SEC QB Power Rankings: Mateer up but out, resurgence of Manning ahead of Week 5

Heading into Week 5, the SEC QB picture isn't very clear. Preseason hype magnets (Manning, Nussmeier, Lagway) have been humbled, but now we have Cutter Boley and Michael Hawkins Jr. preparing to start SEC games. Here's a rundown on where the league's passers stand.

16. DJ Lagway, Florida

He's last in most meaningful SEC stats, and comes off a 61-yard passing game. It's worth wondering if Florida starts to ponder giving Tramell Jones some snaps at some point.

15. Cutter Boley, Kentucky

Boley was off last week and is preparing to make his third Kentucky start. South Carolina will be a better measuring stick than Eastern Michigan, and given Kentucky's struggles in protecting and in catching the ball, there's not a ton of reason to expect Boley to be Joe Montana out there.

14. LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina

Sellers has had a strange season. He came back from apparent concussion to throw for 308 yards and two scores against Missouri. But his running threat his been non-existent and South Carolina's offense, with 2.59 yards per rush, is so one-dimensional that the Gamecocks haven't been effective.

13. Garrett Nussmeier, LSU

Yes, this feels insane, and Nuss had a nice Week 4 game completing 81% of his throws for 273 yards and three scores. But he's 15th in the SEC in QB rating and 15th in yardage per throw (7.0). And meanwhile, like Sellers, he's having to pick up a lot of empty yards, because LSU is 15th in the SEC in rushing yardage.

12. Jackson Arnold, Auburn

Arnold has been solid for Auburn, but hasn't hit the big play. Saturday's loss is a good example. He avoided interceptions, but got just 6.9 yards per pass. He's 14th in the SEC in that stat (7.1 yards per attempt) and is feasting on small-reward safe plays.

11. Blake Shapen, Mississippi State

A solid but not exciting performance against Northern Illinois (160 yards, 1 TD) lands him here.

10. Michael Hawkins Jr., Oklahoma

There's no real way to be fair to Hawkins. Mateer would be No. 1. He's got enough experience to think he won't fall apart, but at the same time, it's not reasonable to expect him to play at the level of the Heisman front-runner. We'll place him here for the moment.

9. Arch Manning, Texas

Let's start the Arch-renaissance. He was nearly perfect against Sam Houston (309 yards, 3 TDs in just 21 throws), and yes, we probably hammered him a bit for working out the early-season kinks.

8. Beau Pribula, Missouri

He was a game manager against South Carolina, with 171 yards, a score and a pick (and 72 rushing yards). If Missouri keeps running like this, he'll be a very successful game manager.

7. Trinidad Chambliss, Ole Miss

At this point, Chambliss shows much of the same upside as Austin Simmons, but with less mistakes. He's averaging 11.6 yards per pass, but of course, is also yet to face an elite defense, which will change on Saturday. (And of course, it may be Austin Simmons instead, in which case, the ranking would be a few spots lower based on turnover issues).

6. Taylen Green, Arkansas

He's still a big-play guy, with 325 yards in the air and 53 on the ground. But he threw two picks and the Hogs fell to 2-2. This could be the first step in a much longer slide, if he can't avoid big mistakes.

5. Ty Simpson, Alabama

The man has done his job since the Week 1 fiasco. But it's time to make a step forward against a defense that, Joey Aguilar's recent shredding aside, is historically brutal on QBs.

4. Marcel Reed, Texas A&M

He was off last week, and remains one of the most effective SEC QBs of the year. Auburn will be a second consecutive challenge.

3. Gunner Stockton, Georgia

Much like Ty Simpson, he's done what he needed to do. But instead of a bad Week 1 loss, he can claim a 304 yard passing game in Georgia's victory against Tennessee. The big proving ground is Saturday against the Tide.

2. Joey Aguilar, Tennessee

Another solid game against a weaker opponent. Aguilar, with 1,124 yards and 12 touchdowns, looks like he was born to play in Heupel's system. The Vols made the QB upgrade of 2025 in the offseason.

1. Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt

Sure, he had 245 passing yards and 86 more on the ground as Vandy went to 4-0. Understand, it's not a sentimental pick. How many teams on this list would trade their QB1 for Pavia with a must-win game coming up? More than most casual fans would expect.