Will Alabama quarterback Keelon Russell maintain his rapid ascension in national rankings against South Carolina? With only three career starts, Keelon is still learning. Coming anywhere close to his full potential in the 2026 postseason would be a meteoric rise. With continued development and game experience, Russell could become college football's best quarterback in the 2027 season.
For CBS Sports, David Cobb does a weekly ranking of college football's Top 50 quarterbacks. After Week 2, Keelon was ranked No. 35. This week, he rocketed up the rankings 17 spots to No. 18.
Mississippi State's QB Kamario Taylor passed for 251 yards and four touchdowns in his team's road win over the Gamecocks. In Cobb's rankings, Taylor moved up four spots this week to No. 4. It will be interesting how Russell's numbers on Saturday night compare to Taylor's Week 3 performance.
Alabama's Russell trails other top SEC QBs ... for now
I have no argument with Cobb for naming Trinidad Chambliss college football's current No. 1 QB. The Ole Miss star moved up from No. 2 last week. Eleven SEC quarterbacks are ranked in Cobb's Top 50. The only other SEC QB to move up in the rankings this week was Kenny Minchey. The Kentucky Wildcat went from being outside the Top 50 to No. 39.
The biggest fall for an SEC QB was Missouri's Austin Simmons, moving from No. 10 to No. 23. LSU's Sam Leavitt dropped from No. 43 to No. 49. Arch Manning dropped five spots from No. 3 to No. 8.
The other SEC quarterbacks ranked in Cobb's Top 50 are Georgia's Gunner Stockton (No. 7), Florida's Aaron Philo (No. 14), Tennessee's Faison Brandon (No. 32), and, previously unranked, Vanderbilt's Jared Curtis at No. 50.
SEC quarterbacks missing from the Top 50 are: Texas A&M's Marcel Reed, Oklahoma's John Mateer, South Carolina's LaNorris Sellers, Arkansas' KJ Jackson, and Auburn's Byrum Brown. All the SEC quarterbacks unranked or ranked below Keelon Russell have lower Passer Ratings than Keelon.
It's possible to ask of Russell too much, too soon. It is also possible that, before long, whatever challenge he faces, he will overcome.
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