Top 5 underrated college football QBs for the upcoming season ft. Luke Altmyer

Heading into the college football season, several QBs are getting a lot of attention. Texas' Arch Manning, LSU's Garrett Nussmeier, and Clemson's Cade Klubnik stand out as three of the most hyped up QBs heading into next season.

While fans should be excited about those QBs, there are plenty of other QBs who should have impressive seasons who are flying under the radar. Here is a look at five underrated college football QBs heading into the 2025 season.

Top five underrated college football QBs heading into the 2025 season

#1 Luke Altmyer, Illinois

As the quarterback of the Illinois Fighting Illini, Luke Altmyer did not get a lot of attention last season. Despite that, he had a stellar breakout season, completing 211 of 347 passing attempts for 2717 yards and 22 TDs.

Now that Altmyer has two years of starting experience, he will be looking to establish himself as one of the best QBs in college football. He is someone fans should be watching to see if he rises up the ranks of the 2026 NFL draft rankings.

#2 John Mateer, Oklahoma

Oklahoma QB John Mateer is someone analysts have started to look at as one of the top QBs next season. However, he is still relatively unknown among most fans. That is mostly because he played for Washington State last season. However, if the college football world learned anything from Cam Ward last season, leaving Washington State could mean Mateer is set for a big breakout year.

Mateer already showed he can play at an elite level with the Cougars last year, completing 224 of 347 passing attempts for 3139 yards and 29 TDs. Now he will have the opportunity to do it against tougher competition.

#3 Sawyer Robertson, Baylor

Baylor's Sawyer Roberton is coming off a breakout year, completing 229 of 368 passing attempts for 3071 yards and 28 TDs. His 8.3 yards per attempt last season were second in the Big 12 behind Arizona State's Sam Leavitt. Although the Bears are not expected to be a dominant team, that could change if Robertson continues to progress.

#4 Sam Leavitt, Arizona State

Arizona State's Sam Leavitt did not get to fully showcase his talents last season. While he had a strong season, completing 216 of 350 passing attempts for 2885 yards and 24 TDs, he passed less because of RB Cam Skattebo's running abilities. With Skattebo gone, Leavitt will be able to step into the spotlight next season.

#5 Carson Beck, Miami

Carson Beck is an interesting, underrated pick because he was one of the most hyped up QBs heading into last season. However, after a disappointing season at Georgia, many fans seem to think that he is not a good quarterback at all anymore. That is not the case. Beck is still a great college football QB and is stepping into a situation in Miami that Cam Ward thrived in last season.

About the author

Alexander O'Reilly is a journalist at Sportskeeda from Kingston, Ontario with over seven years in the field at companies including SenShot, RVBlogger, Monarch Media, WordAgents, GSeC LLC, and IGC.

His favorite college team is Duke, and his favorite sporting memory was Duke winning March Madness in 2010. JJ Redick was Alex's favorite college player when he was young but more recently, Caleb Williams gets the nod. As the Chicago Bears are Alex's favorite NFL team, this was a perfect match.

Alex's proudest moment came when he was interviewed by a radio station in Ottawa on his opinion on recent moves by the Ottawa Senators, which gave him a confidence boost and the knowledge that he could succeed as a writer.

Aside from sports, Alex likes to spend his time playing games. He is also very passionate about running and strives to improve at the half and full marathon distances.

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Edited by Alexander O'Reilly