Barring some late drama, the transfer portal dust has settled across the college football landscape. Specifically at quarterback, of the top-70 available transfers all but two have made a commitment (Duke’s Darian Mensah and Ohio’s Parker Navarro are the only uncommitted players).
This gives us a pretty solid idea of who will make up the quarterback room at each Big Ten program in 2026. We can bucket the projected starters out for each program to get a better sense where they’re at.
Heisman-caliber returning starters
Dante Moore, Oregon
Moore was likely
to be the No. 2 overall pick in the 2026 NFL Draft had he not opted to return to Eugene. Somewhat surprisingly, Nebraska starter Dylan Raiola chose to transfer to Oregon, giving the Ducks the best quarterback room in the country. However, don’t expect Raiola to steal the starting spot. Moore threw for 3,565 yards in 2025 with a 71.8 completion percentage and QB rating of 163.7. Despite a poor showing in the College Football Playoff semifinals against Indiana, Moore is without a doubt one of the top returning quarterbacks in the country.
Julian Sayin, Ohio State
Sayin returns to Columbus for his third season of college football. In 2025, he threw for 3,610 yards, 32 touchdowns and eight interceptions with a 77.0 completion percentage. He was a Heisman-finalist and will likely be so yet again in 2026 given the way Ohio State plays offense. Expect Moore and Sayin to be the class of the Big Ten quarterback group.
Established returning (or experienced) starters
Bryce Underwood, Michigan
Michigan’s retention of Underwood has been discussed a ton on this website, but it can’t be understated how important it was. While slightly disappointing as a true freshman, Underwood will now be coached by new offensive coordinator Jason Beck and quarterbacks coach Koy Detmer Jr. The upgrade in coaching alone should have fans giddy to see him take the next step.
Josh Hoover, Indiana
Curt Cignetti and the Indiana staff are looking to hit the lottery for the third straight time by bringing in yet another veteran transfer quarterback in Hoover. He doesn’t have quite the acumen that Fernando Mendoza did, but he was still a solid starter for TCU, passing for 3,472 yards with 29 touchdowns and 13 interceptions.
Jayden Maiava, USC
Maiava returns to Los Angeles for head coach Lincoln Riley, which forced former five-star backup Husan Longstreet to the transfer portal. However, USC fans likely won’t shed a tear. Maiava threw for 3,711 yards with 24 touchdowns and 10 interceptions last year while also being a dynamic rusher. His accuracy waned at times, but he should still be one of the top quarterbacks in the conference.
Demond Williams Jr., Washington
Williams belongs in this category purely because of his talent. How things play out on the field is another matter. He attempted to enter the transfer portal despite already signing a deal with Washington. He has since returned to the Huskies and promised to make amends, but you never know what will happen. On the field, Williams is an electric runner who has slowly but surely put his passing game together.
Rocco Becht, Penn State
Becht was a three-year starter at Iowa State before following head coach Matt Campbell to Penn State. Becht threw for more than 3,100 yards in both 2023 and 2024 before regressing a bit in 2025 to 2,584 yards. However, he still accounted for 16 touchdown passes and eight touchdowns on the ground. He won’t be competing for the Heisman by any means, but he has a very high floor.
Questionable returners
Nico Iamaleava, UCLA
Iamaleava’s transfer from Tennessee to UCLA is well documented, but not many in the national media are talking about Bob Chesney’s retention of Iamaleava despite the coaching change. The former five-star quarterback took a step back in 2025, dropping from 2,616 yards to 1,928 yards, but a big part of that was the lack of talent around him. Iamaleava has had his moments in big games historically and will look to be the centerpiece of the rebuild.
Malik Washington, Maryland
Washington won a three-way quarterback competition last fall camp as a true freshman and returns for his sophomore season. He threw for 2,963 yards, 17 touchdowns and nine interceptions in 2025. The Terrapins relied on him heavily since they had no run game to speak of, and he performed admirably. He’ll need more talent around him to make much of a difference in 2026.
Drake Lindsey, Minnesota
Lindsey was a bit of a surprise in 2025. Expectations were low for the redshirt freshman, but he threw for 2,382 yards, 18 touchdowns and six interceptions. He didn’t blow anyone away, but he was a solid starter for a middling Big Ten team. Expect Lindsey to take another step forward as a redshirt sophomore in 2026.
Alessio Milivojevic, Michigan State
Milivojevic took over for struggling starter Aidan Chiles midway through 2025. He performed admirably in the final four games despite the Spartans going 1-3 in those games. He opted to remain in East Lansing through the coaching change and should be the clear-cut starter this go-around since Chiles transferred out.
Ryan Browne, Purdue
Browne attempted to leave Purdue last offseason but ended up returning to West Lafayette after finding out that the grass isn’t always greener. Browne struggled mightily as the full-time starter in 2025, throwing for more interceptions than touchdowns. However, the Boilermakers didn’t bring in any legitimate competition for him, so they are likely running it back with him.
Questionable newcomers
Aidan Chiles, Northwestern
Chiles will be playing for his third team in four years. After being a highly-touted recruit for Jonathan Smith and Oregon State, Chiles followed Smith to Michigan State. After a couple uninspiring years as a starter, Chiles — with the help of new offensive coordinator Chip Kelly — will aim to revitalize his career in Evanston.
Katin Houser, Illinois
Houser also spent time at Michigan State (2022-23) before transferring to East Carolina for two seasons. In 2025, he threw for 3,300 yards, 19 touchdowns and six interceptions. That was good enough to get him a one-way ticket to Champaign. Houser should be adequate for the Fighting Illini, but will need to take a large step forward if Bret Bielema and company want to make any noise.
Anthony Colandrea, Nebraska
There’s no way to sugarcoat it — Colandrea was the backup option for Nebraska. The Cornhuskers had received a transfer portal commitment from Notre Dame’s Kenny Minchey before he flipped to Kentucky. Matt Rhule pivoted to Colandrea, who interestingly enough took over for former Michigan quarterback Alex Orji at UNLV when Orji got hurt early in 2025. He struggled mightily his first two seasons at Virginia before resurrecting his career last season in the Mountain West. The question will be if that can translate back to the Big Ten.
In a battle
Hank Brown, Iowa
One of just three Big Ten programs that appear to have legitimate quarterback battles in camp, Iowa will turn to either Hank Brown or Jeremy Hecklinski. Brown is the more experienced option as he’s entering his fourth year of college football, so I tend to lean in his direction. However, he’s never thrown more than 50 passes in a season. No matter what they do, the Hawkeyes will be starting an inexperienced quarterback this fall.
Dylan Lonergan, Rutgers
AJ Surace was viewed by many to be the likely next starting quarterback for Rutgers, so it was a bit surprising when the Scarlet Knights nabbed Lonergan from the transfer portal via Boston College. I take that as a sign of Greg Schiano’s lack of belief in Surace. Lonergan wasn’t spectacular at BC, but he did get quite a bit of playing time, throwing for 2,025 yards with 12 touchdowns and five interceptions.
Colton Joseph, Wisconsin
Wisconsin brought in multiple quarterbacks via the portal, but Joseph appears to be the most likely to stick. A dual-threat athlete, Joseph was the Sun Belt Offensive Player of the Year last season after throwing for 2,624 yards, 21 touchdowns and 10 interceptions while rushing for 1,007 yards and 13 touchdowns. However, Wisconsin also has Carter Smith — who started a few games last season — as well as Danny O’Neil. It’s Joseph’s job to lose, but I wouldn’t be surprised to see any of those three get snaps throughout 2026.
