Quarterbacks, Wedding Rings, and Epstein - Top Incumbent QBs

Good morning and welcome to 4th & Forever, Rand & Tate’s College Football Newsletter. You know what’s boring? Getting promised for years all the tea (boomer translation: juicy gossip) from the Epstein files, only to have the government say nothing to see here, look away! We’re sure there’s nothing unscrupulous about anyone in the government hidden within, and yet, we’re left hanging. Ba-dum cha. The Little League World Series is also boring as hell, as are Top 10 QB lists. Everyone and their mother (except mine) knows that Cade Klubnik at Clemson and Arch Manning at Texas are names to watch this year, along with the high-profile portal additions of Jackson Arnold (Oklahoma to Auburn) and John Mateer (Wazzu to Oklahoma). So what about the top “incumbent” starters who did not get paid millions to hop in the portal? Note: these kids are still getting paid, but let’s call it a retention bonus. Incumbent is in quotes because we’re absolutely going to be talking about true freshman phenom Bryce Underwood at Michigan and another guy whose coach is an eight-toed egomaniac, but we love him. Without further ado, here are 10 noteworthy QBs who have tenure at their schools but may not be household names…yet.

Top “Incumbent” Quarterbacks

Bryce Underwood (Michigan): If this is the first time you’re hearing about Bryce Underwood, then buckle up because the FOX-led hype train is coming, and Desmond Howard is a glazer. Labubu’s are also coming (or already here), but you can look up what those are on your own time. For the uninitiated, Underwood was the #1 prospect in last year's class and was committed to LSU before Oracle founder Larry Ellison swooped in and shelled out $10.5 million on a 4-year deal to keep the Detroit-native out of the bayou. Given Carson Beck is getting $4 million from Miami, this deal might end up being a steal unless he pulls a Nico Iamaleava, but I digress. Underwood is 6’4, 210 pounds, and is often compared to Cam Newton. Is he worth it? We’ll find out when Michigan travels to Norman, OK in Week 2 or else Ellison might sorely regret investing 0.003% of his net worth into this kid. 

Julian “Ju Ju” Lewis (Colorado): Next up on the uber-hyped freshman QB docket is 5-star Julian Lewis, who committed to Coach Prime and Ralphie out of Carrollton, GA. Lewis and his luscious locks will be competing with Liberty transfer Kaidon Salter for the right to succeed Shedeur Sanders, whose retired jersey now hangs at Folsom after an illustrious 13-12 career. There’s a real chance Lewis doesn’t end up winning the job, and we have to wait for Ju Ju, but last time I checked, Salter doesn’t have Instagram photos with Shedeur handing him literal keys while sitting on a throne. 

Luke Altmeyer (Illinois): One would think Penn State returns the most production from last year, but that title belongs to Illinois which quietly won 10 games and finished in the top 20 of last year’s AP poll. The offseason hype has not been quiet, as no one will be overlooking the Illini this go round, even with the normal stalwarts of Penn State, Ohio State, and Oregon taking up a ton of oxygen. Altmeyer didn’t light the world on fire in 2024, but he also didn’t cost Illinois any games, which is all you need under Bret Bielema’s stout defense. The problem this year is that even with all the returning production, Altmeyer lost his best two receivers in Pat Bryant and Zakhari Franklin. Of course, there are transfers to replace them, but a lot will be asked of Altmeyer in what’s supposed to be another dream season for the Illini; this time, it just comes with expectations. 

Blake Horvarth (Navy): Statistically, Bryson Daily of Army was better than Horvarth last year, but Navy won the Army-Navy game, and that’s the only statistic they count in Annapolis and West Point. That, and Daily graduated, so I can’t really write about him. Horvarth has taken the reins of Navy’s modernized offense and executed it to near perfection. The post-Ken Niumatalolo offense includes downfield passing and even shotgun formation, which I don’t say condescendingly. The bones of the triple option are still there; this is just head coach Brian Newberry’s spin on it. Horvarth will be asked to carry even more of the load for the Midshipmen this year as they have to rebuild their entire defense, but will be among the favorites as there are similar questions and uncertainty at key positions for Army, Tulane, and UTSA in the American Conference.

Demond Williams Jr. (Washington): I’m in the process of workshopping a name for this award, but there needs to be one for an under-the-radar QB who balled out under the radar until the offseason, when all the pundits go back and watch film. Your offseason QB winner is Demond Williams Jr., who is garnering a lot of hype as the next big thing, which is tough to do in the Big 10, but after looking under the hood, methinks he might be the real deal. Williams played sparingly behind Will Rogers last year, but when Jedd Fisch and Co. let him air it out, he excelled to the tune of 988 yards and 8 TDs. He’s a pass-first QB who happens to be mobile - hello Georgia legend Jamie Newman -  and when Fisch came from Arizona, he made sure to bring Williams along with him. If there’s anyone on this list you probably don’t know but should, it’s this guy.

CJ Bailey (N.C. State): Oh. My. God. Are we really doing this again? Hyping up an NC State QB to lead them to the promised land? First, it was MJ Morris who is now at Maryland, before him it was Grayson McCall who retired from football, and before that it was Devin Leary who transferred to Kentucky. All NC State has to show for it is some earned media and 4 straight bowl losses to East Carolina, Kansas State, Maryland, and Kentucky. Hat tip to you, puppies. Well, we are doing it again, but I will not, under any circumstances, say CJ Bailey is a savior of any kind. Instead, I will simply note the 6’6 sophomore from Miami did pretty well after being thrown into the fire following McCall’s injury and subsequent retirement. That being said, there will be a lot more pressure on him this year to perform, assuming head coach Dave Doeren takes the training wheels off. Only Ashton Daniels of 3-9 Stanford and Haynes King in Georgia Tech’s run-first offense had fewer passing attempts/game in the conference last year. If State hits for the first time since Philip Rivers was around, Daniels will be the reason why. 

Julian Sayin (Ohio State): Ohio State is the only recession-proof program in America, given they haven’t won fewer than 6 games since Yugoslavia was still around. Will Howard proved the long-held theory that Ohio State’s offense is essentially “just add water” and let the skill position players handle the rest. Ohio State has WR Jeremiah Smith and nothing else really matters; they’re going to be damn good. Sayin - a former 5-star QB from California - transferred in from Alabama last offseason after Saban left and is the presumed starter heading into the season. If he lives up to his billing, which almost always happens in Columbus, Ohio State should find itself in the thick of the Big 10 and CFP race once again. If he doesn’t, would it surprise you to know Ohio State has the #2 QB from this past class waiting in the wings? We’ll save the hype on Tavien St. Clair for next offseason. 

Sawyer Robertson (Baylor): Did I Google “is Sawyer Robertson related to the Duck Dynasty people” before writing this? Damn right I did, but unfortunately, he is not. However, per the infallible website known as Wikipedia, he is the cousin of former Auburn QB Jarrett Stidham, so there’s your daily dose of Remember That Guy? Roberston saved Baylor’s season and head coach Dave Aranda’s job last year after replacing Dequan Finn, leading the Bears to 6 straight wins to close out the regular season. Robertson led the conference in QBR and was 2nd in passer rating, only behind Shedeur Sanders. This year, the Bears return most of their OL, both of their dynamic running backs, and almost their entire receiving corps. Don’t be surprised if the Bears ride Robertson all the way to the Big 12 Championship a few from now. 

CJ Carr (Notre Dame): Before Notre Dame raided the ACC to snag Sam Hartman and Riley Leonard, could you name their previous ‘in-house’ QBs they started? That’d be Drew Pyne, Tyler Buchner, Jack Coan, and Ian Book. Those four will never be mistaken for the Four Horsemen. Their mere existence has surely been forgotten at Linebacker’s in South Bend, but damn did I just get flashbacks to how putrid Notre Dame used to be on offense under Brian Kelly. Leonard is gone, so now CJ Carr steps in as the next promised child for the Golden Domers. Carr is a former 5-star, and if you watch at least 5 seconds of a Notre Dame game this year, it’ll be drilled into your brain like Chinese water torture that he’s also the grandson of legendary Michigan coach Lloyd Carr. Notre Dame will rely heavily on RB Jeremiyah Love, but Carr could open up the Irish offense in ways that Leonard and even Hartman could not. 

Behren Morton (Texas Tech): The flower child of the CFB offseason and the nondescript school that has been the biggest beneficiary of NIL is Texas Tech. They can thank oil magnate and billionaire Cody Campbell, who has spent a fortune on player salaries throughout the Red Raider athletic department. Texas Tech got just about every player they wanted except a QB, whether that was intentional or not is up for interpretation. However, Morton is back at the helm after starting all 12 games for the Raiders last year. Aside from Michigan’s Underwood and Arch Manning at Texas, you could make an argument that no player is under more pressure to perform than this kid. Unfair? Not when Campbell spent $28 million on this roster, which is rumored to be second in the nation, only behind Texas. Buckle up, Behren. 

We’re short & sweet this week because by the time you read this, Rand will be in California for Tate’s wedding, which promises to be a bigger banger than the 2007 Fiesta Bowl. We’ll be back soon, but in the meantime, congratulations to Tate for fulfilling his lifelong dream of not having a fall wedding. 

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Rand Fisher & Tate Smillie met a few years ago through their good buddy Dave Peljovich, who went to college with Rand and high school with Tate. Tate went to Georgia and has spent the last two years collecting championship rings while traveling to watch the Dawgs. Rand went to known CFB powerhouse Wake Forest, and currently pays rent in Charlotte, but is rarely found there with all the work & CFB travel he does.