The No. 1 quarterback in the 2024 college football recruiting class came off the board Monday when five-star signal caller Dylan Raiola announced his commitment to Georgia. Not only is he the second-highest-rated recruit in program history, but he stands as one of the best high school quarterback prospects of all time.
Raiola occupies rare territory as both the top quarterback and top prospect nationally in his class. Dating back to at least 2010, only four other signal callers finished as the top overall prospect in their respective classes.
The 2024 recruiting cycle is far from over, and Raiola's ranking could still change, but history shows that he could be in for a prolific career with the Bulldogs. Of the four quarterbacks that ranked at the top nationally, two developed into No. 1 overall NFL Draft picks and one won the Heisman Trophy. The other two are still in college.
Beyond that, the top quarterback from each recruiting class tends to have a respectable collegiate career at the very least. Here is a look at each top high school quarterback recruit from the past 10 recruiting cycles, and how they performed once they hit the next level:
2014: Kyle Allen
247Sports ranking: No. 5 nationally, No. 1 pro-style quarterback | Signed with: Texas A&M
Allen started the final five games of his freshman year at Texas A&M after Kenny Hill was benched. He entered 2015 as the Aggies' starter and led Texas A&M to a 5-0 start before things began to fall apart. Lowlights included three pick-sixes against Alabama and just 88 passing yards in a loss to Ole Miss. The latter led to his benching in favor of a true freshman named Kyler Murray. Allen transferred to Houston in 2016, redshirted his first season and started three games in 2017 before he was benched again. Despite his collegiate struggles, Allen has gone on to carve a nice career as a backup quarterback with spot-starting duties at the NFL level.
2015: Jarrett Stidham
247Sports ranking: No. 13 nationally, No. 1 dual-threat quarterback | Signed with: Baylor
In a class that featured the likes of Kyler Murray, Sam Darnold and Joe Burrow, Stidham was the top dog among all quarterbacks. Baylor won out in the derby for his services, flipping him from in-state rival Texas Tech just a couple of days before the December signing period. He entered the 2015 season as the Bears' backup but was pressed into starting duty eight weeks into the season. Stidham suffered a season-ending injury after three games and transferred out of the program in the wake of Baylor's sexual abuse scandal.
Stidham spent 2016 at a junior college without playing football and in 2017 enrolled at Auburn, where was named first-team All-SEC and the SEC Newcomer of the Year after throwing for 3,158 yards and 18 touchdowns with six interceptions. He led the Tigers to an SEC West title in the process. Stidham returned as the starter in 2018 and tossed 18 touchdowns before emerging as a fourth-round pick in the 2019 NFL Draft.
2016: Shea Patterson
247Sports ranking: No. 3 nationally, No. 1 pro-style quarterback | Signed with: Ole Miss
Patterson just edged out fellow five-star Jacob Eason to earn the top QB spot in 2016, signing with Ole Miss. He was pressed into starting action in November of his freshman year after Chad Kelly tore his ACL and retained the starting spot as a sophomore in 2017. Through seven games he led the SEC in passing with 2,259 yards but a torn PCL sidelined him for the rest of the year. After the NCAA handed Ole Miss a postseason ban for the 2018 season, Patterson entered the transfer portal and enrolled at Michigan where he was granted immediate eligibility. In two seasons with the Wolverines, he accounted for 52 total touchdowns, earning All-Big Ten honors.
2017: Davis Mills
247Sports ranking: No. 19 nationally, No. 1 pro-style quarterback | Signed with: Stanford
Mills spent most of his first three seasons on the bench before an injury to K.J. Costello forced him into action in 2019. Mills spent five games as Stanford's starter during the COVID-shortened 2020 season and finished third in the Pac-12 with 1,508 passing yards and seven touchdowns to three interceptions. The Houston Texans selected Mills in the third round of the 2021 NFL Draft.
2018: Trevor Lawrence
247Sports ranking: No. 1 nationally, No. 1 pro-style quarterback | Signed with: Clemson
Rankings aside, Lawrence is the first true superstar on this list. He signed with Clemson and earned the starting job four games into his freshman season, leading the Tigers to an ACC title and a College Football Playoff National Championship win against Alabama. Lawrence was a two-time first-team All-ACC selection from 2019-20 and finished second in the Heisman Trophy voting in 2020 while leading Clemson to a third-straight ACC Championship and another appearance in the College Football Playoff. He was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2021 NFL Draft.
2019: Spencer Rattler
247Sports ranking: No. 9 nationally, No. 1 pro-style quarterback | Signed with: Oklahoma
The jury is still out on Rattler. He enters 2023 entrenched as South Carolina's starting quarterback, hoping to finally break into the upper echelon of college football's signal callers. His journey began at Oklahoma, where he signed as a five-star prospect in the 2019 class. He redshirted as a freshman and beat out Tanner Mordecai for the starting job in 2020, earning first-team All-Big 12 honors after throwing for 3,031 yards and 28 touchdowns. He entered 2021 with big expectations but was benched in the Red River Showdown in favor of five-star freshman Caleb Williams.
Rattler transferred to South Carolina in 2022 and closed the regular season by leading the Gamecocks to a pair of top-10 wins against Tennessee and Clemson. In those games, he threw for a combined 798 yards and eight touchdowns to just two interceptions.
2020: Bryce Young
247Sports ranking: No. 1 nationally, No. 1 dual-threat quarterback | Signed with: Alabama
It is hard to find individual resumes as impressive as Young's. Though he never won a national championship as a starter, he did sweep every major quarterback award in 2021, including the Heisman. He was also named a consensus All-American. In just two years as the Crimson Tide's starter, he compiled a 23-4 record while passing for 8,356 yards and 79 touchdowns. He was the No. 1 overall pick in the 2023 NFL Draft.
2021: Quinn Ewers
247Sports ranking: No. 1 nationally | Signed with: Ohio State
Ewers, a product of Southlake (Texas) Carroll High School, initially pledged to Texas but decommitted in Oct. 2020 to sign with Ohio State. After one season with the Buckeyes, in which he briefly appeared in one game, he transferred to Texas. He started 10 games in 2022 and showed flashes that justified his lofty recruiting stock, but overall struggled with inconsistency. In 2023, he will have to hold off a push from another prospect on this list.
2022: Drew Allar
247Sports ranking: No. 3 nationally, No. 1 dual-threat quarterback | Signed with: Penn State
Despite Penn State's overall success in 2022, fans still called for Allar to take the reigns as a true freshman. The 6-foot-5 and 242-pound signal caller did see a good bit of playing time and provided plenty of reasons to be excited about the future. In 10 games, he completed 35 of 60 pass attempts for 344 yards and four touchdowns while rushing for another 52 yards and one score. The starting job is unquestionably his entering the 2023 season.
2023: Arch Manning
247Sports ranking: No. 1 nationally | Signed with: Texas
Manning has yet to even suit up for an actual game at the college level, but the hype surrounding him is palpable. That comes with the last name on his jersey, given the dynasty that his grandfather, Archie, and uncles Peyton and Eli have established at the quarterback position. His official commitment to the Longhorns, announced via Twitter in June 2022, surpassed 216,000 likes. While he will start the year behind Ewers on Texas' depth chart, few quarterbacks will receive more attention nationally.
