Mississippi State's Will Rogers Left Off of Debatable QB Rankings List By On3 Sports
Mississippi State quarterback Will Rogers is expected to have another big year in 2022, but one media outlet doesn't seem to think so.
On3 Sports released its Impact 300 Top 10 Quarterbacks list, and the choices were debatable. The top signal-caller on the list is Alabama's Bryce Young, who won the Heisman Trophy in 2021. CJ Stroud of Ohio State, USC's Caleb Williams, Texas leader Quinn Ewers and Spencer Rattler of South Carolina round out the Top Five.
Next on the list are Tyler Van Dyke of Miami, Kentucky's Will Levis and Arkansas Razorback KJ Jefferson. The final two quarterbacks in the Top 10 are Virginia's Brennan Armstrong and Ole Miss transfer Jaxson Dart.
While some of the choices seem solid, there are a few question marks. Ewers has only played two snaps of college football in his life: he had two handoffs in his four months with the Ohio State Buckeyes. He was the top prospect in the nation coming out of high school, but it's hard to list him as a preseason top college quarterback with no college stats to show how well he will perform at a higher level.
Jaxson Dart is another debatable selection. Before transferring to Ole Miss, he was the offensive leader at USC, where he had a less-than-ideal 2021 season. In six games played, Dart posted a 61.9 percent completion percentage for 1,353 yards with nine touchdowns and five interceptions. His spring scrimmage for the Rebels was even worse: he went 11-of-30 for 166 yards with two touchdowns and two interceptions. Those stats don't make him a Top 10 quarterback, no matter which team he plays for.
Believe it or not, Rogers led most of these quarterbacks in many NCAA passing statistics in 2021. His 505 completions led the nation, and his 73.9 percent completion percentage ranked second only behind Rattler. Rogers had 4,739 total passing yards, less than 150 yards shy of Bryce Young's 4,872 in two fewer games played. He was bested by both Young and Stroud in total passing touchdowns, but no other Top 10 quarterback came within five touchdowns of him.
Rogers success and growth in 2021 certainly make him a worthy candidate for On3's list above some of the other listed players. All the Bulldog can do at this point is take the field and show his worth through his performance in the upcoming season.
