Dia Bell and
Faizon Brandon are regarded as two of the top high school quarterbacks in the country by multiple media outlets. But injuries have prevented them from being the most productive future SEC signal callers this fall.
The No. 1 spot in our future SEC quarterback power rankings goes to Alabama commit
Jett Thomalla, who has been blistering hot for the top team in Nebraska this season.
The 6-foot-5, 220-pound senior has
Millard South (Omaha) winning so big, last week's opponent decided to forfeit. The Patriots have scored 49 points or more in every game with totals of 65, 72, 70 and 77 during consecutive weeks in September.
Thomalla has thrown for nearly 1,800 yards and 31 touchdowns against just two interceptions while completing 77 percent of his attempts. His Patriots have won 19 in a row on the field (this year's season-opening victory was later ruled a forfeit) dating back to last fall.
Ordered based on a balance of individual statistics and team success, read on for a look at how all 21 SEC commits at quarterback are faring this fall.
Pictured here during last year's Class A state championship game in Nebraska, Jett Thomalla is on fire just like Alabama's current signal caller Ty Simpson. (FILE PHOTO: Hannah Pokharel)
Alabama
Season at a glance: Thomalla has thrown 23 touchdown passes in his last four games alone.
2. Helaman Casuga, Sr., Corner Canyon (Draper, Utah)SEC destination: Texas A&M
Season at a glance: The latest big recruit in the
quarterback pipeline from Corner Canyon (7-1). Casuga has piled up 2,598 total yards (2,250 passing, 348 rushing) and 29 touchdowns.
3. Bowe Bentley, Sr., Celina (Texas)SEC destination: Oklahoma
Season at a glance: Bentley has led Celina (7-0) to 23 wins in a row dating back to last season. The future Sooner has thrown and run for nearly 2,000 yards while accounting for 20 touchdowns, helping the Bobcats put up 40.4 points per game.
4. Peyton Houston, Jr., Evangel Christian Academy (Shreveport, La.)SEC destination: LSU
Season at a glance: Led the state of Louisiana in passing yards as a sophomore including famously throwing for 817 yards in a single game. He is on pace to do it again with 2,070 yards and 21 touchdowns (vs. three interceptions) for 5-1 Evangel Christian Academy. Houston has also run for 585 yards and six scores, giving him an average of 442 total yards per game.
5. Jared Curtis, Sr., Nashville Christian (Nashville, Tenn.)SEC destination: Georgia
Season at a glance: There is a strong argument to place Curtis higher but he has missed two games and half of a third due to injury. When he has played, he has been as good as anybody in the country in leading the Eagles to a 7-0 record. Nashville Christian has scored 42 points or more in every game with Curtis completing 64.5 percent of his passes for 1,005 yards and 14 touchdowns. He has added nearly 200 more yards on the ground with four scores.
6. Gavin Sidwar, Sr., La Salle College (Wyndmoor, Pa.)SEC destination: Missouri
Season at a glance: Leading one of the top teams in Pennsylvania at La Salle College (6-1), Sidwar owns the school's career record for passing yardage and touchdowns. Two weeks ago in a signature win over perennial power
St. Joseph's Prep (Philadelphia), he completed 20 of 34 passes for 324 yards and four touchdowns.
7. Michael Mitchell Jr., Sr., Archbishop Riordan (San Francisco, Calif.)SEC destination: Vanderbilt
Season at a glance: Vandy's next wizard under center post-Diego Pavia? Mitchell has completed nearly 67 percent of his passes for 1,786 yards and 23 touchdowns, leading the Crusaders to a 6-0 record. His rushing total brings him to just under 2,000 total yards for the season. A four-year starter, Mitchell has thrown for 8,566 yards and 100 touchdowns at Riordan.
8. Matt Ponatoski, Sr., Archbishop Moeller (Cincinnati, Ohio)SEC destination: Kentucky
Season at a glance: Also an elite baseball player, Ponatoski is on track for another big season statistically at Moeller (6-2). As a junior, he threw for over 4,000 yards and 57 touchdowns while leading the Crusaders to the state championship game. Through eight contests this fall, he has completed 141 of 203 attempts (69.4 percent) for 1,684 yards and 23 TDs.
9. Luke Babin, Jr., Woodville (Texas)SEC destination: Vanderbilt
Season at a glance: In leading Woodville to a 5-2 record, Babin has thrown for 1,786 yards and 28 touchdowns against just a single interception. He has also rushed for 354 yards and four scores. Against Trinity in late September, the 6-3, 195-pound signal caller connected on 22 of 31 attempts for 365 yards and eight TDs.
10. Jayce Johnson, Jr., Lowndes (Valdosta, Ga.)SEC destination: Texas A&M
Season at a glance: A dual-threat signal caller playing in a run-heavy offense, Johnson has accumulated 1,051 total yards and 15 touchdowns for the unbeaten Vikings (8-0). Lowndes has played three other quarterbacks this season and already has a running back in
Mason Woods with over 1,000 yards.
11. Landon Duckworth, Sr., Jackson (Ala.)
SEC destination: South Carolina
Season at a glance: Playing alongside five-star running back
Ezavier Crowell at Jackson (6-2), Duckworth isn't asked to do as much as other signal callers on the list. He has still managed to account for nearly 1,500 yards and 16 touchdowns. The future Gamecock has over 100 total TDs for his career.
12. Tayden-Evan Kaawa, Sr., Orem (Utah)SEC destination: Alabama
Season at a glance: Heading into the regular-season finale this week in Utah, Kaawa is over 2,000 yards with 25 touchdown passes for one of the top 10 teams in the state.
13. Will Griffin, Sr., Jesuit (Tampa, Fla.)SEC destination: Florida
Season at a glance: Griffin is coming off a season-high five touchdown passes in a 62-7 win over Middleton. He has 18 on the season to go with 1,407 passing yards for the 6-1 Tigers.
14. Brodie McWhorter, Sr., Cass (White, Ga.)SEC destination: Mississippi State
Season at a glance: Coming off a bye week, McWhorter has thrown for 1,436 yards and 20 touchdowns vs. just one interception while running for nearly 200 more and three scores. Cass is 6-2 and is averaging 44.1 points per game in those six victories.
15. Rees Wise, Sr., Westlake (Austin, Texas)SEC destination: Ole Miss
Season at a glance: Following a long line of great quarterbacks at the Austin school, Wise has thrown for 1,046 yards and seven touchdowns through six games. He is also the team's fourth-leading rusher with 101 yards to go with five scores. Westlake is 5-1 and ranked in the statewide top 10.
16. Keegan Croucher, Jr., Cheshire Academy (Cheshire, Conn.)SEC destination: Ole Miss
Season at a glance: Croucher committed to the Rebels last week after visiting Oxford two week ago. Other than that, there isn't a lot out there in terms of Croucher's season at Cheshire Academy (3-2). Email inquiries to the coaching staff were not returned. He is one of the top-rated junior quarterbacks in the country playing high-level prep school football.
17. D.J. Hunter, Jr., Buford (Ga.)SEC destination: Kentucky
Season at a glance: After previously attending
Bearden (Knoxville, Tenn.) and
Horn Lake (Miss.), Hunter is backing up
Dayton Raiola for nationally-ranked Buford (7-0). In limited action, he has completed 5 of 8 attempts for 75 yards and a touchdown.
18. Joaquin Kavouklis, Jr., Gaither (Tampa, Fla.)SEC destination: Arkansas
Season at a glance: Began the season at Lakeland before transferring to Gaither. Recent reports indicate he is waiting to hear on his eligibility status at his new destination.
Not rated due to injuryDia Bell, Sr., American Heritage (Plantation, Fla.)SEC destination: Texas
Season at a glance: The son of former NBA player Raja Bell announced via Instagram in September that he was ending his senior campaign due to injury. His final game with the Patriots saw him go 25 of 35 for 325 yards and three touchdowns.
SEC destination: Tennessee
Season at a glance: The top overall prospect in the Class of 2026 suffered a thumb injury near the end of the first game of the season and hasn't played since. The five-star Tennessee commit helped Grimsley win a North Carolina state championship in 2024.
Peyton Falzone, Sr., Nazareth Area (Nazareth, Pa.)SEC destination: Auburn
Season at a glance: A broken clavicle has kept Falzone off the field for much of the season.
