Rivals QB Week: Ranking the Pac-12

MORE: Rivals.com QB Week | Ranking the QBs in the Big Ten | SEC | ACC

Part of Rivals.com QB Week is a look at the QB situations at each program across the Power Five conferences. Today, we continue our league-by-league breakdown with a look at the Pac-12, ranked in order of which program has the best situations heading into the season.

Review: Rosen was the top quarterback and No. 2 overall in the 2015 recruiting class. He committed to UCLA in March before his senior season but Michigan made a late run and Stanford would have been a frontrunner but the Cardinal decided not to offer. In his freshman season, Rosen threw for 3,668 yards with 23 touchdowns and 11 picks.

Farrell’s take: In all my years of scouting Rosen was the best high school quarterback I’ve seen on film or in person. There’s something about his attitude and cockiness that leads you to believe the game will never be too big for him and he will excel regardless of the circumstances. Yes, there have been some bumps along the way, but he’s shown all the skills we saw in high school and plays as if he’s been in college for years. I’m kicking myself that he wasn’t No. 1 in the 2015 Rivals100. That’s on me.

Review: Falk was a two-star prospect out of Logan, Utah, who originally went to Cornell. His only other offer was from Idaho. Last season, Falk completed 447 of 644 passes for 4,561 yards with 38 touchdowns and eight interceptions. He is now considered one of the top three or four QBs eligible for the NFL Draft after this season.

Farrell’s take: This is an excellent example of how well Mike Leach works with quarterbacks because Falk was not an attractive commodity out of high school. He was tall and had plenty of room to fill out, but his release wasn’t pretty and his arm strength average. He couldn’t make it at Oaks Christian and was benched after two games and the competition level in Utah wasn’t great. And now he’s killing it in college after being Ivy-bound? Wow.

Review: Browning picked the Huskies in March of his junior season over Washington State, Oklahoma State, Cal and many others but he was pretty tight-lipped about which programs really stood out in the end. He was rated as the third-best pro-style QB in the 2015 class. In his freshman season, Browning threw for 2,955 yards with 16 touchdowns and 10 picks.

Farrell’s take: Browning was a four-star in the Rivals100 in 2015 with great poise in the pocket, the ability to slide or step up exactly when needed and an amazing knack for making red zone throws. He was mature beyond his years and it wouldn’t surprise me if he has a career at Washington that makes us regret not ranking him higher. He broke the national record for touchdowns in a career and he threw for 91 touchdowns as a senior. That’s not a misprint. Tell me again how USC and UCLA passed on him? Okay, UCLA landed Josh Rosen, so I get that but Ricky Town, USC? Really?

Review: After sitting behind Cody Kessler for years, Browne beat out four-star recruit Sam Darnold for the USC starting job. Browne was a five-star prospect and the top-rated pro-style QB in the 2013 class. Rated seventh overall in the class, Browne picked USC over Oklahoma, Washington and Alabama.

Farrell’s take: Browne finally gets his chance at USC and this is something we have been waiting for as he was our No. 1 quarterback in the 2013 class. On film, he was amazing, slinging the ball all over the field, making quick decisions, showing accuracy and extending the play at times. In person, he was slightly less impressive in 7-on-7 play, especially at our first Rivals100 Five-Star Challenge, but between his smarts, size and decision-making, we felt he would be a star. Now is the time for him to live up to that. The one big knock I had with his game was a delayed release, so we’ll see if that hurts him in college or if he’s fixed that problem.

Review: Out of Harbor City (Calif.) Narbonne, Williams was the No. 1 dual-threat quarterback and No. 71 overall in the 2013 class. He picked the Huskies over Arizona, UCLA and Florida. Williams then transferred to Santa Monica (Calif.) C.C. before moving on to Utah.

Farrell’s take: Williams, a Rivals100 four-star out of high school, wasn’t tall but I loved his arm strength and his release. However, he was a bit of an arm thrower and relied too heavily on that cannon appendage and he wore down at times. But he threw an amazingly catchable ball, usually in a perfect spiral and his compact release allowed him to get the ball out quickly. I’m surprised he didn’t work out in Washington, but he appears to have his swagger back.

Review: Webb was rated as the No. 21 pro-style quarterback and a high three-star out of Prosper, Texas, in the 2013 class. Indiana, Iowa, TCU, UTSA and Utah State had also offered Webb out of high school. Webb committed to play at Colorado but then switched his plans and ended up with the Golden Bears.

Farrell’s take: I liked Webb more as a four-star overall, despite a really skinny frame. In fact, Webb looked so thin it looked like he would be broken in two at the next level, but he had good accuracy and a natural feel for the game. His arm strength never wowed me, but his touch was amazing and I felt he would be a stat-stuffer at Texas Tech. Now he has a chance to put up crazy numbers at Cal under Sonny Dykes, who did wonders with another skinny quarterback in Jared Goff.

Review: Solomon was rated as the second-best dual-threat quarterback and No. 99 overall in the 2013 class. He picked Arizona over ASU, Colorado, Illinois, UCLA, UNLV and others. In 11 games last season, Solomon threw for 2,667 yards with 20 touchdowns and five interceptions. Dawkins was a high three-star recruit in high school who picked the Wildcats over NC State, Notre Dame and Utah.

Farrell’s take: Coach Rich Rodriguez is playing coy, but Solomon has to be the guy right? I loved Solomon out of high school because he could make so many things happen at Gorman under center, which is why he was a Rivals100 prospect. Dawkins had the tools but could never pull it together and was over-valued by many. We had him as a three-star with a high ceiling, but I was never sure he had the mental make-up to be a star.

Review: Out of Ashburn (Va.) Stone Bridge, Burns was rated as the sixth-best pro-style quarterback and No. 108 overall in the 2013 class. Boston College, Maryland, Penn State, Rutgers, Tennessee, Virginia and West Virginia among others were also involved in his recruitment.

Farrell’s take: I liked Burns a lot out of high school because he was big, he was athletic and mobile, and he had a very strong arm. This was a kid so good that he had offers before he even played a varsity game. He was a four-star just outside the Rivals100 and it took him awhile to get to starter status, but I think he has a chance to finally show all of that potential we saw from very early in his high school career.

Review: Wilkins was a high three-star prospect in the 2014 class who picked the Sun Devils over Arizona, Colorado State, Utah State and Wyoming. White was the second-best pro-style quarterback and No. 65 overall in the 2015 class. He picked Arizona State over Cal and Oregon in the spring before his senior season.

Farrell’s take: Wilkins was a kid with good size, excellent athleticism and a big arm who was still figuring out the nuances of being a quarterback at a high level. He had room to fill out his frame, was a good pass-run threat, a tireless worker and high character kid as a high three-star. White was skinny, but he had a good arm, very good accuracy and a feel in the pocket that’s hard to teach. The four-star was set up for success with his mental make-up.

Review: Prukop was not ranked by Rivals.com. Prukop had 7,347 yards of total offense during his career at Montana State, fourth in school history. Alabama, Michigan and Texas were also considered in his graduate transfer.

Farrell’s take: I don’t really have a take here because Prukop wasn’t on the radar of FBS schools and ended up heading to FCS, which is not our focus. His time at Montana State was impressive and with Mark Helfrich working with him, he could have a big season but there are many question marks.

Review: Liafau was rated as the No. 27 pro-style quarterback and sixth in the Washington state rankings for the 2013 class. The Buffaloes were his only offer when he committed. In 11 games last season, Liafau threw for 2,684 yards with nine touchdowns and six interceptions. He also rushed for six scores.

Farrell’s take: Liafau was a huge quarterback with a big arm but was sort of a Jekyll and Hyde for us as he looked great at times making good decisions and seeing the field, and at other times looking lost with a lack of zip for such a big kid. Always a smart decision-maker in game situations against some weak competition, he needs to improve that at the college level.

Recruiting: Garretson was a low three-star prospect in the 2013 class who picked Utah State over San Jose State. According to reports, Garretson picked Oregon State after the Aggies blocked his transfer to Washington.

Farrell’s take: Garretson wasn’t heavily recruited at all mainly because of his lack of size. Now a transfer from Utah State, this is his chance to prove the naysayers wrong. He was with a talented Chandler team and put up big numbers, but many felt he was a product of the system and not worthy of Power Five offers.