Inside the SEC’s starting quarterback competitions ahead of 2025 college football season

• Tennessee is home to a rare quarterback competition inside the SEC. Most starting jobs are settled.
• Door cracked in Alabama, but Ty Simpson leads pack.
• Is Gunnar Stockton the answer in Georgia? Spring game points to him leading the battle.

Steve Sarkisian cleared up the quarterback drama at Texas in February when he announced Arch Manning as the Longhorns’ starting quarterback. Just kidding — there was no drama at Texas. Sarkisian’s anointment of Arch equated to saying it’s hot in Texas in July.

Thanks, we know.

Not everyone’s a Manning, but Texas’ quarterback situation is more the rule than the exception this offseason. Most SEC teams feature an obvious starter.

Here’s an assessment of the quarterback situation at each SEC school:

We know the starting quarterback

Some coaches won’t announce their quarterback until much closer to the season opener, but I’m confident in pegging each of these as their team’s starter:

Auburn (Jackson Arnold)

Coach Hugh Freeze declared Arnold, the Oklahoma transfer, as “the No. 1.” If Arnold struggles like he did with the Sooners, Stanford transfer Ashton Daniels provides another option with starting experience.

Kentucky (Zach Calzada)

Way back in 2021, Calzada started for Texas A&M in an upset of Alabama. Now, he’s entering his seventh season with his fourth team. He’s fresh off an appearance in the FCS playoffs with Incarnate Word.

Green returns as the starter following an up-and-down first season in Fayetteville after he transferred from Boise State. A lack of proven playmakers around Green projects as a bigger issue.

Florida (DJ Lagway)

The Gators won four straight games to finish last season while Lagway started as a true freshman. He’s a top-tier SEC quarterback.

Texas (Arch Manning)

If Manning lives up to the hype, the Longhorns should have the juice to contend for a national championship.

BEST OF BEST: Our ranking of college football’s top 25 coaches

RE-RANK: Texas leads college football NCAA 1-136 after spring

Oklahoma (John Mateer)

The Sooners needed solutions on offense. Insert Mateer, the Washington State transfer who rushed for 826 yards last season.

LSU (Garrett Nussmeier)

Nussmeier is the SEC’s only returning quarterback who passed for more than 4,000 yards last season.

Vanderbilt (Diego Pavia)

Pavia owns two wins against Auburn and one against Alabama. He has made Vanderbilt relevant. That’s no easy feat.

Missouri (Beau Pribula)

Pribula teased some dual-threat talents in two seasons as Penn State’s backup. He’s a nice portal pickup for Missouri.

Texas A&M (Marcel Reed)

Reed supplanted Conner Weigman as the Aggies’ starter last season, and Weigman’s offseason transfer to Houston means there’s no lingering competition.

South Carolina (LaNorris Sellers)

Sellers became one of the SEC’s top breakout players last season. Now, he’s a proven commodity.

Mississippi State (Blake Shapen)

A shoulder injury sidelined Shapen after four games last season. The good news for Mississippi State is that he’s back, and its offense looked better last year with him on the field.

Mississippi (Austin Simmons)

Coach Lane Kiffin described Simmons as having “a very high ceiling.” Simmons showed a glimpse of that ceiling in a relief appearance against Georgia last season.

Door remains cracked in quarterback competition

Alabama (Ty Simpson)

Offensive coordinator Ryan Grubb said after the spring game that Simpson would start if Alabama’s season started then. Five-star freshman Keelon Russell might be the quarterback of the future. As for the present, Simpson enjoys the edge after three years as an Alabama backup.

Georgia (Gunner Stockton)

Stockton retains the inside track for the job after starting Georgia’s playoff game against Notre Dame. He showed his lead in the competition over Ryan Puglisi in Georgia’s spring game.

Door fully open in quarterback competition

Tennessee (Joey Aguilar or …)

The Vols will have a new starting quarterback after Nico Iamaleava transferred to UCLA in April. Former Appalachian State starter Joey Aguilar will headline a competition that includes Jake Merklinger and George MacIntyre.

Merklinger was Tennessee’s third-stringer last season. MacIntyre is a true freshman, making him the long shot. Aguilar’s starting experience might give him a slight edge. He must quickly learn Josh Heupel’s offense after transferring this spring. Aguilar struggled with his completion rate and interceptions at App State, but he has mobility and moxie.

Blake Toppmeyer is the USA TODAY Network’s national college football columnist. Email him at BToppmeyer@gannett.com and follow him on X @btoppmeyer.

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