
6. Kansas State
Starter: Senior Avery Johnson (26 career starts)
Backup: Junior Jacob Knuth (0 career starts)
Johnson is a third-year starter who gets a new perspective with first-year coach Collin Klein, who returns to his alma mater after serving as Texas A&M’s offensive coordinator.
Johnson has compiled 5,576 passing yards, 1,378 rushing yards and 70 total touchdowns over the past three seasons. The Wildcats slipped to 6-6 last season.
Knuth returns as a backup option but faces competition from sophomore Blake Barnett.
7. UCF
Starter: Senior Alonzo Barnett III (27 career starts at James Madison)
Backup: Senior Keyone Jenkins (23 career starts at FIU)
The Knights have two quarterbacks with a combined 50 career starts heading into Scott Frost’s second season. Barnett was limited during spring football after leading James Madison to the College Football Playoff last season.
Barnett averaged 2,702 passing yards and 515 rushing yards over the past two seasons with 72 total touchdowns.
He’ll work with quarterbacks coach McKenzie Milton. Jenkins was a two-year starter at FIU with 42 career touchdown passes.
8. Baylor
Starter: Junior DJ Lagway (19 career starts at Florida)
Backup: Sophomore Nate Bennett (0 career starts)
Lagway – whose father Derek played running back at Baylor – gets a fresh start after transferring from Florida. He completed 62% of his passes as a two-year starter with the Gators.
He led the SEC with 14 interceptions last season, but eight came in just two games.
Lagway should settle in as a bounce-back candidate with the Bears. Bennett served as the primary backup for Sawyer Robertson last season.
9. Arizona State
Starter: Sophomore Cutter Boley (11 career starts at Kentucky)
Backup: Senior Mikey Keene (34 career starts; 11 at UCF; 23 at Fresno State)
Kenny Dillingham rebuilt the quarterback room after Sam Leavitt transferred to LSU. Boley is favored to start after throwing for 2,160 yards with 15 touchdowns and 12 interceptions at Kentucky last season.
Keene played at UCF and Fresno State before spending one season as a backup at Michigan.
Boley is a potential breakout candidate if he maintains his 65.8% completion percentage and reduces turnovers.
10. Colorado
Starter: Freshman Julian Lewis (2 career starts)
Backup: Sophomore Isaac Wilson (7 career starts at Utah)
Lewis made two starts last season and compiled 589 passing yards with four touchdowns and no interceptions. The four-star recruit had a 55.3% completion percentage.
Colorado coach Deion Sanders hired Sacramento State head coach Brennan Marion as the new offensive coordinator.
Lewis took 11 sacks in his two starts, so protection must improve. Danny Scudero transferred from San Jose State after leading the nation in receiving. Wilson played two seasons at Utah with a 56.4% completion percentage.
11. TCU
Starter: Senior Jaden Craig (24 career starts at Harvard)
Backup: Freshman Adam Schobel (0 career starts)
Craig replaces three-year starter Josh Hoover, who transferred to Indiana. Craig threw for 2,869 yards with 25 touchdowns and seven interceptions at Harvard last season.
Harvard finished 9-2 and reached the FCS playoffs. He had five games with 300 or more passing yards and should fit into Sonny Dykes’ offense.
Schobel – whose father Matt and uncle Aaron both played at TCU and in the NFL – will serve as the backup quarterback.
12. Iowa State
Starter: Senior Jaylen Raynor (36 career starts at Arkansas State)
Backup: Zane Flores (8 starts at Oklahoma State)
First-year coach Jimmy Rogers takes over an offense that’ll feature mostly transfer players. Raynor averaged 2,898 passing yards and 394 rushing yards per season at Arkansas State over the past three seasons.
The 6-foot, 202-pound quarterback had six games with 300 or more passing yards over the past two seasons.
13. Texas Tech
Starter: Freshman Lloyd Jones Jr. (0 career starts)
Backup: Junior Kirk Francis (10 starts at Tulsa)
This situation remains fluid with Sorsby’s status uncertain due to the NCAA investigation. Will Hammond is rehabbing a torn ACL and isn’t expected ready for Week 1.
That leaves Jones, a redshirt freshman who saw limited action last season, and Francis, who made 10 starts at Tulsa over three seasons.
Francis could be the best short-term option for the defending Big 12 champions.
14. Cincinnati
Starter: Senior JC French IV (26 career starts at Georgia Southern)
Backup: Senior Liam O’Brien (10 career starts at Penn)
Sorsby’s transfer to Texas Tech leaves a competition between French and O’Brien. French started two seasons at Georgia Southern, totaling 5,882 passing yards with 38 touchdowns and 20 interceptions.
He also rushed for 612 yards and eight touchdowns.
O’Brien compiled 2,924 yards of total offense as a first-team All-Ivy League quarterback at Penn last season. It’s an interesting decision for fourth-year coach Scott Satterfield, who is 15-22 since taking over.
15. West Virginia
Starter: Sophomore Michael Hawkins Jr. (4 career starts at Oklahoma)
Backup: Sophomore Scotty Fox Jr. (5 career starts)
Rich Rodriguez opens Year 2 at West Virginia with another quarterback battle. Mountaineers quarterbacks combined for 10 touchdowns and 11 interceptions last season.
Fox made five starts for West Virginia last season with 1,276 passing yards, seven touchdowns and six interceptions. He added 201 rushing yards.
Hawkins totaled 950 passing yards with six touchdowns and two interceptions plus 262 rushing yards over two seasons at Oklahoma.
16. Kansas
Starter: Sophomore Isaiah Marshall (1 career start)
Backup: Junior Cole Ballard (0 career starts)
The Jalon Daniels era is over at Kansas, leaving a wide-open competition. Sixth-year coach Lance Leipold has several options.
Marshall made one start last season. Ballard has appeared in 15 games over three seasons, totaling 445 yards with three touchdowns and four interceptions.
He has 160 rushing yards on 10.7 yards per carry in limited action. Rice transfer Chase Jenkins could also factor into fall camp competition.
