Pac-12 Football: Ranking the Pac-12 Quarterbacks Through 3 Weeks
Before the 2014 season began, the national love for the Pac-12 revolved around the conference's incredible group of quarterbacks, which ranks among the best at any point in league history.
There's the headlining act of Marcus Mariota and Brett Hundley, but when the main course is followed with players like Taylor Kelly, Sean Mannion, Kevin Hogan and Cody Kessler, you know you have something special.
Rounding out the group are gunslingers Jared Goff and Connor Halliday, a healthy and dangerous Travis Wilson and promising youngsters Anu Solomon, Cyler Miles and Sefo Liufau.
Through three weeks of the season, the group has impressed, but how would you rank them?
Keep in mind that most teams have played just three games, and some only two. There isn't a single starting quarterback who has played straight-up bad football, either, and even those on the lower half of our list have put up solid numbers.
This will become a lot less subjective when certain teams pile up more wins and quarterbacks begin to separate statistically.
In fact, many of the league's quarterbacks have yet to face a difficult opponent, further complicating the process. For now, though, we'll go off what we've seen so far.
Based solely on the play thus far in the 2014 season, here's how we would rank the 12 starting quarterbacks in the Pac-12.
All stats via CFBStats.com. Remember, this is based on this season alone and prior reputation. NFL draft prospects or future potential have no weight in the rankings.
12. Connor Halliday, Washington State
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Washington State quarterback Connor Halliday has thrown for the most yards and the most touchdown passes out of any quarterback in the league, so how in the world can he bring up the rear at the quarter mark of the season?
Start with the Cougars posting an ugly 1-2 mark with losses at home to Rutgers and on the road against Nevada, and end with the five interceptions thrown by Halliday. That number may not make you cover your eyes just yet, but it puts him on pace for 20 over the course of the season.
And let's be honest here, when you're throwing the ball nearly 60 times per game, shouldn't eye-popping yardage totals be expected? Halliday throwing for less than 350 yards is akin to almost anyone else failing to hit the 200-yard mark.
If WSU begins to win games and Halliday limits his picks, the gunslinger will skyrocket up the power rankings.
11. Sefo Liufau, Colorado
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Much like quarterback Connor Halliday, it can be argued that Sefo Liufau has had a pretty decent year so far.
He's completing 64 percent of his throws for 837 yards with eight touchdowns, and he's also scampered on the ground for 58 yards. Heck, the young sophomore only has three interceptions, and one per game isn't terrible.
But also like the Cougars, the Buffaloes sit at 1-2 with losses to Colorado State and Arizona State, the latter of which can be excused due to the talent differential between teams. But Mike MacIntyre's bunch fell apart against the Rams and needed all 60 minutes to slip by lowly UMass.
The slow start cannot be pinned on Liufau alone, and to be honest, he's pretty low on the list of reasons for the pair of losses in the early going.
But he also hasn't been able to make things happen when it matters the most, at least in the two defeats. Without a large enough body of work to go off of, that's going to count against him, and it puts him in the No. 11 spot in our rankings.
10. Sean Mannion, Oregon State
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Calling Sean Mannion the 10th-best quarterback in the Pac-12 prior to the season would have sounded insane considering the type of year the Beavers senior had in 2013.
He notched well over 4,500 yards through the air, and his connection with Brandin Cooks was unrivaled in the conference.
Let's preface this next part by noting that Mannion has only played two games thus far, so his position is even less set in stone than everyone else.
His completion percentage is right at 63 percent, which is probably 5-10 percent lower than Mike Riley would like to see from his senior. The Beavers have also struggled to put away both Portland State and Hawaii, two unremarkable opponents.
Mannion has thrown for 628 yards with four scores and just one pick, but for him, those numbers sound sort of, well, average. In a league of phenomenal signal-callers, average puts you far down on the list.
Don't expect Mannion to hold this spot, however, and we mean that in a good way.
.jpg?w=256 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
9. Brett Hundley, UCLA
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One of the preseason Heisman Trophy favorites finds himself lost in the shuffle of Pac-12 quarterbacks after three weeks.
Nevermind the fact that UCLA's Brett Hundley missed the majority of the Bruins' 20-17 win over Texas on Saturday—he just hasn't wowed like we thought he might.
Again, this is another case of not wanting to write the future in stone just yet, as Hundley and the Bruins have a lot of football left, and you've got to believe his incredible talent will start to shine through.
We've already seen some of that talent, as the big dual-threat quarterback has completed more than 70 percent of his throws for 686 yards.
But he only has three touchdown passes, and they came against teams that won a combined three games in 2013. His pick-six against Memphis nearly caused what would have been a monumental upset.
Hundley hasn't been a bad quarterback, he just hasn't performed even close to the level we were expecting, and that drops him down in our rankings from where he started a month ago.
8. Cyler Miles, Washington
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You could make a case for Washington quarterback Cyler Miles to be as high as No. 4 or No. 5, and probably as low as 10th.
It's difficult to judge a player with so little experience, but what we do know is that Miles had the offense humming in both of his starts.
Against Eastern Washington, the Huskies' 59 points proved to be enough to win the shootout, and the 44 tallied against Illinois were dominating enough for the rest of the conference to take notice.
Compare those stats with the measly 17 put up in the opener at Hawaii, a game started by backup Jeff Lindquist.
Miles has just 371 yards passing, but he's thrown for two touchdowns and rushed for over 100 yards and another three scores. The offense has moved the ball extremely well with him leading the charge, and it's that effectiveness that moves him past some of the other guys on the list who might have better stats.
7. Jared Goff, Cal
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An ideal start to the season has quarterback Jared Goff and the Cal Bears out of the conference cellar—at least for the moment.
In a pair of wins over Northwestern and Sacramento State, Goff has thrown for 510 yards and seven touchdowns with just one interception.
Cal would not have pulled out a victory on the road last season like it did against the Wildcats on Aug. 30, and the game against Sacramento State would have been a lot tighter, too.
There's really nothing bad to say about Goff's game, except that it needs to be tested for him to move up any higher. That chance will come Saturday when Cal travels to Tucson to take on Arizona.
6. Travis Wilson, Utah
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Utah quarterback Travis Wilson is stuck in the same land as Jared Goff, having played solid, smart football and leading his team to a 2-0 start without really being challenged.
The slight edge is given to Wilson for his mobility, which has already resulted in a score on the ground to go along with 49 yards.
Wilson also has yet to turn the ball over, unlike Goff. Of course, that's not a knock on the Cal starter, just another small way to separate the two with such a tiny sample size.
Before the season, it would have been difficult to imagine Wilson playing better than Sean Mannion and Brett Hundley. Those two will eventually step it up and charge up the list, so the real question is can Wilson continue his strong play and refuse to be moved down?
5. Anu Solomon, Arizona
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What more can you say about Arizona freshman Anu Solomon? The Wildcats are 3-0 with a nice win on the road at UTSA, and Solomon has thrown for 934 yards and eight touchdowns with just one interception. He's also rushed for 121 additional yards.
What that means for the long term is that Rich Rodriguez has found his guy. In the short term, it's enough to crack our top five. The only knock so far is a completion percentage hovering around 63 percent, but that's about as nitpicky as it gets.
Our favorite moment from the dual-threat youngster came in the second quarter against Nevada when he took the snap, veered to his left and then suddenly geared up and launched a pass off his back foot that landed perfectly into the arms of Tyrell Johnson 35 yards downfield.
It was a "wow" moment for Solomon, and we believe there are many more upcoming.
4. Kevin Hogan, Stanford
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The ever-steady Kevin Hogan checks in at No. 4 in our rankings even with a loss to his name. He didn't make the plays necessary to take advantage of ideal field position throughout the three-point loss against USC.
However, even with the Trojans defeat at Boston College, a loss to Steve Sarkisian's squad isn't going to look all that bad when the dust settles.
Outside of that, all Hogan has done is throw for 705 yards with seven passing touchdowns and another one on the ground.
He's completing an impressive 73 percent of his passes as well, but efficiency from the Cardinal starter is one thing you can always count on.
As the season wears on, the Cardinal defense isn't going to hold every other opponent to 10 points or fewer, so it'll be interesting to see what takes place when Stanford gets pushed and is forced to score 35 or 40.
The result will mean a change in the rankings for Hogan, but will he be moving up or down the elevator?
3. Cody Kessler, USC
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Don't simply look at quarterback Cody Kessler in the No. 3 spot on our list and wonder how that happens with the Trojans losing to Boston College. That game was lost in the trenches, as USC could neither run the ball nor stop the Eagles from running the ball.
In fact, Kessler completed 31 of 41 passes at Boston College for 317 yards and four touchdowns without a turnover. It was his second game with four touchdown passes on the season after doing so in Week 1 against Fresno State.
Kessler wasn't very effective at Stanford, but he is learning to utilize the massive amount of talent surrounding him and doing so without making mistakes. He gets an A grade for his play so far.
2. Taylor Kelly, Arizona State
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For the purpose of getting the negative out of the way quickly, Arizona State quarterback Taylor Kelly is expected to miss one or two games, according to AZCentral.com.
It's a shame, too, that assuming a full recovery and strong play throughout the rest of the season, his final stats will be without a game or two. Kelly has become one the best running quarterbacks in the country while continuing to make excellent decisions in the passing game.
In less than three games, Kelly has thrown for 625 yards with six touchdown throws and another two scores on the ground. He's also rushed for 168 yards, including a 52-yard scamper at Colorado.
In short, Kelly is nearly as efficient as the No. 1 player on our list but without the upside. That has thus far resulted in a 3-0 record and an anxious fanbase awaiting his return.
1. Marcus Mariota, Oregon
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To the surprise of (hopefully) no one, Oregon's Marcus Mariota is playing like the best quarterback in the nation after three weeks.
The Ducks' redshirt junior has completed over 70 percent of his throws for 806 yards and eight touchdowns without a pick while also rushing for 156 and another three scores.
While the numbers are impressive, they shockingly don't tell the whole story.
In Week 2, the Ducks squared off with a Michigan State team that last year boasted one of the best defensive units in the country. Mariota shredded the secondary to the tune of 300 yards passing and three touchdowns.
One play in particular will be shown on Mariota's highlight reel for years to come. With his team down nine in the middle of the third quarter and facing a third-and-long, Mariota dodged three Spartans near the line of scrimmage, scrambled to his left and flipped a pass out to running back Royce Freeman, who picked up the first down.
The drive was capped off with a touchdown, beginning the comeback.
.jpg?w=480 "Ohio State Team Doctor")
