$2.4 million QB ranked No. 1 passer in college football

A quarterback of a major college football program is considered the top-rated passer in the sport.

Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Julian Sayin (10) throws during the Cotton Bowl at AT&T Stadium in Arlington, Texas for the College Football Playoff quarterfinal game against the Miami Hurricanes on Dec. 31, 2025. | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Two weeks have passed since Indiana's defeat of Miami in the College Football Playoff National Championship game at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami, Florida.

The end of every college football season ushers in a period for the media to make projections for the next college football season. This includes early odds for the Heisman Trophy, top 25 rankings and College Football Playoff brackets.

Pro Football Focus unveiled its list of the top 10 highest-graded passers heading into the 2026 college football season on Sunday. Atop the list was Ohio State quarterback Julian Sayin, who led FBS quarterbacks in 2025 with a 92.9 Pro Football Focus grade.

The 6-foot-1, 208-pounder originally committed to Nick Saban and Alabama as a part of the Crimson Tide's 2024 recruiting class. He signed with Alabama and enrolled in classes in January of 2024, but he entered the transfer portal when Saban announced his retirement from coaching that month.

Sayin transferred to Ohio State and backed up Will Howard during the Buckeyes' run to the national championship. He appeared in four blowout victories, completing five of 12 pass attempts for 84 yards and a touchdown while rushing for 24 yards on two attempts.

2025 was Sayin's first season as Ohio State's starting quarterback. He threw for 3,610 yards, 32 touchdowns and eight interceptions while guiding the Buckeyes to a perfect regular season record.

Sayin threw fewer than 10 incompletions in every game until Ohio State's Cotton Bowl loss to Miami (24-14). The Cotton Bowl and the Buckeyes' win over Ohio were the only games in which he threw more than one interception.

Sayin's 77% completion rate sat just behind the record of 77.4% set by Mac Jones at Alabama in 2020 and tied by Bo Nix at Oregon in 2023. His 89.6 quarterback rating was the second highest in all of FBS behind Jayden Maiava of USC.

Sayin earned All-Big Ten Second Team and Big Ten Freshman of the Year for his play in 2025. Nationally, Sayin won the Shaun Alexander Freshman of the Year Award and finished fourth in the Heisman Trophy voting behind Fernando Mendoza of Indiana, Diego Pavia of Vanderbilt and Jeremiyah Love of Notre Dame.

Of the four Heisman Trophy finalists from 2025, Sayin is the only one returning for the 2026 college football season. He will be eligible for the 2027 NFL draft, a quarterback class that will likely feature both Dante Moore from Oregon and Arch Manning from Texas.

Ohio State Buckeyes quarterback Julian Sayin (10) | Adam Cairns/Columbus Dispatch / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images