SEC West quarterback rankings: Thorne makes official debut

Our preseason SEC West quarterback rankings are here as we get closer and closer to the start of the 2023 college football season.

There's a wealth of experience in the SEC at quarterback this fall, especially in the West, as it features six quarterbacks that started at least four games in the league (or Big 10) a season ago.

Here's how we see the quarterbacks ranking heading into September.

KJ Jefferson, Arkansas

48 passing touchdowns, 19 rushing touchdowns, a 65.5% completion percentage and over 7,200 total yards over the course of his career.

KJ Jefferson just might be the SEC's best quarterback heading into 2023.

Whether or not Arkansas will be able to rebound from a confusing 2022 season is yet to be decided. But that doesn't negate the fact that they have one of the best signal-callers in the league.

Will Rogers

Rogers has already etched his name across the Mississippi State record books as arguably the best passer to ever come through the program. How does he perform underneath new head coach Zach Arnett in a non-air raid offense? We will have to see.

Jayden Daniels

Daniels was able to really stabilize as the 2022 season progressed. Bailing from the pocket less is on the agenda of things he needs to fix, but overall he should be set to have another solid year.

Payton Thorne

Auburn has tabbed Payton Thorne as QB1, per multiple head coach Hugh Freeze. Thorne transferred in from Michigan State after the spring and has been battling with incumbent Robby Ashford and freshman Holden Geriner for the starting job.

Thorne finished an accomplished quarterback at Michigan State, setting single-season records for total yards, total touchdowns and passing touchdowns. He ranks fifth in career total touchdowns, fifth in career total yards, fourth in career passing touchdowns and third in single-season passing yards.

He's not a dazzling arm talent in terms of raw strength, but was excellent attacking downfield in his two seasons with the Spartans. He's a great system fit for Freeze and Montgomery.

Jaxon Dart/Spencer Sanders

Sanders racked up numbers during his time with Oklahoma State, but he has not been handed the starting job with the Rebels just yet. In fact, Jaxson Dart may very well but the game one starter for Lane Kiffin this fall.

Jalen Milroe/Ty Simpson/Tyler Buchner/Dylan Lonergan

The Alabama quarterback situation seems to have gotten more confusing as the offseason has bled into fall camp.

This ranking is contingent on whether or not Jalen Milroe wins the starting job. Alabama's offense will (likely) be more than fine regardless of whoever is taking snaps under center. Right now Milroe has the highest ceiling of the four quarterbacks, and in our opinion would be the most explosive option for the Tide. The most consistent option may be one of the other two, but there's questions around Simpson's development in this stage of his career and even more serious questions around Buchner's ceiling as a passer.

This feels low for an Alabama quarterback, but because of the uncertainty this far into camp, it's hard to rank any of these quarterbacks over more experienced signal-callers.

Connor Weigman

There is a chance that Weigman could have looked better as a freshman thrown into the fire had it not been for Jimbo Fisher's shenanigans on offense last season. Eight touchdowns to no interceptions looks solid on paper, but in order for Weigman and the Aggies to take a step past "awful" in the passing attack, they'll need new OC Bobby Petrino to unlock the potential in the plethora of talent A&M has on that side of the ball.