There are seven ACC schools who are bringing back their starting QB from last season, while nine are bringing in transfers as their projected signal-caller. (For purposes of this exercise, Notre Dame is being included with the ACC analysis). Many of the transfers have extensive experience, with seven having at least 20 starts elsewhere before taking over at their new school, including D.J. Uiagalelei and Cam Ward.
Here is a look at what the quarterback situations as spring practices wrap up around the league. Schools ranked by order of the best QB situation to the worst.
MORE: Ranking the SEC quarterbacks for 2024 | Big Ten quarterbacks
ACC Quarterbacks for 2024
1. Miami
Starter: Senior Cam Ward (44 career starts at Washington State, Incarnate Word)
Backup: Sophomore Emory Williams
Situation heading into the fall: Ward comes to Miami after two very productive seasons at Washington State. Ward was fourth in the nation in passing yards per game at 311 and he threw 48 touchdowns over his two seasons. He is joining a team that was 43rd in the nation in passing offense last season, so the hope is he can provide the jolt Miami needs to compete near the top of the ACC.
2. Notre Dame
Starter: Senior Riley Leonard (21 career starts at Duke)
Backup: Sophomore Steve Angelli
Situation heading into the fall: Leonard was 100 percent in spring practice after offseason surgery on an ankle that hampered him at Duke in 2023. He will be working with new offensive coordinator Mike Dembrock, who coached Heisman winner Jayden Daniels at LSU last year. Unlike Sam Hartman, Leonard is a capable runner who ran for 13 touchdowns in his only full season as a starter at Duke. Leonard’s passing numbers were modest in 2023 when he missed six games with injury, but he was regarded as one of the top QBs in the transfer portal.
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3. Georgia Tech
Starter: Junior Haynes King (20 career starts at Georgia Tech, Texas A&M)
Backup: Junior Zach Pyron
Situation heading into the fall: King is the undisputed QB1 after winning the job in fall camp and starting all 13 games in his first season in Atlanta. He needs to cut down on his 16 interceptions, but he led the ACC in touchdowns passes as well with 27. He is a tough, productive runner and will be the leader of a team that has a lot of experience back from last year’s 7-6 team. King has two years of eligibility remaining but has a chance to play himself into NFL Draft conversations.
MORE: Haynes King thriving in new home after Texas A&M transfer
4. Florida State
Starter: Senior D.J. Uiagalelei (40 career starts at Clemson, Oregon State)
Backup: Sophomore Brock Glenn
Situation heading into the fall: D.J. Uiagalelei was the No. 1 pro-style quarterback in the class of 2020 four years ago. After three years at Clemson and one at Oregon State, DJU is back in the ACC at Florida State, where he is replacing ACC Player of the Year Jordan Travis. Last year with Oregon State, DJU threw the ball more downfield than he did at Clemson, finishing with a higher passer rating despite a lower completion percentage thanks to an 8.4 yards per attempt. Travis had 8.5 last year, so if Uiagalelei can up his completion percentage a tick, FSU will be in very good hands.
5. Syracuse
Starter: Senior Kyle McCord (12 career starts at Ohio State)
Backup: Junior Carlos Del Rio-Wilson
Situation heading into the fall: McCord won his first 11 games as Ohio State’s starter in 2023, then lost to eventual national champion Michigan. Reportedly, he was told he would be the front-runner for the starter’s job in Columbus in 2024, but not a guarantee, and McCord decided to enter the transfer portal. He arrives after completing 66 percent of his passes with 24 touchdowns and six interceptions and an average of 264 passing yards per game. Syracuse, meanwhile, threw for an ACC-worst 171 yards per game a year ago. New coach Fran Brown is trying to overhaul the program, and a veteran like McCord is a good place to start.
6. SMU
Starter: Junior Preston Stone (13 career starts at SMU)
Backup: Sophomore Kevin Jennings
Situation heading into the fall: Stone broke his leg in the regular-season finale last year against Navy that kept him out of the AAC Championship Game and the Fenway Bowl. He is not quite 100 percent for spring drills, but he is working out and will resume QB1 duties in the fall. Stone, a former four-star out of Dallas, was third-team All-AAC in his first season as a starter, completing 60 percent of his passes for 3,197 yards with 28 touchdowns and six interceptions. SMU went 10-2 in Stone’s 12 starts
7. NC State
Starter: Senior Grayson McCall (40 career starts at Coastal Carolina)
Backup: Freshman C.J. Bailey
Situation heading into the fall: After five years at Coastal Carolina, McCall takes the step up to the Power 4 and will start for NC State this fall. McCall was the Sun Belt Player of the Year for three seasons, but his final season as starter was limited to seven games due to a concussion. With coach Jamey Chadwell and some of the talent around him gone, McCall had statistically his worst season with just 10 touchdowns and six interceptions, with one rushing TD. His three previous seasons, he averaged 26 TDs, 3 INTs and 6 rushing TDs.
8. Clemson
Starter: Junior Cade Klubnik (15 career starts at Clemson)
Backup: Freshman Christopher Vizzina
Situation heading into the fall: Klubnik returns for his second year directing the Tigers offense. Clemson went 9-4, but the offense was lacking in explosive plays and some of that fell on Klubnik. He took 28 sacks and was the 10th-rated passer in the ACC. He led the league in attempts and completions, but was tied for sixth in passing yards per game at 218, indicating a dink-and-dunk approach. The focus is to open the offense a bit more and move up from its national ranking of No. 52 in both yards per game and points per game.
9. North Carolina
Starter: Senior Max Johnson (22 career starts at LSU, Texas A&M)
Backup: Freshman Conner Harrell
Situation heading into the fall: Johnson arrives with a 12-10 record as a starter spread out over four years (and two schools) in the SEC. The left-hander’s only full season as a starter was in 2021 at LSU, when he completed 60 percent of his passes with 27 touchdowns and six interceptions. He had five starts last season at Texas A&M when Conner Weigman got hurt, and it was clear the job was going to be Weigman’s when Weigman was healthy. Harrell, who started the bowl game after Drake Maye opted out last season, will get a shot, but this job is Johnson’s to lose.
10. Virginia Tech
Starter: Sophomore Kyron Drones (11 career starts at Virginia Tech)
Backup: Freshman Pop Watson
Situation heading into the fall: Drones was one of the breakout players in the ACC last season after taking over the starting roll in Week 3. The former Baylor transfer won six of his 11 starts, including the Hokies’ first bowl win since 2016. Drones had 17 touchdowns and just three interceptions, and racked up 818 rushing yards and five touchdowns on the ground. Drones has a chance to push Virginia Tech back near the top of the league for the first time since the Hokies’ 10-win team in 2016.
11. Duke
Starter: Sophomore Maalik Murphy (2 career starts at Texas)
Backup: Sophomore Grayson Loftis
Situation heading into the fall: Murphy arrives after spending two years at Texas – one as a redshirt and one as a backup to Quinn Ewers. He did hold off Arch Manning to be QB2 at Texas in 2023, and started two games when Ewers was hurt. Murphy won both games but had modest numbers in wins over BYU (16-25-170) and Kansas State (19-37-248). He finished with three TDs and three INTs in his two starts. Murphy, who stands 6-foot-5, 235, will be stepping in for Riley Leonard, who transferred to Notre Dame. Grayson Loftis started five games in Leonard’s absence and will be ready should Murphy falter.
12. Louisville
Starter: Tyler Shough (20 career starts at Texas Tech, Oregon)
Backup: Sophomore Brady Allen
Situation heading into the fall: Shough was the sixth-ranked pro-style quarterback in Rivals 2018 class, one that featured Trevor Lawrence. While Lawrence enters his fourth season in the NFL, Shough will be starting at Louisville as a seventh-year senior. Injuries have hampered Shough during his career at Texas Tech, with each of the last three years ending with a broken collar bone (2021, 22) or a broken leg (2023). Still, he brings with him a lot of starting experience in big-time environments and a 63 percent career completion percentage. He has 36 touchdowns, 17 interceptions and 10 rushing touchdowns and it will be interesting to see if coach Jeff Brohm can bring the best out of him as he has other quarterbacks in his career.
13. Boston College
Starter: Thomas Castellanos (12 career starts at Boston College)
Backup: Junior Grayson James
Situation heading into the fall: Castellanos was outstanding in his first year as BC’s starter. He won the job from Emmett Morehead in Week 2 and never looked back, accounting for 28 touchdowns (15 passing, 13 rushing), which was good for third in the ACC behind King and Drake May. He is an elusive runner who was third in the ACC in rushing with 1,113 yards. It will be interesting to see what he can do in Bill O’Brien’s offense, which historically has been more pro-style. Castellanos will need to up his 57 percent completion percentage and cut down his 14 interceptions.
14. Wake Forest
Starter: Senior Hank Bachmeier (36 career starts at Boise State, Louisiana Tech)
Backup: Senior Michael Kern
Situation heading into the fall: Bachmeier enters his sixth season of college football at his third school. He’s had an up-and-down career after signing with Boise State as a four-star quarterback and getting the start at Florida State as a true freshman in August of 2019. Bachmeier was the primary starter last season at Louisiana Tech after four years with Boise State, making eight starts and completing 67 percent of his passes with 10 touchdowns and five interceptions. He was the third-highest rated passer in Conference USA, though he went 2-6 in his eight starts.
15. Pittsburgh
Starter: Sophomore Nate Yarnell (3 career starts at Pittsburgh)
Backup: Junior Christian Veilleux
Situation heading into the fall: Yarnell is the clear QB1 for new offensive coordinator Kade Bell after emerging late last season as the best option for the Panthers. Yarnell started the final two games of Pitt’s disappointing 3-9 season, beating Boston College and losing at Duke. He completed 67 percent of his passes and averaged 236 passing yards with three touchdowns, one interception and one rushing touchdown.
16. Virginia
Starter: Sophomore Anthony Colandrea (6 career starts at Virginia)
Backup: Senior Tony Muskett
Situation heading into the fall: Both Colandrea and Muskett started six games for the Cavs last fall, with Colandrea going 1-5 and Muskett 2-4 (though one of the wins was vs. William & Mary). Colandrea is working in the spring while Muskett is still not 100 percent healthy. Muskett was QB1 a year ago after transferring in from Monmouth, where he was a three-year starter, but Colandrea showed enough as a true freshman to be considered the leader as of spring. He completed 63 percent of his passes for 1,958 yards with 13 touchdowns and nine interceptions and ran for another 225. Muskett also completed 63 percent of his passes, but he had just 1,031 yards with six touchdowns and five interceptions.
17. Stanford
Starter: Junior Ashton Daniels (9 career starts at Stanford)
Backup: Freshman Elijah Brown
Situation heading into the fall: Daniels shared the position with Justin Lamson last fall, getting the majority of the starts and pass attempts, while Lamson was more of a running QB. Daniels is the presumed starter, but expectations are high for incoming freshman Elijah Brown, a four-star QB from famed Mater Dei (Calif.) High School, where he won two state championships and compiled a 42-2 record. Daniels completed 59 percent of his passes with 11 TDs and 8 INTs and threw for an average of 187 yards per game. Stanford’s passing attack was eighth in the Pac-12 and Brown may be the guy to best unlock coach Troy Taylor’s unique offense he was known for at Sacramento State.
18. California
Starter: Sophomore Fernando Mendoza (8 career starts at Cal)
Backup: Junior Chandler Rogers
Situation heading into the fall: Mendoza started off 2023 as the third-string quarterback, but became a starter in Week 6 and never relinquished the job. The offense scored 40 points in three of his eight games and he finished the season with 14 touchdowns and 10 interceptions. Chandler Rogers transferred in after starting at North Texas, but he will need to unseat Mendoza to become QB1.
