These are college football's eight biggest QB competitions. Who has edge?

Clemson quarterback Christopher Vizzina (17) throws near running back Chris Johnson Jr (16) during the first half at the annnual Clemson Orange and White spring game at Memorial Stadium in Clemson, South Carolina Saturday, March 28, 2026.

Contenders: Brock Bradley, Chris Denson, Trent Pearman, Tait Reynolds, Christopher Vizzina.

Vizzina is the heavy favorite coming out of the spring after spending the past two seasons as Cade Klubnik’s backup and going for 317 yards and three touchdowns as the starter in last year’s loss to SMU. Reynolds, a freshman, has ascended into the backup role. That could result in Denson moving away from quarterback this season. Reynolds has a shot at unseating Vizzina heading into the opener but is more likely to earn an in-season promotion if the passing game sputters.

Tennessee

Contenders: Faizon Brandon, George MacIntyre.

The talent may be obvious, but neither option inspires huge confidence at this point: MacIntyre is a redshirt freshman who attempted nine passes in 2025 and Brandon is a true freshman, though of the five-star variety. While Josh Heupel’s biggest successes at Tennessee have come with a veteran under center, the Volunteers did make the playoff with then-freshman Nico Iamaleava as the starter.

Florida

Contenders: Tramell Jones Jr., Aaron Philo.

New coach Jon Sumrall has said this competition will extend into fall camp even if Philo seems to be the favorite. He has the edge in experience after making more than 100 attempts across two years at Georgia Tech and has a deeper familiarity with the Gators’ offense under coordinator Buster Faulkner, who held the same position with the Yellow Jackets. Yet Jones outplayed Philo in the final scrimmage and did a better job during the spring of protecting the football.

Duke

Contenders: Walker Eget, Dan Mahan, Ari Patu, Terry Walker III.

Duke lost rising junior and projected starter Darian Mensah to Miami just as the portal closed this winter. In response, the Blue Devils signed San Jose State transfer Walker Eget, who went for 5,555 yards and 30 touchdowns the past two seasons and was granted a sixth year of eligibility by the NCAA. Eget has been slowed by knee surgery, however. That could give Mahan a small window to make a move in this competition; the Blue Devils’ coaches are high on the redshirt freshman.

North Carolina

Contenders: Travis Burgess, Taron Dickens, Billy Edwards Jr., Au’Tori Newkirk, Miles O’Neill.

Well, the Tar Heels definitely have options. Bill Belichick and new offensive coordinator Bobby Petrino could go with Edwards, who has Power Four starting experience but missed all but two games of last season at Wisconsin because of a knee injury. They could roll with Dickens, who put up jaw-dropping numbers at Western Carolina before transferring to Chapel Hill in February. O’Neill looks the part at 6-5 and 220 pounds but needs more seasoning after getting into seven games at Texas A&M as a redshirt freshman in 2025. Newkirk is the only UNC quarterback returning from last season, which probably means nothing. Burgess arrives on campus as a true freshman and is buried on the depth chart, though that could quickly change if the Tar Heels’ season runs off the rails. Anyone who saw Belichick’s debut knows that’s a possibility.

Virginia Tech

Contenders: Ethan Grunkemeyer, Troy Huhn.

The Hokies went into spring workouts with Grunkemeyer as the heavy favorite for the starting job. The sophomore was the primary starter at Penn State last season after Drew Allar's injury and followed former coach James Franklin, joining a quarterback room that lost starter Kyron Drones to graduation and needed an overhaul. But even as Grunkemeyer remains the odds-on pick to start the opener, Tech will enter Saturday’s scrimmage with a tighter competition thanks to Huhn’s strong performance in the spring. A true freshman, Huhn was verbally committed to Penn State but switched to Tech after Franklin was hired.

Iowa

Contenders: Hank Brown, Jeremy Hecklinski.

Former starter Mark Gronowski’s performance last season proved the right kind of quarterback can shine in Iowa coordinator Tim Lester’s scheme. True freshman Tradon Bessinger will arrive this summer and possibly impact the race during preseason camp. But the competition is really centered on two former transfers in Hecklinski (Wake Forest) and Brown (Auburn), who joined the program before last season. Hecklinski took over the backup role from Brown at the midseason point, though both continued to share practice snaps through bowl play.

This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: College football biggest QB battles this spring in Power Four conferences