By Tony Thomas
Many Group of Five (G5) teams will be flush with talent at the most important position on the field-quarterback. Three quarterbacks on this list accounted for over 4,000 yards of total offense. Here are the best G5 signal-callers to watch in 2024.
5. Jacob Zeno
UAB Blazers
6’4”, 215 lbs.
2023 was a record-setting year for Jacob Zeno. Zeno threw for 3,126 yards, 20 TDs, and nine INTs. In addition, Zeno rushed for four touchdowns. His 3,126 passing yards were the second most in program history.
Zeno set a single-season record by completing 73.6% of his passes, which was outstanding enough for #2 nationally. In a 45-42 win over Florida Atlantic, Zeno set a single-game record with 484 yards passing, with five TDs, and one INT.
4. Jordan McCloud
Texas State Bobcats (transfer from JMU)
6’0”, 199 lbs.
Last season, Jordan McCloud was named the Sun Belt Conference Player of the Year. In 2023, McCloud passed for 3,657 yards, 35 touchdowns, and 10 INTs. In addition, McCloud added eight touchdowns on the ground. McCloud averaged 281 yards passing per game, which ranked #18 in the FBS, and he also ranked nationally in the following categories:
· 310 yards of total offense per game, ranked 10th in the FBS.
· 167.4 passing efficiency, also ranked 10th in the FBS.
· .689 completion percentage, good enough for 11th in the FBS.
McCloud comes to play for head coach GJ Kinne and a Texas State team that ranked 29th in passing offense last season, averaging 270 yards per game through the air.
Considering that both quarterbacks on last season’s depth chart, TJ Finley (committed to Western Kentucky) and Malik Hornsby (committed to Arkansas State), Coach Kinne can go ahead and pencil in McCloud as the QB1 starter for the start of spring practice, and beyond.
3. Joey Aguilar
Appalachian State Mountaineers
6’3”, 220 lbs.
The first quarterback on this list to account for over 4,000 yards of total offense (4,002 total yards in 2023 as a true freshman), Joey Aguilar earned Sun Belt Conference Newcomer of the Year honors after setting single-season school records of 3,757 yards passing and 33 TDs, to go with 10 INTs. In addition, Aguilar added three rushing touchdowns.
Aguilar averaged 268 yards passing per game, which ranked 21st in the FBS and 3rd in the Sun Belt. Starting the final 12 games of the 2023 season, Aguilar produced four games of over 300 yards passing, eight games of three or more passing touchdowns (including 3 games of four or more TDs passing), and threw at least one touchdown pass in 11 of 14 games.
2. Byrum Brown
USF Bulls
6’3”, 209 lbs.
In 2023, Byrum Brown was one of two quarterbacks to pass for 3,000 yards and rush for 800 yards (the other was Heisman winner Jayden Daniels ). Brown passed for 3,292 yards, 26 touchdowns, and 11 INTs, and completed 65% of his passes. In addition, Brown added 809 yards rushing and 11 touchdowns. Brown’s 4,101 total yards of offense last season was the 2nd best total in program history, and ranked 8th in the FBS last season.
Brown set single-season school records in passing yards, passing TDs, and completion percentage, and was the first 3,000-yard passer in school history. Three times last season, Brown accounted for five touchdowns, against Florida A&M, Memphis, and Charlotte. In a 42-29 win over Rice, Brown completed 22 of 29 passes (76%) for 435 yards and two touchdowns. Brown posted three games of over 100 yards rushing, including a season-high 160 yards on the ground vs. Western Kentucky.
And the #1 G5 quarterback on our list is…
Seth Henigan
Memphis Tigers
6’3”, 210 lbs.
In three relatively quiet seasons, Seth Henigan has passed for 10,776 yards in his collegiate career. Last season, Henigan passed for 3,883 yards, 32 touchdowns, and only nine INTs (in 476 pass attempts). He ranked 9th in the FBS and 2nd in the AAC averaging 298 yards per game through the air, and completed 67% of his passes for a Memphis team that posted a 10-3 record in 2023.
In addition, Henigan added 274 yards rushing and five TDs on the ground for a grand total of 4,157 yards of total offense. Henigan threw for over 300 yards in a game eight times last season, including 402 yards and two TDs in a four-point loss to eventual AAC champion SMU.
Going into his fourth season with the Tigers, Henigan has averaged 3,592 yards passing per season. With three of Henigan’s top receiving targets from last season (a combined 155 catches, 2,336 yards, and 13 touchdowns) returning, Henigan should maintain that average and the Memphis offense is in capable hands once again.
The Tigers should be one of the top Group of Five teams battling for a berth in the newly expanded college football playoff in 2024.
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