Ohio State's C.J. Stroud or Tennessee's Hendon Hooker?
That is the question that has surfaced this week when it comes to Midseason All-America teams and the Heisman Trophy race. There isn't a wrong answer at the midpoint of the season for the top spot among the star quarterbacks, but it's still a fun debate.
Stroud, who finished fourth in the Heisman voting last season, leads the nation in passer efficiency (207.5) and is tied for the lead in TD passes (24). The Buckeyes lead the FBS in scoring offense (48.8) and are second in total yards (543.7). Stroud, who is projected to be the No. 1 pick according to SN's 2023 Mock Draft, has lived up to expectations.
MORE: SN Midseason All-America team | Bowl projections
Hooker has exceeded expectations in his second season as Tennessee's starter. He ranks second in passer efficiency (187.7), and he averages 350.3 yards of total offense – which is more than Stroud at 290.2. The Volunteers lead the FBS total offense (551) and rank second in scoring offense (47.7). Hooker also led Tennessee to the signature victory of the season in a 52-49 victory against now-No. 6 Alabama.
When you look at the records of each quarterback's Power 5 opponents, Hooker (19-8), has the advantage on Stroud (12-14). When you look at future opponents, Hooker (25-14) also has a one-game advantage over Stroud (24-15), albeit with a FCS school in UT-Martin on that list. Hooker will get another signature game against No. 1 Georgia. Stroud will get one against No. 4 Michigan. It's a tight race, and right now there are two right answers.
With that in mind, we decided to re-rank the Top 25 quarterbacks in college football, an exercise we have every offseason. A total of 10 new quarterbacks made the midseason list, but four of our top five quarterbacks stuck. Who is No. 1? A closer look:
Top 25 quarterbacks in college football
1. C.J. Stroud, Ohio State
Preseason: 2
2022 passing stats: 1,737 yards, 24 TDs, 3 INTs
Here is another stat we love about Stroud. He averages 15.3 yards per completion; which is slightly higher than Hooker at 15.2. Stroud has spread the ball out to Ohio State's loaded receivers, and he's done that for the most part without Jaxon Smith-Njigba. Stroud has three games with at least five TD passes, and he is the Heisman front-runner heading into Saturday's matchup against Iowa. It's a toss-up, but we're sticking with Stroud. The Notre Dame victory might not look as great now, but it was a win against a top-five team at the time.
MORE: Picks against the spread for Week 8 Top 25 games
2. Hendon Hooker, Tennessee
Preseason: 5
2022 passing stats: 1,817 yards, 15 TDs, 1 INT
Hooker also has 287 rushing yards and three TDs. He is a playmaker who scorched Alabama for 385 yards and five TDs, and he's been doing that without top receiver Cedric Tillman. The Volunteers still have marquee games in the SEC East against Georgia and No. 19 Kentucky, and he is very much in the Heisman conversation the rest of the way. The last three Heisman Trophy winners have come from the SEC, including our next quarterback.
3. Bryce Young, Alabama
Preseason: 1
2022 passing stats: 1,657 yards, 16 TDs, 3 INTs
Young missed a game-and-a-half with a shoulder injury, but he returned with 455 passing yards and a pair of TDs in the loss to Tennessee. He also led the game-winning drive against Texas. Young's been outstanding, and has helped cover up Alabama's flaws to this point. There might not be a better playmaker in the FBS, and there still is time for Young to get back in the Heisman mix. Remember, he clinched that last year with the SEC championship performance against Georgia.
TROCCHI: Why CFP games need to be on campus
4. Caleb Williams, USC
Preseason: 3
2022 passing stats: 1,971 yards, 19 TDs, 1 INT
Williams had 381 passing yards and five TDs in last week's loss to Utah. He garnered comparisons to Patrick Mahomes II because of a creative play-making skill-set that has put the Trojans back on the college football map with first-year coach Lincoln Riley. Despite that loss to the Utes, Williams still has the opportunity to push USC to a Pac-12 championship and perhaps the College Football Playoff.
5. Drake Maye, North Carolina
Preseason: Unranked
2022 passing stats: 2,283 yards, 22 TDs, 4 INTs
Maye was fighting for the starting job in fall camp. It's safe to say he's taken advantage of the position. He leads the FBS with 380.1 yards of total offense per game. Maye has five games with at least three TDs and no interceptions and five games with 300-plus passing yards. That prolific play has the Tar Heels in front in the ACC Coastal Division.
BENDER: Maye carries on family tradition at North Carolina
6. Max Duggan, TCU
Preseason: Unranked
2022 passing stats: 1,591 yards, 16 TDs, 1 INT
TCU is the last unbeaten team left in the Big 12, and Duggan has engineered three straight victories against ranked teams for the Horned Frogs. He's a natural fit in first-year coach Sonny Dykes' system, and he has a 159.1 passer rating against ranked teams. Duggan has the chance to keep that rolling against No. 17 Kansas State this weekend.
7. Dorian Thompson-Robinson, UCLA
Preseason: 16
2022 passing stats: 1,510 yards, 15 TDs, 2 INTs
Thompson-Robinson, a fifth-year starter, has taken advantage of the extra time in Chip Kelly's system. He added 231 yards on 5.5 yards per carry in leading UCLA to a surprising 6-0 start, and he ranks second in the FBS in completion percentage (74.8). Efficient play is the key to Kelly's system, and DTR has mastered that heading into a top-10 showdown against No. 10 Oregon in Week 8.
MORE: Betting trends to know ahead of Oregon-UCLA
8. Quinn Ewers, Texas
Preseason: 21
2022 passing stats: 820 yards, 9 TDs, 2 INTs
Is this too much of a hot take? We don't think so. Ewers was going to be judged on how he fared against Alabama and Oklahoma. He was 9 of 12 for 134 yards before leaving against the Crimson Tide with a shoulder injury, and he torched Oklahoma for 289 yards and four TDs in the Red River Rivalry. He also is the quarterback for what could be the two-loss chaos team of the second half of the season.
MORE: Seven games that will shape the second half of the season
9. Cam Rising, Utah
Preseason: 12
2022 passing stats: 1,855 yards, 15 TDs, 3 INTs
Rising willed Utah to a 43-42 victory against No. 12 USC in Week 7 with a brilliant performance that included 415 passing yards, 60 rushing yards and five total TDs. He's the third Pac-12 quarterback in the top 10, and he had 345 total yards and two TDs in the loss to UCLA. The Utes have two losses, but last week showed Rising could easily lead another Pac-12 championship run back to the Rose Bowl.
10. DJ Uiagalelei, Clemson
Preseason: Unranked
2022 passing stats: 1,665, 17 TDs, 2 INTs
Uiagalelei came into the season under criticism – and backup quarterback Cade Klubnik was a popular name in fall camp. Uiagalelei has silenced those critics, especially over the last four weeks where he's put up 10 TDs and one interception through the meat of the ACC schedule. That included a brilliant 371-yards, five-TD performance at No. 13 Wake Forest; a 51-45 double-overtime victory that will be looked at as the season-saver.
MORE: Betting trends to know ahead of Syracuse-Clemson
11. J.J. McCarthy, Michigan
Preseason: Unranked
2022 passing stats: 1,297 yards, 9 TDs, 2 INTs
McCarthy changed the complexion of Michigan's offense when he took over the starting job. Yes, a top-five rushing attack is the key, but McCarthy has flashed some play-making skills and leads the FBS with a 77.1 completion percentage. McCarthy led the Wolverines to their first win at Iowa since 2005 and a victory in the top-10 showdown against Penn State. Rivalry games against Michigan State and No. 2 Ohio State in the second half of the season are the next referendums. With McCarthy, Michigan has a legit chance to defend the Big Ten championship.
MORE: Michigan reminds Big Ten it is still defending champ
12. Grayson McCall, Coastal Carolina
Preseason: 4
2022 passing stats: 1,940 yards, 18 TDs, 1 INT
McCall remains our top Group of 5 quarterback, and with good reason. He owns a 70.6% completion percentage and averages 10 yards per attempt, and despite last week's loss to Old Dominion remains one of the best QBs in the game. He has five games with three or more TD passes this season, and his career TD:INT ratio stands at 72:7.
13. Sam Hartman, Wake Forest
Preseason: 10
2022 passing stats: 1,442 yards, 16 TDs, 2 INTs
Hartman returned from a medical condition that kept him out of the first game, and he didn't miss a beat in the Demon Deacons' offense. Hartman ranks second among ACC quarterbacks in passer efficiency (175.8), and 337 yards and six TDs in that double-overtime loss to Clemson. Hartman could push Wake Forest to a New Year's Day Six appearance if this keeps up.
14. Dillon Gabriel, Oklahoma
Preseason: 7
2022 passing stats: 1,618 yards, 13 TDs, 1 INT
Gabriel is not to blame for the Sooners' struggles this season. He ranks third in the Big 12 in passing efficiency (166.2), and he looked on point in his return from a head injury with 403 passing yards against Kansas in Week 7. The Sooners are a different team with Gabriel on the field, and that makes them a spoiler in the second half of the Big 12 season.
15. Michael Penix Jr., Washington
Preseason: Unranked
2022 passing stats: 2,560 yards, 20 TDs, 4 INTs
Is this ranking too low? Penix does lead the FBS in passing yards, and he helped put the Huskies back in the rankings for a few weeks. He's cleared 300 passing yards in every game, and he ranks third among Power 5 quarterbacks in passing attempts (288). Penix did throw a few costly interceptions in the losses to UCLA and Arizona State.
16. KJ Jefferson, Arkansas
Preseason: 5
2022 passing stats: 1,463 yards, 14 TDs, 1 INT
Jefferson also has 344 rushing yards and four TDs for the Razorbacks. He returned from a head injury to throw 367 passing yards and five TDs in last week's victory against BYU. Jefferson wasn't quite that dynamic in the passing game in the losses to Texas A&M and Alabama, however. That led to the drop in our rankings.
17. Will Levis, Kentucky
Preseason: 20
2022 passing stats: 1,635 yards, 13 TDs, 5 INTs
Levis missed a game with a finger injury, and that resulted in a loss to South Carolina. There is no question about his value for the Wildcats, and he is getting first-round consideration for the 2023 NFL Draft. Levis has averaged 225 yards with three TDs and one interception in his last two starts, and the Wildcats split those games. The biggest issue? Levis has taken 20 sacks. He'll get another spotlight game against No. 3 Tennessee on Oct. 29.
18. Stetson Bennett, Georgia
Preseason: 25
2022 passing stats: 2,033 yards, 7 TDs, 1 INT
Bennett isn't going to put up monster stats, but he keeps leading the defending national champions toward another College Football Playoff berth. Bennett opened the season with a memorable 368-yard, two-TD performance against Oregon, and he has three games with 300 yards or more. There are other SEC quarterbacks with better numbers on this list, but the next two games against Florida and No. 3 Tennessee are the ones that could vault Bennett up this list in a hurry.
MORE: College Football Playoff picture entering Week 8
19. Spencer Sanders, Oklahoma State
Preseason: Unranked
2022 passing stats: 1,639 yards, 13 TDs, 3 INTs
Sanders is a touchdown machine. He also has 309 rushing yards and eight TDs, and he has the Cowboys in the middle of a heated Big 12 race. Last week's loss to TCU hurts, and Sanders' completion percentage the last two weeks has slipped below 50 percent. Sanders can move right back up the pecking order if he leads the Cowboys to an impressive victory against No. 20 Texas in Week 8.
20. Will Rogers, Mississippi State
Preseason: 18
2022 passing stats: 2,324 yards, 23 TDs, 4 INTs
It's always tough to grade Mike Leach quarterbacks on these lists, because you know the numbers are always going to be there. What do they mean? Rogers has three 400-yard games this season, but in the losses at LSU and Kentucky he averaged 208.5 passing yards with two TDs and two interceptions. How will he fare against No. 6 Alabama in Week 8?
21. Garrett Shrader, Syracuse
Preseason: Unranked
2022 passing stats: 1,434 yards, 12 TDs, 3 INTs
Shrader ranks third in the ACC in passer rating (171.1) behind Maye and Hartman, and he has the Orange at a 6-0 record heading into the showdown with No. 5 Clemson. He's improved in his second year as a starter, and he's been outstanding in the fourth quarter with a 221.2 rating, four TDs and no interceptions. That included leading a last-minute victory in a head-to-head matchup with our next quarterback.
22. Aidan O'Connell, Purdue
Preseason: 22
2022 passing stats: 1,950 yards, 14 TDs, 5 INTs
He's maintained the same ranking as the preseason. O'Connell has led the Boilermakers to three straight victories since returning from an upper body injury, and he has four games with at least 360 passing yards. That kind of productivity could push Purdue into the Big Ten championship game, where they could throw a scare into a playoff contender.
23. Adrian Martinez, Kansas State
Preseason: Unranked
2022 passing stats: 900 yards, 4 TDs, 0 INTs
Martinez, who threw 30 interceptions the last four years at Nebraska, has not thrown a pick in 138 attempts for the Wildcats. He has also rushed for 546 yards and nine TDs, and that included an unforgettable performance against Oklahoma in which he totaled 234 passing yards, 148 rushing yards and five total TDs. His redemption tour continues at No. 8 TCU on Saturday.
24. Frank Harris, UTSA
Preseason: Unranked
2022 passing stats: 2,300 yards, 15 TDs, 5 INTs
Harris ranks fourth in the FBS in total offense (363.4), and he has kept the Roadrunners in the hunt in Conference-USA after non-conference losses against Houston and No. 20 Texas. Harris has five games with 300 passing yards or more, and he's doing that with a 68.8% completion percentage.
25. Bo Nix, Oregon
Preseason: Unranked
2022 passing stats: 1,526 passing yards, 12 TDs, 3 INTs
The Auburn transfer has settled into the starting role under first-year coach Dan Lanning. The opener against Georgia was rough, but he has 12 TDs and one interception since. Nix also has a 70.4% completion percentage, a dramatic improvement from his time with the Tigers. He also has 331 rushing yards and eight TDs. Another showcase game awaits against No. 9 UCLA in Week 8.
