Three Big 12 schools likely will have an impact transfer quarterback in 2022, and that includes the two biggest brands in the conference.
Oklahoma has a new coach after Lincoln Riley bolted for USC and quarterbacks Spencer Rattler and Caleb Williams hit the transfer portal. New coach Brent Venables will have a transfer quarterback as a result, and that likely will be UCF veteran Dillon Gabriel.
Gabriel isn't the only quarterback with high expectations.
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Texas picked up Ohio State transfer Quinn Ewers, and the former five-star quarterback will be expected to start and get the Longhorns back into Big 12 contention right away. Kansas State also surprised when it reeled in former Nebraska starting quarterback Adrian Martinez via the portal.
What do those quarterback rooms in the Big 12 look like? Sporting News will sort out the returners and transfers, with the promise that there is more to come this offseason.
Today we breakdown the Big 12. Let's go in alphabetical order:
Baylor (12-2, 7-2)
2021 recap: The Bears won the Big 12 championship in Dave Aranda's second season as a head coach, and that's in large part because Gerry Bohanon stepped up at quarterback. The redshirt junior passed for 2,200 yards, 18 TDs and seven interceptions and rushed for 323 yards and nine TDs. Bohannon suffered a hamstring injury, but backup Blake Shapen played well in his place against Texas Tech and in the Big 12 championship against Oklahoma State.
2021-22 offseason: Offensive coordinator Jeff Grimes is back, and Bohanon and Shapen return to the quarterback room. The Bears had no transfers and did not add a quarterback in the 2022 recruiting class.
What to look for in spring: Bohanon and Shapen dealt with injuries last season, and it proved that having two solid QBs helps in a conference title run. Shapen's development is worth watching.
Iowa State (7-6, 5-4)
2021 recap: Brock Purdy completed a career as a four-year starter for the Cyclones. He finished that career with 12,170 yards, 81 TDs and 33 interceptions. Redshirt freshman Hunter Dekkers was the primary backup in 2021.
2021-22 offseason: Matt Campbell enters his seventh season, and offensive coordinator Tom Manning also is back. Dekkers, a redshirt sophomore, will have the first crack at taking over the starting job. Senior Nate Glantz is a former JUCO star who could challenge, and the rest is a roll call of unproven talent. Freshman recruit Rocco Becht could generate some buzz in the spring.
What to look for in spring: Dekkers has a chance to separate himself from the competition before fall camp, and Campbell would probably prefer it that way.
Kansas (2-10, 1-8)
2021 recap: Lance Leipold was hired on April 30, 2021, after Les Miles resigned. North Texas transfer Jason Bean opened the season as the starter, but by the end of the season Jalon Daniels, who passed for 202 yards and three TDs in the victory against Texas, had taken over as the starting quarterback.
2021-22 offseason: Leipold will have a full offseason to work with, and that should help. Backup quarterback Miles Fallon transferred, and three-star quarterback Ethan Vasko joined from the 2022 class.
What to look for in spring: The quarterback competition between Daniels and Bean is on, and that could result in a transfer if the starter emerges in the spring. Daniels, who had a 69.2% completion percentage, has a chance to take hold of the job.
Kansas State (8-5, 4-5)
2021 recap: Senior quarterback Skylar Thompson started in 10 games and finished with 2,103 yards, 12 TDs and four interceptions. Will Howard was the primary backup who saw time when Thompson was out.
2021-22 offseason: Chris Klieman made some splashes in the offseason. Former Kansas State star quarterback Collin Klein, who finished third in the Heisman voting in 2012, is the new offensive coordinator. Martinez transferred to Kansas State after starting the last four years at Nebraska. Martinez can be a dynamic playmaker, but he struggled with turnovers. Howard is back, and Kansas State added three-star recruit Adryan Lara in this year's class.
What to look for in spring: Martinez had 2,288 rushing yards and 35 TDs the last four seasons with the Huskers. Will that skill set translate better in the Big 12? With Klein providing a fresh set of eyes, we think it will.
Oklahoma (11-2, 7-2)
2021 recap: Rattler was the preseason Heisman favorite in 2021, but he struggled early in the season and was benched in favor of Williams during the Texas game. Williams was briefly in the Heisman discussion too, but he had growing pains. Rattler and Williams still combined for 32 TDs and nine interceptions in an 11-win season.
2021-22 offseason: How much time do we have? Riley left for the USC job, and Williams transferred there, too. Rattler transferred to South Carolina. Clemson defensive coordinator Venables was hired, and he brought Ole Miss offensive coordinator Jeff Lebby with him. Gabriel, who threw for 3,600 yards as a freshman with Lebby as his offensive coordinator at UCF, transferred to Oklahoma in the offseason, and four-star quarterback Nick Evers was added in the 2022 recruiting class.
What to look for in spring: Ole Miss averaged 492.5 yards per game with Lebby as offensive coordinator, and Gabriel missed most of last season with a collarbone injury. He still has 70 TDs and 14 interceptions the last three seasons. He could put up monster numbers with the talent at receiver around him.
TROCCHI: Williams transfer accelerates Riley's USC rebuild
Oklahoma State (12-2, 8-1)
2021 recap: The Cowboys reached the Big 12 championship game for the first time thanks in large part to the play of junior quarterback Spencer Sanders. He stayed healthy and finished with 2,839 passing yards, 668 rushing yards and 26 total TDs. Sanders totaled a Fiesta Bowl record 496 total yards in a 37-35 victory against Notre Dame.
2021-22 offseason: Sanders returns as a four-year starter for Mike Gundy, and offensive coordinator Kasey Dunn is back for his second season. Backup quarterback Shane Illingsworth transferred to Nevada, and the Cowboys landed four-star quarterback Garrett Rangel from Lone Star High School in Frisco, Tex.
What to look for in spring: Who wins the backup competition behind Sanders? Ethan Bullock and Gunnar Gundy will compete for that along with Rangel.
Texas (5-7, 3-6)
2021 recap: Steve Sarkisian's first season with the Longhorns wasn't pretty. Hudson Card opened the season as the starter, but Casey Thompson took the job. Both quarterbacks dealt with injuries. They combined for 29 TDs and 10 interceptions, however, and Texas still averaged 35.2 points per game.
2021-22 offseason: Sarkisian and offensive coordinator Kyle Flood are back. Thompson transferred to Nebraska, and Texas reeled in Ewers from Ohio State. Ewers, the top recruit in the 2022 class, reclassified last season and went to Columbus so he could accept NIL deals. Ewers had a prolific high school career and would be in line to start. Card remains the backup, and Texas also signed four-star quarterback Maalik Murphy from Junipero Serra in Gardena, Calif.
What to look for in spring: All eyes are on Ewers, whose hairstyle and big-time throws were viral material in high school. He should take control of the starting job this spring.
TCU (5-7, 3-6)
2021 recap: Longtime coach Gary Patterson parted ways with the program after eight games, and interim coach Jerry Kill finished the season. Three-year starter Max Duggan improved across the board with 2,048 passing yards, 16 TDs and six interceptions. He was less productive in the running game with 352 yards and three TDs.
2021-22 offseason: Sonny Dykes takes over at TCU, and he brought quarterbacks coach Garrett Riley with him to be the new offensive coordinator. It's a new system for Duggan, who returns for his senior season. Backup Matthew Downing transferred to Louisiana Tech, and Dykes flipped three-star quarterback Josh Hoover from Indiana in the 2022 class.
What to look for in spring: Duggan, a veteran quarterback, should help ease the transition to a first-year coach. Hoover can develop behind him.
Texas Tech (7-6, 3-6)
2021 recap: Matt Wells was fired during the season, and three quarterbacks saw extensive time for the Red Raiders. Oregon transfer Tyler Shough started the first four games and had a 69.6% completion percentage. He suffered a broken collarbone against Texas, however, and Henry Colombi and Donovan Smith split time the rest of the season.
2021-22 offseason: The Red Raiders hired Baylor associate coach Joey McGuire during the regular season, and he brought in Western Kentucky offensive coordinator Zach Kittley. That means the high-volume passing attack will continue. Colombi transferred to Marshall, and Texas Tech picked up Virginia transfer Jacob Rodriguez.
What to look for in spring: Shough, who has drawn NFL curiosity because of his size, will get one more chance to impress. He could put up huge numbers in this scheme.
West Virginia (6-7, 4-5)
2021 recap: Jarret Doege, a fifth-year senior, passed for 3,048 yards, 19 TDs and 12 interceptions. The Mountaineers finished 6-7 in Neal Brown's third season.
2021-22 offseason: Graham Harrell, who spent the last three seasons as USC's offensive coordinator, takes the same position with West Virginia. Doege transferred to Western Kentucky. Redshirt sophomore Garrett Greene is the only quarterback on the roster who threw a pass last season. Redshirt freshman Will Crowder and four-star freshman Nicco Marchiol, the top recruit in the Mountaineers' 2022 class, also are on board.
What to look for in spring: Greene will have the lead early, but this is a three-way competition worth monitoring in the spring, especially if Marchiol can make a push for the job.
