SEC QB Power Rankings: Pavia pleases, Manning dives in Week 3

Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia has been brilliant in the 2025 season.
Vanderbilt QB Diego Pavia has been brilliant in the 2025 season. | Jeff Blake-Imagn Images

After three weeks of SEC football, there are plenty of surprises in the SEC quarterbacking world-- Arch Manning and DJ Lagway have disappointed, while Diego Pavia and Taylen Green have starred. While the full season may not bear out all of these results, here's a ranking of the SEC's passers ahead of Week 4 action.

16. DJ Lagway, Florida

No, Florida's troubles aren't all on Lagway-- not by a long shot. But a five interception game for the league's most disappointing team lands Lagway here. He probably won't stay.

15. Cutter Boley, Kentucky

He replaced the league's worst passer in Zach Calzada and did make some plays, albeit against Eastern Michigan, with 240 yards and a pair of touchdowns. After an off week, he'll get a stronger test at South Carolina.

14. Arch Manning, Texas

Manning's 55% completion percentage demonstrates his mediocre play. His 6.8 yards per pass attempt is 13th of the 15 qualifying SEC passers. He's also 13th in QB rating among the group.

13. Austin Simmons, Ole Miss

Simmons played only a handful of Week 3 snaps, but he still has thrown four interceptions. His upward mobility is high, but so far, it's a very mixed bag with Simmons.

12. LaNorris Sellers, South Carolina

Sellers was knocked out early, but his team's offensive struggles continue. His performance has been adequate, but a struggling South Carolina offense needs more from him.

11. Garrett Nussmeier, LSU

The good news for Nuss is that LSU is 3-0. The bad news is that his play has been very uneven. His 6.5 yards per pass attempt is next to worst among qualifying SEC passers, and his three touchdowns to two interceptions is shocking for three games into the season. LSU hasn't needed him yet, but he'll have to answer the bell sooner rather than later.

10. Jackson Arnold, Auburn

Arnold had another solid week. but with 7.3 yards per attempt, he'll have to make more thorough contributions in the passing game as Auburn's season progresses.

9. Blake Shapen, Mississippi State

Shapen's task will get tougher in league action, but with 724 yards and six touchdowns, he's off to an impressive start to the 2025 season.

8. Beau Pribula, Missouri

Pribula had a fairly sleepy week, but has been one of the season's positive surprises to date. He has passed for 791 yards and seven scores.

7. Ty Simpson, Alabama

Simpson has been essentially faultless since Alabama's Week 1 loss. But whether his continued success is legitimate or is window dressing will be seen soon. Simpson has 862 yards and nine touchdowns and joins Jackson Arnold as the only SEC regulars without an interception.

6. Gunner Stockton, Georgia

Stockton's first big game was a success against Tennessee with 304 yards and two scores. He's an upwardly mobile player here, although his 8.1 yards per pass attempt suggests a player still growing into UGA's offense.

5. Taylen Green, Arkansas

Green nearly engineered an upset win over Ole Miss. His 866 yards is third in the SEC and his league-best 11 scores shows how impressive he has been.

4. Joey Aguilar, Tennessee

Aguilar made a ton of plays in the Georgia game, with 371 passing yards and four scores. But he also threw a pair of interceptions and had a costly penalty just before the field goal miss that could have made the Vols winners. He's a work in progress, but his upside more than justifies Tennessee fans' faith in him.

3. Marcel Reed, Texas A&M

Reed made enough plays to lead A&M over Notre Dame on the road. His 869 yards and nine scores have marked him as a rising star in the conference and one of the top performers to date.

2. John Mateer, Oklahoma

Mateer continued to direct a brilliant offense. Mateer has thrown for an SEC-best 944 yards and has rushed for another 161 yards and four scores. His burgeoning Heisman candidacy has done nothing to drop him in our rankings and he has become an Oklahoma star... but he was temporarily outshined in Week 3.

1. Diego Pavia, Vanderbilt

He's now 10-6 as the starting quarterback at Vanderbilt. Pavia cooked in Vanderilt's upset win at South Carolina. He has thrown for 645 yards and seven scores and ran for another 129 yards. Pavia has made the conference's longtime doormat into a genuine contender and has duel-threat style, similar to Mateer's, makes him a must-see SEC star.


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Joe Cox
JOE COX

Joe is a journalist and writer who covers college and professional sports. He has written or co-written over a dozen sports books, including several regional best sellers. His last book, A Fine Team Man, is about Jackie Robinson and the lives he changed. Joe has been a guest on MLB Network, the Paul Finebaum show and numerous other television and radio shows. He has been inside MLB dugouts, covered bowl games and conference tournaments with Saturday Down South and still loves telling the stories of sports past and present.