CFF Burning Questions For 2025: Quarterbacks
As we approach spring camps across the college football landscape, Purple Reign has looked at schools across the country and identified 36 Burning Questions at the quarterback position for the upcoming season. These are situations that need to be monitored throughout the college football offseason. As answers develop to these questions the College Fantasy Football world will begin to have the tools to refine their expectations for this year’s fantasy drafts.
Check out all the articles in this CFF Burning Questions For 2025 series here:
Alabama – Will Kalen Deboer’s passing game look more like his days at Washington or like last season?
Alabama QB Jalen Milroe was an elite runner who carried the ball 168 times (320 pass attempts). Before Milroe, head coach Kalen Deboer had an elite passer in Michael Penix, Jr. who threw the ball an average of 555 times (35 carry average) over two seasons at Washington. These are two extremes in terms of pass/run attempt distribution. I’m going to be looking for comments on less QB runs and more drop back passes during spring camp. A pass/run attempt distribution of 450/70 would match older numbers we’ve seen from Deboer’s history.
Arkansas State – Is this the year Jalen Raynor finally puts it all together?
Jalen Raynor has been a starter since his freshman year and in two seasons has scored 241 and 249 fantasy points. Is this his fantasy ceiling within head coach Butch Jones’ offense or will Raynor take a leap in his play and finally crack 300 fantasy points? He’ll have to improve his passing game this spring to do so, but he does return his top WR from last year.
Army – Can we count on another Bryson Daily type performance out of the new QB1?
Bryson Daily benefitted from first year offensive coordinator Cody Worley last season on his way to scoring 435 fantasy points. I only have one year of history on Worley so its hard to tell if this type of statistical performance is the norm for his offense or an outlier. Head Coach Jeff Monken has only had one QB score more than 200 fantasy points since 2018 and that was Kelvin Hopkins in 2018. If I don’t see reports of someone outshining the rest of the QBs in spring camp, I’m tempering my expectations for the eventual Army QB in 2025.
Auburn – Is this the year Hugh Freeze has another breakout QB?
The best fantasy performance for a head coach Hugh Freeze QB was Malik Willis in 2021 at Liberty. Willis was better than everyone on the field and that athletic ability garnered 394 fantasy points. In the rest of Freeze’s history the next best QB was Stephen Calvert in 2019 at Liberty who scored 266 fantasy points. Both of those QBs threw for 339 and 431 pass attempts. While we might be looking for rushing production out of Freezes’s QB this season, it might be the passing attempts that determines this question.
Cincinnati – Where is Brendan Sorsby’s ceiling in year 2 as a starter?
Some people felt like Brendan Sorsby under performed in 2024. When you look at offensive coordinator Brad Glenn’s history you see the opposite. Dan Ellington scored 297 fantasy points in 2019 at Georgia State and was Glenn’s best performance by a QB until it was matched by Sorsby last season. If Sorsby is going to surpass what he did in 2024 he will need help from a WR core that lost its top performer, but has its second top performer back. I don’t think 25 passing TDs is out of the question but the WR core will need to step up to help make that happen.
Coastal Carolina – Does Tim Beck let new offensive coordinator Drew Hollingshead fully take over the offense?
Head Coach Tim Beck is an offensive minded coach that has kept a tight lease on his offensive coordinators. Beck had great success in 2018 and 2019 at Texas with QB Sam Ehlinger who scored over 400 fantasy points each season. Beck has not been able to replicate that since. Offensive coordinator Drew Hollingshead only has two years of history at Western Kentucky and his QB1s have put up 292 and 303 fantasy points. I’ll be watching for comments about the new offense installation and players talking about the passing game being opened up to tell me if we will see Hollingshead’s system this year.
Colorado – Can Kaidon Salter be successful in Pat Shurmur’s passing system?
Kaidon Salter struggled last season passing the ball against decent pass defenses in Conference USA. Salter had just 261 pass attempts last season, and 290 the year before. He now moves to offensive coordinator Pat Shurmur’s offensive system that threw the ball 477 times in 2024. Since Salter is not the passer that Shedeur Sanders was, will we see those pass attempts come down? If we do, there isn’t a great RB to take on a big increase in rushing production. Shurmur would have to lean into Salter’s rushing ability to shoulder the increase in rushing attempts. I’ll be watching for comments about the QB being integrated into the running game from spring camp reports.
Duke – Where is the right place to take a chance on Darian Mensah in fantasy drafts?
This is something that will be on the minds of many people as they enter fantasy drafts. Darian Mensah is a much better passer than Maalik Murphy was so we should see an increase in pass efficiency stats. One major issue is that we have no clue how his WR core will look this fall. That issue makes me want to avoid drafting Mensah as a QB1. I tend to prefer being aggressive in drafting my QB2 and look for someone that has less questions than Mensah. The highest I see myself drafting Mensah in early fantasy drafts is probably the QB4 spot unless we get solid word about the WR core in spring camp.
Florida – Can DJ Lagway put up Anthony Richardson numbers in year 2 as a starter?
Anthony Richardson put up 296 fantasy points in 2022 and is the best performance that head coach Billy Napier has got out of a QB since 2018. Richardson had the best rushing performance as well with 103 carries for 654 yards and 9 TDs. DJ Lagway can hit those rushing numbers, but for him to break through the 300 fantasy point barrier he’ll have to be better than Richardson was in the air. Only one Napier QB has thrown for over 3000 yards and 25 TDs, and we’ll have to watch spring camp reports on Lagway’s throwing ability to see if he can hit those marks.
Florida State – Will Thomas Castellanos be over-valued in fantasy drafts?
As of today, I am in the camp that Castellanos will be over-valued. Only one QB has scored more than 252 fantasy points for offensive coordinator Gus Malzahn since 2018. If you remove KJ Jefferson’s disappointing performance from Malzahn’s history, his QB1’s average just 235 fantasy points. John Phys Plumlee’s 323 fantasy point performance from 2022 was aided by 159 rushing attempts for 862 yards and 11 TDs. Castellanos has elite rushing skills so he has an opportunity to surpass Malzahn’s 235 fantasy point historical average. I just don’t see him as an option for anything higher than a QB3 on my fantasy rosters and I feel like he will be drafted much higher than that.
Georgia Tech – Can Haynes King get back to his 2023 stats?
When comparing Haynes King’s 2024 and 2023 stats, I look to the rushing game first. King scored just 9 fantasy points more on the ground in 2023. The passing game is where his 2024 fantasy value took the biggest hit. He threw the ball 98 more times in 2023 which led to 728 yards and and 13 TDs more than his 2024 totals. Its up to the coaches to determine if King will get more throwing opportunities and game script will definitely be a factor as well. Outside of passing volume, he will need his WR core to step up. This is an area of massive turnover for Georgia Tech and I’ll be watching spring reports on the WRs.
Indiana – Will the coaches let Fernando Mendoza run the ball 80+ times?
Offensive coordinator Mike Shanahan produced great fantasy QBs during his time at James Madison. That trend did not continue last season as Kurtis Rouke only scored 266 fantasy points. The difference lays in the rushing production. Shanahan’s QBs at James Maddison averaged 95 carries a season. Fernando Mendoza’s rushing skills are hidden in the stats due to how many sacks he took last year at California. I will be listening for comments about opening up the QB running game during the spring because if Mendoza is allowed to carry the ball 80 times he should hit the 300 fantasy point mark.
Liberty – Should you temper your expectations for Ethan Vasko?
Many of us expected Ethan Vasko to be a breakout star in 2023 but that just didn’t happen. He scored just 220 fantasy points and his 14 TDs to 8 INTs showed he still has a lot to work on his his passing game. Some people will hope that Vasko moving to head coach Jamey Chadwell’s system may bring the type of fantasy success we saw with Kaidon Salter. If you remove that 2023 season from Chadwell’s history, his QB1 only averages 213 fantasy points. In this last two years Chadwell has allowed his QB to carry the ball 163 and 114 times. As of now I’m not sure if Vasko rushing ability can help him beat Chadwell’s career average fantasy value.
Louisville – Can Miller Moss break the 300 fantasy points barrier?
If Miller Moss can score 300 fantasy point he will be the first QB to do so under head coach Jeff Brohm. The closest a Brahm QB came to that mark was David Blough in 2018 at Purdue, scoring 295 fantasy points. With no rushing ability to help Moss, he’s going to have to do it all through the air. He does return two starters at WR which helps, since he will need to put up at least 3600 yards and 30 TDs. Only two Brahm QBs have put up that many yards, and no QB has scored 30 TDs.
Memphis – Will Brendon Lewis be fantasy gold in Tim Cramsey’s offense?
Last season at Nevada, Brendon Lewis had most of his fantasy value tied to his legs, rushing the ball 157 times for 775 yards and 8 TDs. When looking at Memphis offensive coordinator Tim Cramsey’s history, his QBs the last three seasons have averaged 106 carries. The most during that time was 2022 when Seth Henigan ran the ball 146 times. Lewis should bring more efficiency to the QB run game, but it will be his ability as a passer that will determine his fantasy value for 2025. I’ll be watching for comments from the coaches in spring camp about how accurate Lewis is in the offense.
Miami (Florida) – How high is too high to draft Carson Beck?
I do not see Carson Beck coming close to the stats that Cam Ward put up in this offense last season which is why I don’t see Beck as a viable QB1 option. His WR core is going through massive turnover and the ground game should take a step back from last season as well. Beck should get at least 400 pass attempts but there’s questions if he can score 35 TDs. I do like him to be a safe option for a QB2, especially during the spring months. As we head into summer we’ll have more information about other QBs and I can see him slipping down to a QB3 in my eyes.
Miami (Ohio) – Can Dequan Finn be fantasy relevant in this offense?
What made Dequan Finn successful in his time at Toledo was his legs. Over three seasons he averaged 121 carries for 565 yards and 8 TDs. Those type of rushing numbers only happened once under head coach Chuck Martin, with Aveon Smith in 2022. Smith ran the ball 123 times for 553 yards and 6 TDs. That was one season before offensive coordinator Patrick Welsh took over and Welsh’s history is limited but doesn’t have those type of rushing number with Brett Gabbert behind center. I’ll be watching for comments from Martin and Welsh during the spring to see if they will open up the rushing game for Finn.
Mississippi – Can Austin Simmons break the 140 carries landmark?
One thing we love about head coach Lane Kiffin’s offense is that the QB is heavily involved in the rushing game. Austin Simmons will likely have his struggles throwing the ball in his first year as a starter, so his legs will be a major factor for his fantasy value. Over three seasons Jaxson Dart averaged 123 carries per year. Simmons will likely need more rushing volume to make up for less passing TDs and more INT than Dart had. Simmons’ health will play a huge part in Kiffin being willing to let Simmons run the ball 140+ times. I’ll be watching for any injury news out of spring camp to see if Simmons gets hurt or is limited in practice in any way.
Missouri – Can Beau Pribula exceed Brady Cook’s 2023 rushing numbers?
I have my doubts that Beau Pribula will throw for 3000+ passing yards as a first time starter. For him to be fantasy relevant he will need to use his legs. In 2023 Brady Cook ran the ball 113 times for 319 yards and 8 TDs. 100 carries for Pribula will probably be an easy bar to pass. His athletic ability should provide better yards per carry stats, which just leaves TDs as the main area of concern. We’re not sure how the RB room will look next season, and the coaches may involve Pribula in the redzone rushing package more to make up for any short comings the RBs might have. But if we see Ahmad Hardy turn into a workhorse stud, Pribula may end up with the short end of the stick when it comes to rushing TDs.
Missouri State – Is it worth spending a late round pick on the QB1 in Nick Petrino’s offense?
I only have one season of history for offensive coordinator Nick Petrino. Last year at Missouri State QB Jacob Clark scored 278 fantasy points. He threw the ball 376 times for 3604 yards and 26 TDs while not being productive on the ground. With Missouri State moving up to the FBS level, its likely that they will be playing from behind in most games and the game script will for call for an abundance of passing. If the QB1 this season can throw for 400 attempts, there’s a possibility of late season fantasy value during conference play. I’m still learning about the roster that is coming back so I will be watching spring reports to get an idea of how experienced the QB and WR positions are before I have an answer to this one.
Nebraska – Will Dana Holgersen turn Dylan Raiola into a fantasy star?
Going back to 2018, offensive coordinator Dana Holgerson has mixed results for his QB1’s. Three times his QBs have scored over 300 fantasy points, and in 2023 Donovan Smith came close with 290 fantasy points. During Holgerson’s last two seasons at Houston his QBs averaged 133 carries for 486 yards and 5.5 TDs. Raiola ran the ball 112 ties for 6 TDs last season, but ran for negative rushing yards which isn’t good. He will likely have to increase his rushing total to 400 yards and throw for over 3000 yards to be a fantasy star. We likely won’t learn anything about him improving his yards per carry in the spring, but I’ll be watching closely for news of his passing game improving.
North Texas – Are teams starting to figure out how to stop Eric Morris’ QB1?
Toward the end of the 2024 season fantasy analysts watched the North Texas offense start to cool off and asked if defenses were starting to figure out head coach Eric Morris’ offense? Over all three seasons of Moris’ coaching history his QB1 has increased their fantasy value, going from 270 fantasy points, to 317, to 337 fantasy points last season. There’s likely to be a dip in production next season but it will likely be the fact that whoever wins the starting QB job will be a first time starter (not counting last season’s bowl game).
Notre Dame – Can CJ Carr be the next great QB for Mike Denbrock?
Offensive coordinator Mike Denbrock has a knack for making good fantasy QBs. The performance of Jayden Daniels in 2023 was historic. Over the 2024 and 2022-2021 seasons Denbrock’s QB1 averaged 374 fantasy points. CJ Carr spent his freshman year preserving his redshirt and looks like he could win the starting job in 2025. He is aggressive in his decision making and not afraid to push the ball into the middle of the secondary. While Carr is athletic, I want to find out if the coaches use him in designed QB runs like Riley Leonard or if he will tuck the ball and scramble like Jayden Daniels.
Ohio State – Is Julian Sayin a plug-and-play elite fantasy QB as a first time starter?
While reviewing the coaching history of offensive coordinator Chip Kelly you see that the years where his QB1 is fantasy relevant coincides with a starting QB that has game play experience. At UCLA Dorian Thompson-Robinson went from 238 fantasy points in his first year as a starter to 307 then 383 fantasy points. The 2023 UCLA offense was a mess with no experienced QB at the helm and Dante Moore as a first time starter (part of the season) only scored 98 fantasy points. What Ohio State brings to the table is a bevy of talent for Sayin to lean on which is vidal for a QB who has very limited game experience.
Oklahoma – Should you keep your expectations for John Mateer grounded?
John Mateer finished 2024 as the #1 QB in fantasy. There was a perfect combination of two things that aided Mateer last season. Washington State played a Mountain West schedule where their talent level was better than almost every team they faced. Mateer also used his legs like we haven’t seen for a QB1 under offensive coordinator Ben Arbuckle. This winter Mateer decided to follow Arbuckle to Oklahoma, leaving the favorable schedule and talent match-ups behind. As for Mateer’s rushing upside in the SEC, we don’t know if Arbuckle will tell him to slide or run out of bounds more so Mateer can stay healthy.
Oregon - Is Dante Moore a plug-and-play elite fantasy QB in his first year as Oregon's starter?
Dante Moore looks poised to take over the starting QB role in 2025, and this will be the first time that offensive coordinator Will Stein will have to rely on QB with limited experience. Moore only threw 8 passes as a backup in 2024, but he did play nine games in 2023 at UCLA and threw 213 passes. Moore’s experience from 2023 will give him an edge in becoming a plug-and-play QB for Oregon. The main issue that can hold his fantasy value back is the WR core. I’ll be watching spring camp news about the WRs making plays and building a connection with Moore.
Sam Houston State – Can Phil Longo make the QB1 in his offense fantasy viable again?
Head coach Phil Longo’s QB1 averaged 377 fantasy points from 2022-2018. The last two seasons at Wisconsin was a failure with both of his QBs scoring under 200 fantasy points. Hunter Watson returns bringing game experience but limited fantasy production. Mabrey Mettauer follows Longo from Wisconsin bringing more experience within this offensive system but very little game experience. The rest of the offensive personnel returning is more favorable to a transition to this offense then Longo had at Wisconsin. He will need a QB to stand out from the pack in the spring and make this offense click so I’ll be watching spring camp news for the QB competition.
South Carolina – How will the addition of Mike Shula affect LaNorris Sellers’ fantasy value?
Sellers and the offense started to click in the back half of the 2024 season with his best FBS games against Clemson, Missouri, and Texas A&M. He ran for over 100 yards against Clemson and Texas A&M, but against Missouri he torched them through the air. New offensive coordinator Mike Shula has NFL play calling experience but nothing we can rely from the college ranks. It is very hard to determine how Shula will utilize Sellers in the 2025 offense, especially if Shula wants to try and force Sellers into more of a NFL style pocket passer role.
South Florida – Will we see a return of the 2023 version of Byrum Brown?
Byrum Brown injured his foot in the fifth game of 2024 and was never able to step back into the starting role. During 2023 Brown was successful in the air and on the ground. How well will his foot be healed by the time spring camp rolls along is yet to be seen. For him to be as productive on the ground he will need to be fully healthy. He does return his top receiver from 2023 this year which should help bring his passing number back up.
Southern Miss – Can Braylon Braxton become the next great Blake Anderson QB?
Offensive coordinator Blake Anderson has been hit and miss when it comes to fantasy QBs. In his last two years at Utah State Cooper Legas failed to score 170 fantasy points in either season. From 2021-2018 Anderson had two QBs break the 300 fantasy point barrier. The key difference in those two years was the QB throwing the ball 400+ times which was never matched in any other season of Anderson’s history. For Anderson to put enough confidence in Braylon Braxton to throw the ball 400 times Braxton will need to outshine all the other QBs in spring camp.
Tennessee – Can Nico Iamaleava pass for 3000 yards and 25 TDs?
Nico Iamaleava’s first season as a starting QB came with struggles in the passing game. He only threw for 2616 yards and 19 TDs to a WR core that lacked the ability to create separation on a consistent basis. It is possible for a QB in head coach Josh Heupel’s offense to hit 3000 yards and 25 TDs. Hendon Hooker accomplished it in 2022 and Dillon Gabriel accomplished it in 2019. Nico only needs to improve his 2024 numbers by 384 yards and 6 TDs to do it in 2025. I will be watching the spring camp reports for news on how well this year’s WRs are doing in practice to see if he gets the help he needs.
USC – Does Jayden Maiava’s lack of rushing ability hold him back from 350 fantasy points?
Throughout the history of head coach Lincoln Riley only two QBs have not scored 350 fantasy points. In both of those seasons there was change at the QB position during the season. In the years where his QBs did hit that fantasy point total, they all ran for 10+ rushing TDs. Jayden Maiava averaged a paltry 2.3 yards per carry last season and it doesn’t look like he has the rushing ability that is needed to hit 10 rushing TDs. But he was able to score 4 rushing TDs on just 20 carries over seven games last season. I want to see if Riley calls designed runs in the redzone for Maiava, or if Maiava is willing to scramble to TD runs.
UTSA – Is this the year that Owen McCown puts up 2022 Frank Harris numbers?
If you start by comparing passing production of these two you’ll see that their passing volume is only off by 4 pass attempts. Frank Harris put up an additional 600 yards and 6 TDs in 2022 compared to Owen McCown last season. For McCown to increase those efficiency stats he will need help from his WRs and TEs. He returns several pieces from last season but they will need to make big strides this year to help him close that gap. The one area that will likely keep McCown from matching Harris’ 2022 numbers is rushing production. McCown must make up a difference of 43 carries for 260 yards and 6 TDs, which will be a tall task.
Virginia Tech – Can Kyron Drones return from injury and rush for 800 yards again?
Drones was plagued with knee and foot injuries in 2024, and both of those issue affect someone’s running ability. Assuming he’s completely health at the start of the season, will the coaches allow him to run like he did in 2023 or try to protect him from reaggravating those injuries? His rushing production dropped from 2023 to 2024 by 68 carries and 481 yards. When he was healthy in 2023 he just barley cracked the 800 yard mark with 818 rushing yards. Comments from the coaches on his injury status and if they may try to protect him in 2025 will be closely monitored all offseason.
Wake Forrest – Can Robbie Ashford become a fantasy star in 2025?
New offensive coordinator Rob Ezell comes over from South Alabama with just one season of historical stats under his belt. While at South Alabama last season QB Giovani Lopez failed to hit the 300 fantasy point barrier, scoring 278 fantasy points. That was a new starting QB playing on a team where the offense had been well established before Ezell took over. Now Ashford looks to become the starting QB at Wake Forrest for the first time in a year where this offense will be installed for the first time. So not only will Ashford be new to learning this system, but the everyone in the offseason will be new to it as well.
Washington – How will Demond Williams’ rushing ability fit into Jedd Fisch’s offense?
When reviewing head coach Jedd Fisch’s history, he has never had a QB1 that was utilized heavily in the running game. The best information we can use is the final two games of the 2024 season when Williams was the full time starter. During that time he averaged 21 carries for 32 yards and 0.5 TDs per game on the ground. These match-ups were in game where Washington fell behind and the game script dictated more passing. He only averaged 1.5 yards per carry during that two game stretch compared to his season average of 3.5 yards per carry. Listening to comments during spring camp about designed QB runs/reads will be vital in determining how much of a rushing workload we could expect in the fall.
Washington State – Can Zevi Eckhaus become a fantasy breakout player in Danny Freund’s offense?
New offensive coordinator Danny Freund moves up to the FBS level after coaching at South Dakota State last season. With just one year of history on Freund its hard to determine if his 2024 stats are the norm or an exception. Last season QB Mark Gronowski scored 312 fantasy points in this offensive system. He also ran the ball 98 times for 10 TDs, and as we saw during the bowl game Zevi Eckhaus is a dual-threat. I don’t think there’s a doubt as to Eckhaus being used the same way as Gronowski in the rushing game, the question will be how well the entire offensive is picking up on the new system to determine how efficient the offense can be.
Western Kentucky – How good can Maverick McIvor be in his first season moving up from FCS?
Maverick McIvor moves up from FCS school Abilene Christian after throwing for 3847 yards and 30 TDs last season. These numbers are very similar to the career averages of head coach Tyson Helton who’s QB1 have averaged 3945 yards and 34 TDs going back to 2019. McIvor did not put up any rushing production last season (-30 yards, 0 TDs) which is the biggest concern about his fit into Helton’s offense. Helton’s QB1s have averaged 83 carries for 153 yards and 6 TDs. Any sort of spring reports that highlight McIvor’s rushing ability will be the most pivotal information needed to evaluate this question.