2026 CFB QB Insider: Manning, Chambliss, Stockton Scouted
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- Arch Manning enters 2026 as Texas' incumbent starter after accounting for multiple touchdowns in five of his final six 2025 starts, rushing for 208 yards and three scores on just 16 carries against Texas A&M and Michigan to close the season, with coach Steve Sarkisian telling ESPN 'he grew up a lot, not only physically, but mentally.'
- Trinidad Chambliss projects as a leading Heisman contender after being granted a February injunction to play at Ole Miss, where he threw for 921 yards, four touchdowns, and no interceptions across three College Football Playoff games and completed 66.1% of his passes in his Division II-to-SEC debut season.
- Gunner Stockton delivered an 84.9 QBR (sixth nationally) while leading Georgia to the 2025 SEC title, completing 69.7% of passes for 2,894 yards, 24 touchdowns, and just five interceptions on 386 attempts, though an SEC defensive coordinator noted, 'I don't know if he's an NFL specimen, but he's a great college player.'
- Sam Leavitt transferred from Arizona State to LSU under new coach Lane Kiffin after a foot injury ended his 2025 season in October, with his accuracy dipping below 62% for the second straight year despite back-to-back five-rushing-touchdown seasons.
- Marcel Reed answered 2025 passing questions with 360 total yards against Notre Dame and 439 versus South Carolina, though SEC coaches still have doubts after he posted four interceptions and zero touchdowns in season-ending losses to Texas and Miami, taking seven sacks against the Hurricanes.
- The 2026 quarterback pool features seven starters back from the College Football Playoff field plus notable transfers including LSU's Sam Leavitt, Miami's Darian Mensah, Oklahoma State's Drew Mestemaker, and Indiana's Josh Hoover, with only Fernando Mendoza and Ty Simpson hearing their names in the first two rounds of April's NFL draft.
Why it matters: With seven CFP starters and a deep transfer class returning, the 2026 quarterback race could reshape Heisman odds and the 2027 NFL draft board, and the scouting-report format based on 43 coach interviews gives programs rare, coach-level intel on how opponents actually view these passers rather than relying on box-score scouting.
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