Tyrod Taylor Versus the ACC Competition: How Does Virginia Tech's QB Measure Up?

The ACC gets a bad rap in football. There are plenty of talented teams and some tremendous players on all of them.

There are a handful of top-flight quarterbacks in the conference, and Virginia Tech's Tyrod Taylor may be the best of them.

But how does the Hokie quarterback compare to his ACC peers?

Let's take a look around the conference and assess Tyrod's counterparts to see how they stack up against the Hokie leader.

Josh Nesbitt

Georgia Tech goes as Nesbitt goes, and for the most part that’s pretty good. The Yellow Jackets went 11-3 last season en route to winning the ACC title.

Nesbitt had an outstanding season on the ground last season in coach Paul Johnson’s option attack. He carried the ball 279 times for 1,037 yards and 18 touchdowns.

Passing was more of an adventure with Nesbitt completing just 46 percent of his passes for 1,701 yards, 10 touchdowns, and five interceptions.

Nesbitt was a highly touted quarterback coming out of high school, but he has clearly not adapted as a passer under Paul Johnson’s option offense. His passes are often erratic and sometimes laughably off target, as they were in his 2-for-9 performance in last year’s Orange Bowl loss to Iowa.

With no more Demaryius Thomas—who accounted for 1,154 of Nesbitt’s passing yards—don’t expect Nesbitt’s numbers as a passer to improve this season.

Jacory Harris

Despite his affinity for bad haircuts, Harris has perhaps the most potential of any player on this list.

During his first full season as the Hurricanes’ starter, Harris performed well to the tune of a 59.6 completion percentage, 3,352 yards, and 24 touchdowns.

He was an integral part in the 'Canes resurgence, helping lead them to a 9-4 record and putting “The U” back on the national radar for winning.

However, it wasn’t all sunshine last season for the Miami native. During the Hurricanes' three regular season losses, Harris threw eight interceptions to just three touchdowns.

His struggles were highlighted during his performance against Virginia Tech, when the combination of a hostile environment, motivated defense, and inclement weather led to a veritable meltdown.

Miami should be improved this season, and Harris will be considered a Heisman trophy contender once the Miami love-fest begins. This season, however, the hype will be justified.

Christian Ponder

Ponder was having an excellent year in 2009 until injury derailed his season, causing him to miss the final four games.

Despite that, he still compiled excellent stats, throwing for 2,717 yards and 14 touchdowns while completing nearly 69 percent of his passes.

Ponder brings mobility as well, rushing for 423 yards in his only full season as the Florida State starter.

It’s difficult to pin the mounting Seminole losses on Ponder, who for the most part played well in losses. The FSU defense has been the main culprit in recent years, case in point the Noles' 49-44 loss to Georgia Tech. Ponder misfired on just 10 passes and threw for 359 yards and five touchdowns. There wasn't much more he could do.

Ponder is one of the more well-rounded QBs in the ACC; time will tell if his team will follow suit.

Russell Wilson

Wilson might just be the best quarterback you aren’t familiar with. Wilson has put up monster numbers on the gridiron during his time at N.C. State while also playing baseball for the Wolfpack.

Despite posting a 5-7 record last season, Wilson completed 59 percent of his passes for 3,027 yards and an eye-popping 31 touchdowns to just 11 interceptions. Clearly, the lack of wins can’t be pinned on Wilson; State just isn’t very good.

The most impressive part of Wilson’s game is his ability to avoid interceptions. In his career, Wilson has tossed 48 touchdown passes with just 12 interceptions.

Like the others on this list, Wilson is a great athlete and is a threat running the ball as well. If the Wolfpack defense improves even slightly, look for Wilson to get some more national publicity.

Tyrod Taylor

Last season was Taylor’s first as the unchallenged starter in Blacksburg, and while things were rough at times, by the end of the season the potential everyone knew existed began to come together on the field.

Taylor began to look more comfortable in the pocket and used his feet not in panic, but to buy time for his receivers to get open. Coupled with his improved throwing motion, that has helped Taylor come closer to reaching his full potential.

In 2009 Taylor completed 56 percent of his passes for 2,311 yards and 13 touchdowns. He added 370 yards and five touchdowns on the ground.

Taylor will never post amazing passing stats simply because Virginia Tech is a run-first team with multiple 1,000-yard rushers in the backfield.

The important thing in Taylor’s evolution is that he continues to learn to manage the game. He’s found a healthy balance of running and passing and has emerged as a team leader heading into his senior season.

The Hokies have high expectations this season, but if they are to reach the heights of college football, Tyrod Taylor will have to continue to improve.

Conclusion

I won’t disagree when I’m accused of favoritism in choosing Tyrod Taylor as the ACC’s top quarterback, but I truly believe he's the best.

I think everyone I’ve highlighted has a chance to be the player of the year, but they have different strengths.

Christian Ponder is the most accurate from a completion standpoint, but Russell Wilson makes the fewest big mistakes.

Josh Nesbitt is the weakest passer of the group by far, but no one is more difficult to stop in the open field because he’s such a powerful runner.

Jacory Harris just oozes talent, but he needs to get bigger physically and step up in big game situations.

Taylor has won big games and proven capable of performing in clutch situations. He’s not the most gifted passer, but he has a great arm and has improved his accuracy during his time in college.

His speed and ability on the ground are always a threat to break a game open. I hate to make the comparison, but if you squint your eyes watching his highlights, many of the runs do indeed look “Vick-ish.”

Any of these players can be the ACC player of the year this season, and it should be an exciting race to the finish. If I’m handicapping the race, however, I give Taylor the head start.