Joel Klatt Reveals Updated Top 10 College Football QBs — With a New Name at No. 1

Let's face it: We were wrong about Arch Manning, Cade Klubnik and a few other quarterbacks entering the 2025 college football season.

The Texas and Clemson quarterbacks were widely viewed as two of the top quarterbacks in the nation before the year began. In fact, FOX Sports’ Joel Klatt ranked Klubnik and Manning as his No. 1 and No. 2 quarterbacks in the country, respectively, prior to the start of the new season.

However, we have yet to experience "Arch Mania" and Clemson has quickly picked up two losses, putting its national championship hopes in peril. So, at a chance of redemption, Klatt re-ranked the 10 best quarterbacks in the nation in the most recent episode of "The Joel Klatt Show."

Notable 2025 stats: 944 passing yards (seventh in FBS), 5 passing touchdowns, 3 interceptions, 368 total yards per game (second in FBS)

Klatt’s thoughts: "He was my No. 3 quarterback in the spring. I thought he was going to be good. He has been good, and maybe even better than advertised. John Mateer has played excellent. Has he made a couple of mistakes turning the ball over? Yes. Are his numbers as good as some of the other guys on this list? No. But he goes out there and elevates the play of everyone around him. We saw that against Michigan. He can go to a different level and give his team a chance to win the football game and be the reason they win a football game. Mateer has been excellent. He put OU on his back in so many ways against the Wolverines.

"I think they need to get the run game going from the running backs around him so he doesn’t have to share the run load that he’s had to early in the season. If I had to hand in a Heisman ballot right now, it’d be John Mateer. I think he’s been the most impressive player, the best player, the most impactful player in college football through three weeks."

2. Carson Beck, Miami (Fla.)

Notable 2025 stats: 79.3 completion percentage (best in FBS), 812 passing yards, 7 passing touchdowns, 2 interceptions

Klatt's thoughts: "He looks great at Miami, man. I had a lot of questions about what was going to go on with the health of his arm because of the elbow surgery. He’s been terrific. He’s changed Miami in a lot of ways. They had an absolute dog at quarterback last year. Cam Ward was awesome. They didn’t have the defense to go with it. Now, they have a defense and they seem to have replaced Ward at quarterback. So, Carson Beck and that team, to me, are the clear favorite in the ACC – maybe with Florida State. But clearly those two teams."

3. Dante Moore, Oregon

Notable 2025 stats: 78.1 completion percentage (third-best in FBS), 657 passing yards, 7 passing touchdowns, 1 interception

Klatt’s thoughts: "I’m really impressed with this guy. This is really a bet on a future here. I think this guy is going to end up in New York as a Heisman finalist. He can do it all. Dante Moore is a sensational player. Oregon has scored 17 touchdowns and kicked two field goals in the 22 drives he’s been on the field this year. He’s accurate. He plays on the right timing and in the right rhythm and with the proper balance to throw the ball really well down the field. They got weapons everywhere. He’s very smart, gets them in the right play constantly.

"Their offense has already moved to a point where it was with Bo Nix in his second year rather than where it was with Dillon Gabriel last year, in terms of the intricacies, what the quarterback is going to handle at the line of scrimmage … he’s handling all of that. He’s got that preparation side. Then, the skill jumps off the tape for me. I think he’s excellent and this guy’s going to New York."

4. Gunner Stockton, Georgia

Notable 2025 stats: 721 passing yards, four touchdown passes, 0 interceptions, 124 rushing yards, 3 rushing touchdowns

Klatt's thoughts: "The throws that he made against Tennessee in crucial moments were spectacular. When you do that, you earn your way onto lists like this. That was a remarkable performance. He led his team back after being down 21-7 in one of the great environments in college football. That’s really tough to do. Stockton was excellent. The fourth-down throw, wow, you bet."

5. Haynes King, Georgia Tech

Notable stats: 129.5 rushing yards per game (leads all QBs in FBS), 354 passing yards, zero passing touchdowns, 1 interception, 4 rushing touchdowns

Klatt's thoughts: "Tough. Gritty. Experienced. Give that guy the rock. How about Haynes King? He takes down Clemson after beating Colorado in the opener. He didn’t play in the second game. His numbers aren’t going to jump off the stat sheet, but it’s what he does for his team, the belief his team has in him and the warrior he is running the football. This guy almost beat Georgia at Georgia last year. That’s the longest home winning streak in college football.

"What does he do against Clemson? … 25 carries. Warrior. Give him the rock. Lead them to victory. That’s what gets you on this list: big-stage performances."

6. Tommy Castellanos, Florida State

Notable 2025 stats: 389 passing yards, 3 passing touchdowns, 0 interceptions, 1 rushing touchdown

Klatt's thoughts: "His numbers aren’t going to blow you out of the water, more specifically, because they’ve only played two games. They beat Alabama and they played kind of a nobody. But man, that performance against Alabama – and it wasn’t on the stat sheet. It was everything else that he did, providing the energy, the short-area quickness, his ability to be a threat in the running game. It clearly changed them. What we’ve seen from Alabama now, how much more highly do we think of Florida State? Alabama has turned it around."

7. Rocco Becht, Iowa State

Notable 2025 stats: 860 passing yards, 7 passing touchdowns, 1 interception, 2 rushing touchdowns

Klatt's thoughts: "I don’t think his numbers are going to do it justice, but remember, this isn’t the leading passers. This is a guy who has gone out and performed in big moments. The game he played against Iowa, I thought, was tremendous. If you really boil it down, during that game, Gus and I, particularly me, I kept talking about the fact that this team believes all they need to do is be close because if they’re close in the fourth quarter, they’ve got that guy. They’ve got Rocco. ‘We’re fine because Rocco’s in the building.’ We set that up all game. And then the situation came about. Tied ballgame, he walks onto the field and what does he do? Deliver. I love it when guys deliver like that. Rocco was clutch. He’s a great leader and he’s been one of the 10 best performers."

8. Joey Aguilar, Tennessee

Notable 2025 stats: 906 passing yards (10th in FBS), 9 passing touchdowns, 2 interceptions, 1 rushing touchdown

Klatt's thoughts: "He’s been terrific. I’ve been incredibly impressed with what he’s done in that offense so far. I think he’s a good fit for that offense. They won the trade. He’s a better fit. The offense is explosive. All things that Tennessee fans are saying, ‘Wait, are we hearing this out of Joel Klatt’s mouth?’ Yes. I’m gonna call balls and strikes when I see it.

"Listen, I’m gonna call a spade a spade. I’m gonna compliment when compliments are deserved. Joey Aguilar has been terrific. The offense has been explosive, particularly with some of those receivers on the outside."

9. Jayden Maiava, USC

Notable 2025 stats: 989 passing yards (fifth-best in FBS), 6 passing touchdowns, 0 interceptions, 14.1 yards per attempt (best in FBS), 2 rushing touchdowns.

Klatt's thoughts: "No one is talking about this team or this player, but Maiava has played spectacular football so far in these first three weeks. I know that their level of competition hasn’t been great, but when you look at the statistical categories for quarterbacks around the country, Maiava is right up there at No. 1, 2 or 3 in a lot of categories. He has 330 yards per game, an FBS-best 14 yards per attempt, which is wild. He looks very comfortable. I was able to watch a lot of their game against Purdue. I don’t think they played their best against Purdue, but this is a scary team moving forward. … But Maiava is playing well and he’s earned a spot on this list."

10. Julian Sayin, Ohio State

Notable 2025 stats: 78.9 completion percentage (second-best in FBS), 779 passing yards, 8 passing touchdowns, 3 interceptions, 11 yards per attempt (fourth-best in FBS)

Klatt's thoughts: "He does play in rhythm. He did have a couple of poor decisions last week against Ohio that led to interceptions. They largely protected him against Texas and they didn’t ask him to do much in the passing game. I think that it was there and it could’ve been a lot better. But they protected him. I thought he played very well against Texas. He protected the football. His feet are in rhythm. He plays in balance. The ball leaves his hand on time. Generally, it’s on target.

"He’s a very accurate passer. You don’t throw for 79% unless you’re an accurate passer. These are a lot of big completions. He’s not just throwing screen passes for 79%. He’s throwing the football down the field, it just happens to be to good wide receivers."

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