Spring practice opens across the country over the next three weeks, and the most consequential evaluation cycle for Power 4 programs in 2026 is at quarterback — a position group defined this offseason by transfers, developmental questions, and the long shadow of a class that left in the NFL Draft.

Bill Connelly's pre-spring quarterback rankings for all 68 Power 4 programs, published this week at ESPN, identified Arch Manning, CJ Carr, and Julian Sayin as the three prospects attracting the most national attention entering spring. Each arrives in his spring cycle with meaningful production behind him and meaningful questions still unanswered.

Manning enters his junior year at Texas as the most broadly discussed prospect in the country — not because of what he has done, but because of what the evaluation community projects he can do, and because of the family context that makes the projection visible in a way that identical production would not be if the name were different. The spring is the first opportunity for the tape to either confirm or complicate those projections without a transfer-class distraction.

Carr, who transferred to a Power 4 program after a productive first season, is the prospect whose spring evaluation will determine whether he is a 2026 draft consideration or a player who needs another year of development. The distinction matters more for his program than for him personally — teams that have committed their spring development resources to a quarterback who enters the draft early are reorganizing again in August.

Sayin, who arrived via the transfer portal last winter, has the most to prove in spring because he has the most uncertainty attached to his name. The programs that pursued him aggressively during the portal window are investing spring practice in establishing what kind of player he actually is, not what the portal market said he was worth.

The spring evaluation cycle at quarterback is the most honest diagnostic in college football. No game-day crowd. No opponent-specific game plan. Just the player, the system, and the coaches watching to see what is real.

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Sources: "Pre-spring QB rankings for all 68 Power 4 college football teams," Bill Connelly, ESPN | "College football spring practice 2026 preview," ESPN | "2026 college football spring storylines," CBS Sports