NFL executives vote on top college football QB for 2026 NFL Draft

Ahead of a raucous Week 4 college football slate, ESPN's College GameDay featured a survey of 25 NFL executives and scouts who all selected their QB1 for the 2026 NFL Draft at this point in the season.

Despite each executive/scout only picking one quarterback as their very top guy right now, seven different players earned votes, indicating a lack of consensus at the top of the board. You can see below the full vote counts for these top QBs:

LaNorris Sellers (South Carolina): 8 votes
Garrett Nussmeier (LSU): 7 votes
Carson Beck (Miami): 3 votes
John Mateer (Oklahoma): 3 votes
Drew Allar (Penn St.): 2 votes
Sam Leavitt (Arizona St.): 1 vote
Arch Manning (Texas): 1 vote

So, that's how's the top QBs shakeout in the eyes of the people who will ultimately be making those draft decisions come next spring. Despite a recent injury scare, although he is good to go this week vs. Missouri, LaNorris Sellers takes the top spot. Often drawing Cam Newton comparisons for his physical gifts, the South Carolina quarterback is certainly more of a one-man show for the Gamecocks this season.

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— Alex Weber (@alexhweber) September 20, 2025

Obviously, Arch Manning was considered among the very top prospects heading into the season, but a concerningly poor start to the year, even against weaker competition at times, has seeded doubt in the minds of the executives, with only one of the 25 surveyed believing Manning is still No. 1. Meanwhile, Garrett Nussmeier was another top QB entering the season, and hasn't been perfect but good enough to maintain a significant share of votes.

John Mateer and Carson Beck are obvious risers. Mateer seemed to fit like a glove at Oklahoma after coming over with his offensive coordinatior from Washington State, and the results to date have been evebn better than Sooner coach Brent Venables could have even dreamed. With Beck, he's fully back on the radar as a legit first round NFL prospect with a strong start to a bounce-back year after he fled Georgia last winter.

Lastly, Drew Allar holds steady and it's unlikely he'll lose or gain much ground until the Nittany Lions face Oregon at home in their first huge test next weekend, and Sam Leavitt from ASU surprisingly eked out a vote, but what a fun player he's been for the Sun Devils.

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