When Dylan Raiola, the No. 1 quarterback in the 2024 recruiting cycle, signs his letter of intent with Nebraska or Georgia — or perhaps a surprise school — it will be viewed as a program-altering addition.
Yes, even for a perennial national title contender, but certainly for a once-elite Cornhuskers team.
When DJ Lagway, the No. 2-ranked quarterback prospect in the 2024 recruiting cycle, signs with the Florida Gators, he will be cemented as a job-saving addition for head coach Billy Napier and perhaps — just maybe — the addition needed to vault the Gators back into the nation’s elite.
Check out our list of the top 10 quarterback prospects in 2024 and the top class recruits, and when each of them signs during the early signing period or later, their addition will be viewed as nothing less than a coup for the program they are joining.
Get the best quarterback, and your future will be determined. That’s the prevailing wisdom.
The thing is, odds are they won’t be a game-changer for the programs they sign with out of high school.
That’s not really how it works anymore. At least not all that often.
Since the 2020 signing class, 21 of the top 40 quarterback recruits — the top 10 in the classes of 2020, 2021, 2022 and 2023 — have transferred from schools they signed with out of high school and continued their collegiate careers at least once again at school.
Many have been successful beyond initial selection, others less so, but more than half of them do not finish their careers with the school they signed with as standouts in prep.
Here’s the list (it’s a doozy), based on the 247Sports composite rankings.
From the 2020 signing class:
Utah Utes running back Ja’Quinden Jackson (3) faces the Colorado Buffaloes in Salt Lake City on Saturday, November 25, 2023. Utah won 23-17.
Jeffrey D. Allred, Deseret News
- DJ Uiagalelei, the No. 2-ranked QB who signed with Clemson, transferred to Oregon State and is in the transfer portal once again.
- Ja’Quinden Jackson, the No. 5 ranked QB, signed with Texas, transferred to Utah and then moved from QB to RB.
- Hudson Card, QB No. 6, signed with Texas, then transferred to Purdue.
- Malik Hornsby, the No. 7-ranked QB prospect, signed with Arkansas only to transfer to Texas State.
- Harrison Bailey, the No. 8 ranked QB, signed with Tennessee and then transferred to Louisville.
- Haynes King, the No. 10-ranked QB prospect, signed with Texas A&M but ended up at Georgia Tech.
From the 2021 signing class:
Mississippi quarterback Jackson Dart (2) faces Georgia during the first half of an NCAA college football game, Saturday, Nov. 11, 2023, in Athens, Georgia.
- Top-rated QB Quinn Ewers signed with Ohio State, then transferred to Texas. He led the Longhorns to the College Football Playoff this year.
- The No. 2-ranked QB — Caleb Williams — signed with Oklahoma only to follow Lincoln Riley to USC. He won the Heisman Trophy last season.
- Sam Huard, the No. 3-ranked QB prospect, signed with Washington as the Husky’s next great signal caller before moving up to the FCS ranks with Cal Poly.
- Brock Vandagriff, the No. 4-ranked QB in 2021, signed with Georgia, then transferred to Kentucky in December of this year.
- No. 5-ranked QB Kyle McCord has started every game for Ohio State this season, leading the Buckeyes to an 11-1 record, but is now in the transfer portal.
- No. 7 QB prospect, Ty Thompson, signed with Oregon and is now in the transfer portal.
- Jake Garcia, the No. 8 ranked QB, signed with Miami out of high school before transferring to Missouri.
- No. 10 seed Jaxson Dart began his college career at USC before transferring to Ole Miss.
From the 2022 signing class:
Texas quarterback Malik Murphy (6) during the second half of an NCAA college football game against Kansas State in Austin, Texas, Saturday, November 4, 2023.
- Walker Howard, the No. 6-ranked QB prospect, initially signed with LSU before transferring to Ole Miss.
- No. 8-ranked QB Nick Evers — a longtime Florida commit — signed with Oklahoma only to transfer to Wisconsin.
- Malik Murphy, the No. 9-rated QB prospect, has signed with the Texans and has now entered the transfer portal.
- Brady Allen, the No. 10-ranked QB, signed with Purdue but followed head coach Brian Brohm to Louisville.
From the 2023 signing class:
UCLA quarterback Dante Moore (3) runs with the ball during an NCAA football game against Washington State on Saturday, October 7, 2023, in Los Angeles.
- Dante Moore, the No. 3-ranked QB in the class, has signed with UCLA and is now in the transfer portal.
- Jaden Rashada, the No. 6-ranked QB prospect, initially signed with Florida but asked out of his NLI in order to land at Arizona State.
- No. 7 ranked QB Aidan Chiles signed with Oregon State and now follows head coach Jonathan Smith to Michigan State.
Some of the players mentioned moved in order to follow the coaches to new jobs. Others were moved for more playing time or because they didn’t want to deal with other transfers being brought in.
Whatever the reason, more than half of the top 10 quarterbacks in the past four signing classes have moved on in their careers, a number that will continue to grow.
But interestingly, of the four teams participating in the College Football Playoffs this year, two are led by quarterbacks they signed out of high school.
That would be JJ McCarthy at Michigan – he was the No. 5 ranked QB in 2021.
Then there’s Alabama’s Jalen Milroe, who was named the 14th-best QB in the 2021 class.
The other two quarterbacks in the CFP are the aforementioned Ewers at Texas and Michael Penix Jr. at Washington, both of whom transferred to their current schools.
Penix Jr. is rated Ranked as the 40th best QB prospect after he graduated high school in 2018 and signed with Indiana.
Among the teams ranked in the top 10 in the CFP’s final poll, Florida State was led by transfer QB (Jordan Travis), as was Oregon State (Beau Nix). But Georgia (Carson Beck), Ohio State (McChord), Missouri (Brady Cook), and Penn State (Drew Allard) are all quarterbacked by players who came out of high school.
Signing a top-tier quarterback would never be a bad thing. They usually bring with them other top recruits, as well as national media attention.
Just don’t expect them to stick around or be the callers who take your program to great heights. More than ever, quarterbacks – especially the most popular ones – are on the move.
Alabama quarterback Jalen Milroe (4) runs drills before the NCAA Southeastern Conference Championship game against Georgia in Atlanta, Saturday, Dec. 2, 2023.
The College Football Transfer Portal has become a hot topic in recent years, especially when it comes to the transfer of top quarterbacks. As star players seek greener pastures and new opportunities, the transfer portal has become a pivotal tool for college football programs looking to bolster their rosters with experienced talent. From Jalen Hurts’ transfer from Alabama to Oklahoma, to Justin Fields’ move from Georgia to Ohio State, the transfer portal has transformed the college football landscape and added a new layer of excitement and anticipation for fans and coaches alike.