With spring practices underway for NCAA college football it felt like the right time to highlight the current landscape of Devy rankings through the lens of my Top 5 Devy Players at each main skill position: QB, RB, and WR. If you’re into Devy or just curious about it this is the article for you! This is the first in a three-part series. This piece covers QBS and the next two will highlight my favorite Devy RBs and WRs, respectively.

Caleb Williams (QB-USC)

It should come as no surprise that last year’s Heisman winner slots in at the top of the QB Devy list. Caleb Williams is a special talent that has his skills fully on display last year at USC. Had he been healthy toward the end of the season USC would’ve easily secured a playoff berth. But alas, that was not meant to be. Williams is a QB that can do magnificent things on a football field and he should dominate the NCAA again in 2023.

Nico Iamaleava (QB-Tenn)

This one will come as a surprise to most. Iamaleava is an incoming freshman for the Tennessee Volunteers who is already a Millionaire due to his NIL deal and played his high school football at the well-known Long Beach Poly. Imaleava is incredibly raw; he’s a backyard baller type of QB. He’s not conventional in any sense of the word. His football is wild, he doesn’t plant his feet when he throws and his accuracy is middling at best. Guess who all the same things were said about him coming out of college? Patrick Mahomes. I have NEVER comped any QB to Pat Mahomes because Mahomes can make throws that no NFL QB that has ever played can make. I see the same types of special throws and plays when I watch Iamaleava. He will likely back up my guy Joe Milton this year at Tennessee but having him sit a year and learn the Tennessee system while refining his game isn’t at all a bad thing.

Arch Manning (QB-Texas)

Ahhhhh the legacy. Arch Manning a highly coveted generational talent like Trevor Lawrence and Andrew Luck before him.  This kid has already been crowned. If you look past the name brand it’s hard to evaluate this early on how good this Manning is, but given the name, the hype, and the super-talented offense he’ll be coming into at Texas I’ll give him the benefit of the doubt. Quinn Ewers is currently ahead of Arch Manning in the Texas QB depth chart and as a former 5-star recruit he’s no slouch himself. I’d expect Arch to sit for most of 2023 before taking over the reins of this vaunted offense in 2024.

Drake Maye (QB-UNC)

Drake Maye is Caleb Williams without media exposure. He passed for 4,321 yards and 38 TDs last year while throwing only seven INTs with a 66.2% completion rate. There’s nothing to dislike there, those kinds of massive numbers coupled with good accuracy = money in the bank. Maye is a special talent who should easily be the QB2 of the 2024 incoming NFL Rookie Class

Malachi Nelson (QB-USC)

There are a lot of different names that could claim this fifth spot but I decided to go with 5-star incoming freshman Malachi Nelson out of USC. He’ll be sitting and learning all of his freshman year behind the nation’s best QB. That’s about the best experience one can get. Caleb Williams is going to the NFL Draft in 2024 which will give Nelson his time to shine. Expect big things!

Super Sleeper Selection

Spencer Rattler (QB-South Carolina)

It’s been a long tough road so far for Spencer Rattler. He was a highly touted 5-star recruit coming out of high school and widely regarded as the most talented QB in that class. His appearances on Netflix’s popular show: “QB1” highlighted his immaturity. That provided detrimental during his time in Oklahoma where he originally committed. Sooner fans eventually would boo Rattler off the field after some horrid performances and he would transfer to South Carolina.

After getting his feet wet in the South Carolina offense Rattler was finally able to showcase his skillset toward the end of last season, setting the NCAA ablaze. Rather than ride that wave into being a late 2023 rookie draft pick Rattler did the mature, responsible thing and decided to return to school. If he can keep up the momentum and keep a level head on his shoulders the sky is the limit for Spencer Rattler and I could see him be vaulted up to the QB3 of the 2024 rookie draft, behind Caleb Williams and Drake Maye.

Thanks for reading!  Any questions/positive feedback/negative feedback/whatever I can be found on Twitter @DynastyPatrolHQ.#DFFArmy #AlwaysBeBuilding #AlwaysBeScouting #DynastyFootball #NFL #NFLTrades #NFLDraft #NFLInjuries #PlantYourFlag