5 Post-Spring College Football Quarterback Battles Drawing National Attention

The transfer portal has all but eliminated quarterback battles, but these programs enter fall camp with the job still up for grabs.

Alabama quarterback Keelon Russell is vying against Austin Mack to lead the Crimson Tide offense in 2026. | Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The transfer portal didn't just reshape college football rosters. It effectively ended the quarterback competition as we once knew it.

ESPN's Max Olson broke it down plainly this week: 200 FBS scholarship quarterbacks entered the portal in January, and roughly 30 or more transfers are expected to take over as starters across Power 4 programs in 2026.

With experienced passers commanding $2 million or more in the revenue-sharing era, most starting jobs are decided before a snap is taken in fall camp.

But a handful of legitimate battles survived the offseason. Here are five worth watching as programs prepare for the fall.

Alabama: Keelon Russell vs. Austin Mack

No quarterback competition in the country carries more weight than the one playing out in Tuscaloosa. Within two days of Ty Simpson declaring for the NFL Draft in January, DeBoer re-signed both backups and made clear the job was wide open.

Russell made the loudest statement of the spring, completing 21 of 33 passes for 240 yards and four touchdowns at A-Day. Receiver Ryan Coleman-Williams summed it up simply. "Literally, it just feels like you're playing a video game when he is in," Coleman-Williams said.

Quarterbacks Austin Mack (10) and Keelon Russell (12) throw during practice for the Alabama Crimson Tide. | Gary Cosby Jr. / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Mack was limited by a minor injury in the spring game, but brings four years in DeBoer's system and a 6-foot-6, 235-pound frame built for SEC punishment.

CBS Sports insider Chris Hummer called the spring battle "back and forth" but gave Russell a slight edge, citing his mobility as a potential separator behind an offensive line with significant questions.

Tennessee: Faizon Brandon vs. George MacIntyre

Tennessee spent the winter exhausting every portal option at quarterback, chasing Sam Leavitt before LSU won that race, pursuing Beau Pribula before he landed at Virginia, and watching Joey Aguilar's eligibility lawsuit fail in court. What's left is a battle between two freshmen with a combined nine career pass attempts.

MacIntyre entered spring with a head start, having been in Heupel's system for a year. That advantage is largely gone. Brandon, the No. 2 overall player in the 2026 class, arrived physically ahead of schedule and outperformed expectations badly enough that multiple insiders now view MacIntyre's path to the starting job as an uphill climb.

Tennessee quarterbacks, from left, Faizon Brandon (11), Ryan Staub (17), George MacIntyre (15) and Mason Phillips (13) during the Vols' first spring football practice in Knoxville on March 16, 2026. | Brianna Paciorka/News Sentinel / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Brandon went 35-1 in high school with back-to-back state championships, and the physical maturity he's shown at 6-foot-3, 215 pounds has caught people inside the program off guard.

Heupel has been complimentary of both passers without tipping his hand, and the decision almost certainly carries into fall camp. Neither quarterback appeared on CBS Sports' preseason top-50 QB list, a first for Heupel's tenure in Knoxville and a fair barometer of how much uncertainty surrounds this room heading into 2026.

Clemson: Christopher Vizzina vs. Tait Reynolds

Clemson came out of spring with more clarity than most programs, though the picture isn't fully settled. Vizzina holds the top spot after three years in the program, including a solid one-game start against SMU last season, where he threw for 317 yards and three touchdowns.

Swinney was direct after the spring game, saying Vizzina is in the lead and hasn't done anything to lose ground.

Clemson quarterbacks Christopher Vizzina (17) and Chris Denson (15) warm up during Spring football practice at the Reeves Football Complex. | Ken Ruinard / USA Today Co / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

The more compelling development is Reynolds. The true freshman from Queen Creek, Arizona, blew past the rest of the depth chart to lock up the No. 2 role, pushing redshirt freshman Chris Denson to the brink of a position change. Swinney acknowledged Reynolds did everything right this spring while Vizzina held firm, framing it as a genuine two-man race heading into August.

The backdrop matters here. Clemson went 7-6 in 2025, its second-worst record under Swinney, and opens 2026 at LSU in a Week 1 game that will draw national attention. Vizzina's experience makes him the safer choice for that stage, but Reynolds isn't going away quietly.

Arizona State: Cutter Boley vs. Jake Fette

When Sam Leavitt left for LSU, Kenny Dillingham didn't panic. He targeted Boley out of Kentucky as his portal priority and let competition sort out the rest.

Boley completed 65.8 percent of his passes as a freshman with the Wildcats and earned All-SEC Freshman honors, but his 12 interceptions in 11 games remain the primary concern heading into fall camp.

Arizona State quarterbacks Cutter Boley (8), Mikey Keene (12), and Cameron Dyer (13) during practice at Kajikawa practice fields in Tempe. | Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Fette, a top-10 quarterback recruit in the 2026 class, enrolled early and impressed enough that local beat reporters now project him as the clear No. 2.

Dillingham confirmed the decision will likely carry into August, with the Sun Devils opening Sept. 5 against Morgan State.

Florida: Aaron Philo vs. Tramell Jones Jr.

Jon Sumrall's first year in Gainesville hinges largely on which of these two quarterbacks can take hold of the job and keep it.

Philo came with offensive coordinator Buster Faulkner from Georgia Tech, giving him a familiarity with the system neither of his competitors can match. Sumrall has been transparent about that edge, noting Faulkner's confidence in Philo influenced his own comfort level bringing him in.

Florida quarterback Aaron Philo (12) throws during the first day of Florida Spring football practice at Heavener Football Center in Gainesville, FL. | Alan Youngblood/Gainesville Sun / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Jones entered spring fully healthy for the first time in his college career and made the most of it. He outperformed Philo in the spring game by most accounts, and his coaches have pointed to his football IQ and natural leadership as reasons to take him seriously.

Sumrall stopped short of naming a starter after 15 practices, saying only that he knew what the depth chart would look like if a game were the following week. The decision carries into fall camp, and given how unsettled the offensive line remains, it may take longer than anyone expects.

More QB battles worth watching

Virginia: Beau Pribula vs. Eli Holstein — Pribula has the edge after helping Missouri to a 6-1 start in 2025, but Holstein brings 14 career starts in the ACC and two years of eligibility remaining. Neither separated in the spring game.

Vanderbilt: Jared Curtis vs. Blaze Berlowitz — Curtis is the highest-rated recruit in program history and flipped from Georgia to stay home in Nashville. Berlowitz has the system advantage after learning behind Heisman finalist Diego Pavia. Clark Lea declined to name a starter after spring.

Duke: Walker Eget vs. Dan Mahan — Eget didn't receive NCAA clearance for a sixth year until Feb. 19 but arrives as one of the more proven options available to a defending ACC champion. Mahan is a redshirt freshman who has yet to appear in a game.

Iowa: Hank Brown vs. Jeremy Hecklinski — Brown started two games at Auburn and has SEC experience. Hecklinski is the more natural playmaker but has logged just 12 career snaps. Offensive coordinator Tim Lester has no timetable for a decision.

Arkansas: KJ Jackson vs. AJ Hill — Jackson, a 6-foot-4 left-hander, burned Texas for 223 total yards and two touchdowns off the bench last season. Hill was a top-100 recruit who nearly led Memphis to a comeback win in his college debut.