Who Will Be College Football's Best Graduate Transfer Quarterback in 2015?

The year of the grad transfer quarterback in college football is officially a go. Now the question is which one rises to the top of the landscape? After all, the idea of the grad transfer quarterback as a quick fix is popular, but not always accurate, as diagrammed by Matt Hinton of Grantland.com. 

Not every one is the new Russell Wilson, but that hasn't stopped anyone from hoping they've landed him. 

In preparation for Week 1 games, depth charts from around the country were released. Specifically, three high-profile programs named a grad transfer quarterback as their starter: Georgia (Greyson Lambert), Florida State (Everett Golson) and Oregon (Vernon Adams Jr.). 

Additionally, Alabama and Michigan have a pair of grad transfers—Jake Coker and Jake Rudock, respectively—who are still in a quarterback battle, at least publicly. It's entirely possible that five major programs, many of which are in the preseason College Football Playoff conversation, will start a first-year transfer quarterback in Week 1. 

Player	School	Previous School	2014 Stats
Vernon Adams Jr.	Oregon	Eastern Washington	3,483 passing yards, 35 TDs
Everett Golson	Florida State	Notre Dame	3,445 passing yards, 29 TDs
Greyson Lambert	Georgia	Virginia	1,632 passing yards, 10 TDs
Jake Coker	Alabama	Florida State	403 passing yards, 4 TDs
Jake Rudock	Michigan	Iowa	2,436 passing yards, 16 TDs

Which one has the best year? It depends on how you define "best," but Vernon Adams fills out some critical areas.

He Can Put up Video Game Stats

We've already seen this on a limited basis when Adams played two Pac-12 opponents: Oregon State (2013) and Washington (2014). Put one way, he's a one-man machine of the NCAA Football video game variety whose overall rating is 99. 

Opponent	Passing Yards	Rushing Yards	Total TDs
Washington (2014)	475	16	7
Oregon State (2013)	411	107	6
Toledo (2013)	326	2	3

For his career at Eastern Washington, Adams compiled 11,670 total yards. He joins an Oregon team that, despite losing Heisman winner Marcus Mariota, returns plenty of skill players at running back and wide receiver. There's no shortage of speed and playmaking ability in Eugene. Royce Freeman, Charles Nelson, Bralon Addison and Byron Marshall are more than capable of scoring on every touch. 

Adams gives the offense something extra that longtime backup Jeff Lockie simply doesn't, as evident by his highlight videos from Eastern Washington and comments from former coach Beau Baldwin. 

"He's just so good in so many ways, that part of it is going to be a challenge," Baldwin told Andrew Greif of the Oregonian." It's a challenge for any team when they play Vernon Adams—you're up against one of the best in the country at any level."

All the same, he won't have to be a one-man show, either. And that's an important difference. 

Still, Adams is a two-time runner-up for the Walter Payton Award, which is the FCS version of the Heisman. If Adams can eclipse, say, 4,000 total yards in 2015, who's to say he won't have a shot at the actual Heisman?

He's Showing Natural Leadership

Despite the popular narrative, there's nothing guaranteed about a grad transfer quarterback coming into a new environment and starting. Earlier this month, I spoke to B/R colleague Michael Felder, a former college player at North Carolina, about what Adams was facing in his new home. Long story short, Adams had to come in humble, ready to work and willing to show the utmost respect to Lockie—and that was on top of mastering the playbook. 

That's a tough task. It doesn't matter who you are. Complicating things more was that Adams was late (albeit only by a few days) arriving to preseason camp because of a math test. There's a lot of trust he had to earn right away. 

But by being named the starter so quickly, Adams has showed he's gained the respect of the locker room. As Stewart Mandel of Fox Sports tweeted, that's a good sign for him moving forward: 

Now, that leadership must show itself during the season when Oregon finds itself in tight games. Most players on the Ducks roster have been together for two to four years. They trust one other. As a newcomer, Adams is in a position of leadership that requires instant trust. 

Oregon is Primed for Another Playoff Run

Yes, Mariota is gone. Even Adams can't "replace" him. No one can. Mariota was a once-in-a-generation player for the Ducks who had a season unlike any other before him. But that doesn't mean the cupboard is bare in Eugene. 

Bruce Feldman of Fox Sports stated a case for why Oregon could return to the playoff this year. In summary, it boils down to the experience returning to the field:

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Better still, the Ducks will surround Adams -- or understudy Jeff Lockie -- with even more skill talent than Mariota had last year. Royce Freeman is no longer a freshman, and he should prove to be one of the best RBs in college football. The guy who would've been the Ducks' top wideout last year, Bralon Addison (who missed all of 2014) returns, and he should lead a deep, fast, talented WR group.

DeForest Buckner is back to spark the D-line, and folks around the UO program are gushing about huge freshman DL Canton Kaumatule. The Ducks' front seven, with four seniors at linebacker, should be very stout, better than the group they had that made it to the title game.

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What does that have to do with Adams? It shows he doesn't have to carry the entire team on his back. The pieces are in place for another run at a Pac-12 North title...which could lead to a Pac-12 title...which could lead to a playoff appearance...which could, well, you get the point. 

What Oregon has in Adams is a unique individual talent who can change and take over games like few others can. Surrounding him is a supporting cast of players who have what it takes to win at the highest level. 

The numbers, the intangibles, the national profile—it's all there for Adams to have a monumental year in his only FBS appearance. Not every grad transfer quarterback in 2015 will have things line up for him that way. That's what separates the Russell Wilsons of the college football world from everyone else. 

Ben Kercheval is a lead writer for college football. All stats courtesy of cfbstats.com unless noted otherwise.