Former 4-Star Recruit Named Most Underrated Big 12 QB After All-SEC Season

With the Big 12 expected to see at least 11 new starting quarterbacks during the 2026 college football season, there will be plenty of new names to learn.

Just like every other conference in college football, the Big 12's talent distribution will look extremely different in 2026 after over 10,000 players entered their names into the NCAA transfer portal during the two-week January window.

While DJ Lagway (Baylor), Brendan Sorsby (Texas Tech) and Drew Mestemaker (Oklahoma State) have been the headliners of the conference as they each ranked within the top 15 of 247Sports' transfer portal rankings regardless of position.

With that being said, the creators over at SleeperCFB recently highlighted another Big 12 quarterback that may be flying under the radar in Arizona State's Cutter Boley.

Most Underrated QBs in each P4 Conference:

ACC: Mason Heintschel (Pittsburgh)
Big 10: Colton Joseph (Wisconsin)
Big 12: Cutter Boley (Arizona State)
SEC: Kamario Taylor (Mississippi State) pic.twitter.com/k9cW7j94nH
— SleeperCFB (@SleeperCFB) February 17, 2026

The former four-star recruit and Lexington native shined in his first year as the Wildcats' starting quarterback, as he was tabbed to replace college football journeyman Zach Calzada.

Boley threw for 2,160 yards with 15 touchdowns to 12 interceptions, while also rushing for another couple of scores on the ground. In an interview with Devils Digest, Boley's father opened up about why Arizona State was the right place for his son, citing the relationship with head coach Kenny Dillingham and offensive coordinator Marcus Arroyo.

“I feel like the quarterback position, probably more than any other position in any sport on this planet, has to have a good connection between the quarterback and the offensive coordinator and the head coach,” Boley told Devils Digest. “They have to believe in you. I feel this way more now than ever. If the people who are calling plays for you are wishy-washy, it’s probably not going to work long-term. We all felt the true belief in how they feel about Cutter. They sat down with us and talked about how much they’d watched his film. They discussed the specific things they believe he can accomplish and what they can do with him."

Kentucky Wildcats quarterback Cutter Boley (8). | Jeff Faughender/Courier Journal / USA TODAY NETWORK via Imagn Images

Boley will have huge shoes to fill in Tempe, as he will be replacing now-LSU quarterback and the No. 1 overall player in the transfer portal, Sam Leavitt.

In his two years with the Sun Devils, Leavitt led the program to a Big 12 title and College Football Playoff appearance while earning All-Big 12 honors.

Luckily for Boley, the Sun Devils reloaded their wide receiver room around him, adding Colorado transfer Omarion Miller, Washington transfer Raiden Vines-Bright and Boston College transfer Reed Harris.

With a quarterback-friendly play-caller, better weapons and just a better overall team around him, Boley could end up being a household name in 2026.