ESPN predicts 2025 starting quarterback for every Big 12 team

The Big 12 has earned a reputation over the years for excellent offensive play. That success starts with what has been some excellent quarterback play over the seasons. Even in 2024, as the conference experienced a membership shift, the quarterback position remained vital.

With the Transfer Portal, keeping track of what quarterbacks play at what school can be difficult, regardless of how important the position is. On top of that, transfers are more than able to shake up the quarterback room on a given team. So, looking into what those quarterback competitions look like can be very beneficial.

With all of that in mind, here is a look at who ESPN is projecting will start at quarterback across the Big 12 in 2025, along with their competition for the starting role.

Arizona State Sun Devils

Projected starter: Sam Leavitt
Competition: Jeff Sims

With Sam Leavitt returning to Arizona State, it’s no surprise that ESPN is projecting him to be the team’s starting quarterback. After all, he’s coming off a season where he led the Sun Devils to the College Football Playoff. Now a redshirt sophomore, he was the Big 12 Freshman of the Year in 2024 and is only expected to get better in 2025. Jeff Sims remains on the roster, but that will be as a backup to Leavitt.

Arizona Wildcats

Projected starter: Noah Fifita
Competition: Braedyn Locke

2024, the first year for Arizona in the Big 12, was a frustrating one. Still, the Wildcats did flash a lot of talent on the offensive side of the ball, and with Noah Fifita returning for a fourth season with the program after starting 21 games previously there is hope for a bounce back in 2025. Behind him, the Wildcats added Braedyn Locke as an experienced transfer to likely back Fifita up.

BYU Cougars

Projected starter: Jake Retzlaff
Competition: Treyson Bourguet, McCae Hillstead

The success of BYU was one of the big stories in the Big 12 last season. There were a lot of reasons for that run of success, including the play of quarterback Jake Retlzaff. He took over as the starter late in 2023 and looks to be improving rapidly. If he can clean up some turnover issues, the Cougars are going to be a massive threat. There are a couple of quarterbacks battling for the backup job, but Retzlaff won’t be pushed as the starter.

Baylor Bears

Projected starter: Sawyer Robertson
Competition: Walker White

Early in the 2024 season, it looked like it may be a disaster for Baylor. Then, head coach Dave Aranda seemed to find his quarterback in Sawyer Robertson. He had 32 overall touchdowns since taking over as the starter and he won’t likely be pushed for the job in 2025. Auburn transfer Walker White is, presumably, going to become the backup.

Cincinnati Bearcats

Projected starter: Brendan Sorsby
Competition:  Brady Lichtenberg, Samaj Jones

Brendan Sorsby started for Cincinnati in 2024 and got the Bearcats off to a promising 5-2 start. Unfortunately, that came with a bad five-game losing streak to end the season. With that, the Bearcats have had two straight losing seasons since entering the Big 12 and they’ll want to find a solution. If the offense doesn’t get more consistent under him, he could be challenged by either Brady Lichtenberg or Samaj Jones this season.

Colorado Buffaloes

Projected starter: Kaidon Salter
Competition: Julian Lewis

The Colorado Buffaloes are going to have the very difficult task of replacing Shedeur Sanders. To do that, Deion Sanders brought in Kaidon Salter as an experienced transfer. He’s the likely starter given his past success. However, Colorado also has a very interesting incoming freshman in Julian Lewis. A four-star quarterback, according to the On3 Industry Ranking, he could be the future at the position in Boulder.

Houston Cougars

Projected starter: Conner Weigman
Competition: Zeon Chriss

The Houston Cougars are entering their third season in the Big 12 as a program rebuilding. With that, Willie Fritz brought in Conner Weigman as a transfer from Texas A&M and he’s expected to make his way as the starting quarterback. He had some success with the Aggies but was often derailed by injuries, so hopefully he can stay healthy. However, if he’s not able to, Zeon Chriss did start games in 2024 for Houston and even coming off surgery is a solid second option.

Iowa State Cyclones

Projected starter: Rocco Becht
Competition: Connor Moberly

In 2024, Rocco Becht elevated himself to the top tier of quarterbacks in the Big 12. With him returning in 2025, it’s no surprise that he’s projected to be the Cyclones’ starting quarterback. The real competition in Ames is for the backup role. That’s going to likely be Connor Moberly, a quarterback who the team is high on as the future starter once Becht does move on from the program.

Kansas Jayhawks

Projected starter: Jalon Daniels
Competition: Cole Ballard

Over the years, Jalon Daniels has proven he’s capable of being one of the most exciting quarterbacks in the country at times. However, he has also been prone to injuries and struggled early in 2024. Still, he returns in 2025 as the presumed starter, bringing a ton of experience with him. Behind him, there really is no competition but Cole Ballard is the likely backup.

Kansas State Wildcats

Projected starter: Avery Johnson
Competition: Jacob Knuth

Kansas State turned the keys to the offense over from Will Howard to Avery Johnson in 2024. At times, it worked very well but there was ultimately a frustrating finish to the regular season when the Wildcats missed out on the Big 12 Championship Game. Still, with Johnson returning, the dual-threat quarterback is going to be in line to start again. Jacob Knuth, a former transfer, is the presumed backup but he likely won’t challenge for the starting role.

Oklahoma State Cowboys

Projected starter: Hauss Hejny
Competition: Garret Rangel, Maealiuaki Smith, Zane Flores

The quarterback competition at Oklahoma State is one of the most open competitions in the entire Big 12. ESPN is projecting Hauss Hejny, a young and highly-regarded recruit, to start. A transfer in from TCU, he still has four years of eligibility. Behind him, Garret Rangel, Maealiuaki Smith, and Zane Flores are all going to compete for the backup and leave the Cowboys with plenty of options.

TCU Horned Frogs

Projected starter: Josh Hoover
Competition: Ken Seals, Adam Schobel

In his first full season as a starting quarterback, Josh Hoover set the program’s single-season passing record. That put him second among Big 12 quarterbacks and makes it no surprise that he’s the projected starting quarterback next season. Ken Seals will offer an experienced backup at quarterback while Adam Schobel will be learning the ropes as a high-upside freshman.

Texas Tech Red Raiders

Projected starter: Behren Morton
Competition: Will Hammond

Another Big 12 team returning its quarterback is Texas Tech. Behren Morton has been around for a while now but 2024 was his first season as the full-time starter. He played well for the most part and now the hope is he can take a step forward as Texas Tech hopes to compete for a Big 12 Championship. Behind him will likely be redshirt freshman Will Hammond.

UCF Knights

Projected starter: Tayven Jackson
Competition: Cam Fancher, Dylan Rizk, Jacurri Brown

UCF started four different quarterbacks in 2024. Now, with a new but familiar head coach in Scott Frost, they’re looking for more stability. That could come in the form of transfer Tayven Jackson. However, UCF has options. Cam Fancher is another transfer. Then, both Dylan Rizk and Jacurri Brown started games at UCF in 2024 to varying degrees of success.

Utah Utes

Projected starter: Devon Dampier
Competition: Isaac Wilson, Nate Johnson

The quarterback position has become a challenge for Utah in recent seasons as they’ve tried to get Cam Rising healthy. He has struggled to stay on the field, though, and it hurt the Utes in their first Big 12 season. Now, the Utes are moving on, likely with Devon Dampier, a transfer from New Mexico, following coordinator Jason Beck to Utah. Meanwhile, Isaac Wilson and Nate Johnson are likely to compete for the backup role if not some playing time.

West Virginia Mountaineers

Projected starter: Nicco Marchiol
Competition: Jaylen Henderson, Max Brown

The West Virginia Mountaineers are another Big 12 team going through a coaching change, re-hiring Rich Rodriguez. They do return Nicco Marchiol, a quarterback who has been with the program, largely as a backup. Still, he could easily be pushed by transfers Max Brown and Jaylen Henderson, though that seems like more of a competition to be the backup.