With three consecutive National Championships arising out of it, it’s hard not to see the Big Ten as the premier conference in college football. The catalyst to it all is the exceptional play under center, which looks to continue even in the absence of Heisman winner Fernando Mendoza. With a plethora of fresh faces and returning gunslingers, let’s look at the tiers of Big Ten quarterbacks entering 2026.
Where Does Every Big Ten Signal-Caller Stand?
Risk Of QB Controversy
After last year’s campaign of nine interceptions to 10 touchdowns, it’s quite baffling that Ryan Browne enters as Purdue’s projected starter under center. If he repeats that bottom-of-the-barrel level performance, then it’s likely the Boilermakers move on, as they have a trio of youthful passers in the wings in the form of Evans Chuba, Corin Berry and the son of coach Barry Odom, Garyt.
Out of all the passers on the Iowa roster, only Hank Brown enters with actual game experience, and it looks as if he’s in direct competition with Jeremy Hecklinski. Whichever way the Hawkeyes go, the expectation feels tame compared to what either could accomplish and coach Kirk Ferentz could opt for a change early.
Mid-Level Transfer Gunslingers
Three arms are entering 2026 who transferred from Group of 6 programs this season: Katin Houser from ECU to Illinois, Colton Joseph from ODU to Wisconsin and Anthony Colandrea from UNLV to Nebraska. Each of this trio is in relatively the same standing after seasons of similar aptitude, and the only separation will need to be seen once it’s proven how they’ll adapt to Big Ten play.
Rutgers added a Power 4 conference arm in the form of Dylan Lonergan from Boston College, and while he enters with a weaker resume than that batch, he has just as much to prove, if not more, with a disastrous Rutgers program. He’ll serve as the lower level of the new arrivals to the Big Ten under center this season.
Crucial “Prove It” Year
For Michigan signal caller Bryce Underwood, who was top of his class and received a heavy NIL package, his freshman season of 11 touchdowns to 9 interceptions just didn’t match the hype. Enter a seasoned first-year head coach in Kyle Whittingham, a backfield balanced by top freshman Savion Hiter and a transfer portal haul; it’s hard not to gripe if Underwood doesn’t have a notable sophomore year.
UCLA’s Nico Iamaleava is in a similar boat in needing to capitalize on potential due to disappointing play, and it looks he may be able to also capitalize for similar reasons.
In a different vein to both of those passers, Minnesota’s Drake Lindsey, Maryland’s Malik Washington and Michigan State’s Alessio Milivojevic all had solid seasons. Still, each young signal-caller needs to prove it wasn’t just a flash in the pan in debut starting years and that they can be long-term options.
If these two groups of passers were put on a Venn Diagram, Northwestern’s Aidan Chiles would be the middle of the two scenarios. He’s had a mixed past, mostly disappointing, despite last year’s stat line of 10 touchdowns to 3 interceptions, which led to his benching. Now onto his third starting season, Chiles will need to prove that under quarterback coach Jerry Neuheisel and offensive coordinator Chip Kelly, he can turn the numbers into wins; if those two offensive minds can’t do it, then the Chiles experiment is officially over on a low note.
Top-line Veteran Arms
There are two groups of premier veteran arms in the Big Ten this season; the first is returnees out west, Washington’s Demond Williams Jr., who attempted to transfer before returning and USC’s Jayden Maiava. The second group is talented Big-12 transfers who join the conference as paramount options under center, led by Iowa State’s Rocco Becht, who followed his old coach, Matt Campbell, to Penn State and TCU’s Josh Hoover, who joined the defending National Champion Indiana Hoosiers.
All of these gunslingers slot in at around the same tier of passer, yet it’ll likely shift around given team results and play, as not all enter in equal situations before the first touchdown scored of 2026.
Second to One
When looking at the numbers, Ohio State has the best passer in the Big Ten in Julian Sayin, yet his lack of scrambling ability has continued to limit the Buckeyes. It’s very well and possible that the Buckeyes’ quarterback becomes the pinnacle passer in the conference very soon, but he’s only slightly edged out by one man as the first kickoff looms.
King Of The Hill
The throne for the top Big Ten quarterback resides in Eugene with presumed top-five NFL Draft Pick next season, Dante Moore. It’s his crown to lose, and he’ll have to maintain his already stellar level of play, as the gap begins to narrow with other gunslingers on the chase, especially in what feels like a year where the National Championship is Oregon’s to lose.
Main Image: USA TODAY Network via Reuters Connect
