No Big 12 Quarterbacks Make Rece Davis’ Top 5

On ESPN’s College GameDay Podcast, Rece Davis rolled out his top five quarterbacks for the upcoming college season.

Davis placed Arch Manning at No. 1, Garrett Nussmeier at No. 2, Cade Klubnik at No. 3, LaNorris Sellers at No. 4, and Miller Moss at No. 5, yet not a single Big 12 signal-caller made the cut.

It’s a puzzling omission when you consider the numbers.

Last season, several Big 12 quarterbacks ranked among the nation’s top in key categories like total offense, touchdown-to-interception ratio, and third-down efficiency.

Despite that, Davis focused solely on quarterbacks he projects to “have the best, most impactful seasons,” leaving conference standouts entirely off his radar.

Take last year’s Big 12 runner-up in passing yards, Josh Hoover, who nearly threw for over 4,000 yards and kept his pick count low, yet remains conspicuously absent from the top five. That mismatch between production-based ranking and narrative-based list speaks volumes about the current media climate: pedigree and hype often override performance.

For Arizona State, Baylor, Iowa State, TCU, or Kansas State fans, Davis’s ranking is frustratingly tone-deaf. These quarterbacks boast efficiency ratings and pressure-play stats that outshine some names Davis did include, but without the national spotlight or NFL draft buzz, they were overlooked.

That’s the disconnect in action: College football analysis is increasingly about projection rather than actual performance.

Davis and his counterparts at ESPN are betting on future success through developmental arcs, rather than present-day execution. In turn, Big 12 quarterbacks are forced to run up gaudy stats just to earn narrative legitimacy.

Davis’s list may feed endless debate, but here’s the reality: the Big 12 has multiple QBs who outperformed half of his picks in measurable ways last fall. If he’s looking for the most “impactful seasons,” maybe it’s time to give Big 12 standouts their due.