Ranking the Pac-12 quarterbacks after Week 4

The quarterback play around the Pac-12 has been impressive through the first four weeks, and it will continue to pick up as Pac-12 play begins.

Despite the usual suspects being near the top, there is a new No. 1. It probably isn't the first Pac-12 signal caller that comes to mind, but he has been on an absolute terror this year. I'll give a hint that's not so helpful, it is a transfer quarterback.

That narrows it down to about five potential people, so you will just have to wait and see. These rankings are according to PFF's grading system. Their system as broken down on their website works as follows, a PFF analyst will grade each player on a scale of -2 to +2 according to what he did on the play. From there, the grades are normalized to better account for game situation and are finally converted to a 0-100 scale."

Let's take a look at how PFF ranks the Pac-12 quarterbacks after their Week 4 performances.

12. Owen McCown, Colorado

Overall Grade: 39.6

The third quarterback to start for Colorado this season, and son of former NFL quarterback Josh McCown, freshman Owen McCown had a decent go at it against UCLA. He went 26-of-42 for 258 yards, threw one touchdown, and an interception, but he was sacked five times

11. Dorian Thompson-Robinson, UCLA

UCLA Bruins quarterback Dorian Thompson-Robinson (1) throws a pass against the Southern California Trojans in the first half at the Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. — Richard Mackson-USA TODAY Sports

Overall Grade: 62.4

DTR has faced little adversity through UCLA's first four games as they have played nothing but inferior competition outside of South Alabama. He will be put to the test against Washington this week.

10. Jack Plummer, Cal

Overall Grade: 67.4

Cal had a good day against Arizona throwing for 245 yards and three touchdowns, as he helped guide Cal to a double digit win.

9. Emory Jones, Arizona State

Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK

Overall: 68.7

Emory Jones struggled as he and Arizona State were outmatched against Utah. It was a tough first game after your head coach was fired. Jones went 21-of-36 for 261 yards, a touchdown and two interceptions in the 34-13 loss to the Utes.

8. Cam Ward, Washington State

Washington State Cougars quarterback Cameron Ward (1) scrambles with the football under pressure from Wisconsin Badgers linebacker Nick Herbig (19) during the fourth quarter at Camp Randall Stadium. — Jeff Hanisch-USA TODAY Sports

Overall Grade: 69.0

Ward had some magical plays against Oregon in the near upset. However, he did have two picks with one of them being a costly pick six that essentially ended the game. He still played great though, throwing for 37-of-48 passing for 375 yards and two touchdowns.

7. Bo Nix, Oregon

Oregon Ducks quarterback Bo Nix (10) scrambles out to pass against the Georgia Bulldogs during the third quarter of the Chick-fil-A kickoff game at Mercedes-Benz Stadium. — John David Mercer-USA TODAY Sports

Overall Grade: 77.5

Despite his pick six, Bo Nix played extremely well against Washington State. Similar to Ward, this is a prime example of how analytics can sometimes be misleading. Nix was one of the main reasons Oregon came back going 33-of-44 for 428 yards and three touchdowns

6. Jayden de Laura, Arizona

Arizona Wildcats quarterback Jayden de Laura (7) gestures at the line of scrimmage during the second half against the San Diego State Aztecs at Snapdragon Stadium. — Orlando Ramirez-USA TODAY Sports

Overall Grade: 78.7

He was one of the lone bright spots in Arizona's loss to Cal. Aside from his two interceptions, he went 27-of-45 for 401 yards and two touchdowns. He continues to be the heart and soul of the team, and they will need huge games from him to win.

5. Cam Rising, Utah

Utah Utes quarterback Cameron Rising (7) celebrates his touchdown with wide receiver Devaughn Vele (17) during the first quarter against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Rice-Eccles Stadium. — Rob Gray-USA TODAY Sports

Overall Grade: 83.2

Rising went 19-of-29 for 260 yards, two touchdowns, and an interception in a very convincing win over Arizona State. Despite being overlooked after the Florida loss, he continues to be one of the best signal callers.

4. Caleb Williams, USC

Overall Grade: 83.7

On Saturday we learned that Caleb Williams is in fact human. The Oklahoma transfer had his worst outing as a Trojan, going 16-of-36 for 180 yards and one touchdown. Oregon State's defense made life difficult for Williams, as he and USC narrowly escaped.

3. Chance Nolan, Oregon State

Oregon State Beavers quarterback Chance Nolan (10) throws the ball against the Utah State Aggies in the first half of the 2021 LA Bowl at SoFi Stadium. — Kirby Lee-USA TODAY Sports

Overall Grade: 84.3

Nolan struggled mightily against USC throwing four interceptions, but clearly he made some plays that helped boost his grade.

2. Tanner McKee, Stanford

Overall Grade: 85.8

PFF loves McKee as he has been graded as one of the best quarterbacks in the country. To be fair, when he has time and isn't getting sacked eight times like he did against Washington, he does look really good. He went 17-of-26 for 278 yards, has three touchdowns and an interception that wasn't his fault.

1. Michael Penix Jr. , Washington

Overall Grade: 89.4

Penix was an absolute stud against Stanford, and still left some throws out there he'd like to have back. He threw for over 300 yards and two touchdowns, and kept making big throw after big throw.

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