[Prefer us on Google](https://www.google.com/preferences/source?q=godanriver.com)
Last year’s Heisman Trophy winner. The past three quarterbacks to win the Heisman. Both quarterbacks in last year’s national championship game. The starters in the previous national championship game. The past three players to go first overall in the NFL Draft.
While quarterbacks have always stood at the center of attention, a new type has taken the Bowl Subdivision by storm and upended long-established theories on how to identify and develop a starting passer: the immediately eligible transfer.
One example of note is former Indiana star Fernando Mendoza, who led the Hoosiers to an unexpected national championship in 2025 after transferring from California. At least 15 teams in the preseason US LBM Coaches Poll will open the year with a transfer under center.
For decades, programs would look to steadily develop starting quarterbacks over the course of years, reluctant to hand the keys to the offense over to any option lacking a certain level of experience and comfort in the system.
Several factors have led to a wholesale shift. Now, many of these same programs no longer have to devote time and resources to developing an in-house quarterback – they can let another program do the work for them.
That’s never been the case more so than in 2026.
Iowa head coach Kirk Ferentz, pictured on Aug. 15 at Kinnick Stadium in Iowa City, has expressed concern over the current system that resembles an NFL-like feeder system.
USA Today Network
Why transfer quarterbacks have taken over college football
----------------------------------------------------------
Three recent developments have created a dramatic shift in how teams and coaches approach recruiting and developing quarterbacks.
* NIL offerings have led to wide gaps in spending between Power Four programs, giving deeper-pocketed programs the wherewithal to outspend much of the market for an established starter.
* At the same time, the transfer portal gives every quarterback the opportunity to test their value and earning potential. The ability to be eligible immediately allows passers to crisscross the map to find the best spot, as in the case of current Nebraska and former Virginia and UNLV starter Anthony Colandrea.
* And even before arriving on campus, a heightened level of readiness and the intense expectations heaped on Power Four prospects can send quarterbacks into the portal amid any early taste of adversity.