Nebraska quarterback ranked middle of the pack in college football

A new list from The Athletic ranks every projected starting quarterback in college football from 1 to 138. Nebraska quarterback Anthony Colandrea ranked No. 39 and was placed in tier 4 out of 7.

Writers Antonio Morales and Sam Khan Jr. convened a panel of experts consisting of three dozen coaches, general managers, personnel directors, scouts, and front-office staffers from across the country, representing every conference. There was no formal point system or vote tally used to create the list.

Colandrea placed No. 39 on the list, between No. 38 TCU's Jade Craig and No. 40 Arizona State's Cutter Boley. Colandrea is entering his first season with Nebraska after playing last year at UNLV.

He won Mountain West Offensive Player of the Year with the Rebels, throwing 275-of-417 passes for 3,459 yards and 23 touchdowns. Colandrea also tallied 649 rushing yards and 10 touchdowns on the ground.

Prior to UNLV, Colandrea played two seasons at Virginia and totaled 352-of-566 passes for 4,083 yards and 26 touchdowns. He rushed for 502 rushing yards and two touchdowns for the Cavaliers.

Colandrea also set a couple of freshman records at Virginia, totaling 154 completions for 1,958 passing yards. He was placed in tier 4 out of 7. The Husker quarterback was described by one Mountain West head coach as someone who can make plays outside of a system.

“He’s going to make plays outside of the system but he’s going to make mistakes outside of the system. You don’t get one without the other.”

Nebraska was looking for a new starting quarterback after Dylan Raiola transferred to Oregon. Raiola is not mentioned on this list, as he is listed as the Ducks' backup QB for 2026. Scheduled starter Dante Moore is listed in tier 1 and is ranked No. 2 overall.

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This article originally appeared on Cornhuskers Wire: Nebraska quarterback ranked middle of the pack in college football