Continuing the series of freshman talent entering the world of college football this season, we’re heading back to the quarterback class this week. Two of the nations highest ranked dual threat quarterbacks arrived on campus this year prepped and ready to start the next chapter in their football careers.
First up is Avery Johnson who enrolled at Kansas State, ranked as the number three dual threat quarterback in the class. Then we have Marcel Reed headed to Texas A&M, who was ranked right behind Johnson as the number four dual threat quarterback. Both players had significant interest during the recruiting process, and we’re going to break down their chosen programs and the quarterback situation going into this year and beyond.
Avery Johnson – Quarterback, Kansas State
Avery Johnson played his high school football at Maize High in Kansas, and attracted national attention as one of the best dual threat quarterbacks in the country. Despite receiving offers from the likes of Notre Dame, Oregon, Tennessee and Auburn, Johnson stayed in his home state and committed to play in Collin Klein’s offense at Kansas State.
He is a high end four star recruit with impressive athleticism as a dual threat quarterback. He doesn’t just run, he runs rings around defenders. He’s got cuts, jukes and is an all round athlete when he takes off with the football in his hands. While his work on the ground is enough to raise eyebrows, he throws a beautiful football too, making it look effortless in the process.
The All-American is the number one recruit in the state and will be staying put for his collegiate career. A big win for the Wildcats.
Marcel Reed – Quarterback, Texas A&M
Marcel Reed comes out of Nashville, Tennessee having played high school football at the Montgomery Bell Academy. He threw for over 6,000 passing yards in his career with 62 touchdowns, as well as rushing for over 2,200 yards and another 38 TD’s on the ground.
Reed was originally committed to Ole Miss before de-committing late in the process. He then flipped to Texas A&M after being heavily pursued by the Aggies, where he will compete for a starting spot further down the line.
The dual threat QB was ranked fourth in his category directly behind Avery Johnson, with a six foot one frame and 175 pounds upon arrival on campus. He’s got a very strong arm for a high school QB and shows all the tools on tape to be a moldable talent at the college level.
As a passer his film shows great touch, some serious velocity, a wide range of throws and a willingness to drive the football down the field. He’s got great poise and footwork in the pocket and can escape and extend plays, which makes him a fun prospect to watch and study from the available film.
2023-2024 CFB Season Opportunity
Avery Johnson
Kansas State quarterback Will Howard took over for the Wildcats mid-season last year and is now expected to be the starter heading into the 2023 college football season. He took over from Adrian Martinez mid-season who graduated and moved on to minicamp with the Detroit Lions.
Howard threw 15 touchdowns and just two picks in the six games he started, including 296 yards and four touchdowns against Oklahoma State in Week 9. While he had a few good games, he has now been with the Wildcats for three seasons and there are some concerns about his ceiling. It looked as though he might have finally broken new ground in 2022 with the tape he put together, so will get the opportunity to lead the Wildcats this year.
Johnson will join redshirt freshman Adryan Lara and redshirt sophomore Jake Rubley in competing for a spot behind Howard. Rubley is likely to be the number two, but Johnson has shown an early level of maturity in running the second unit so far through spring.
Marcel Reed
Texas A&M quarterback Marcel Reed’s opportunity for playing time might be somewhat limited this season with the emergence of Conner Weigman. Haynes King had started the season before Max Johnson got a turn under center, but by Week 9 they had turned to their freshman quarterback.
Weigman was a five star recruit in the 2022 class and got on the field perhaps earlier than expected last season. He made four starts and played lights out in his debut against Ole Miss, throwing for 338 yards and four touchdowns. By the end of the year he’d thrown for 896 yards in five games with eight touchdowns and zero picks.
The current starter has a remarkably high ceiling and is already considered to be a future high end pick in the NFL draft, so Marcel Reed might need to show a little patience.
While he might not get a start this year, he could get some reps. Max Johnson is still around, now a senior, but Haynes King transferred to Georgia Tech. Reed will be QB3 on the depth chart at the very least, with a chance to leapfrog Johnson for some rotational snaps in blowout games or against weaker opposition.
Pro’s and Con’s for playing time
Avery Johnson
Johnson’s skill set should allow him to flourish in the Wildcats offense once he’s got it nailed from a mental perspective. Offensive coordinator Collin Klein took over prior to the 2022 season and demands a lot from his players. The offense is being developed to cater to an up-tempo approach when called upon as well as being able to comfortably run out of no huddle.
While he might be young, Johnson’s athleticism and pure passer combination is a perfect match. Adrian Martinez was running a lot before he was pulled in 2022, taking off 86 times in nine starts. While doing so, Martinez gashed multiple defenses on the ground with 146 yards and four rushing touchdowns against Oklahoma and 190 yards and three touchdowns the following week against Texas Tech.
From what we’ve seen from him so far Johnson seems to be every bit as capable as a runner and more of a natural fit in the passing game. It might not be long before he’s on the tail of Will Howard and ready to go either in certain packages or in relief.
The drawback is his size. He danced around at the high school level and even when he took hits they were far from what he can expect in college. He arrived at Kansas State six foot two and barely 170 pounds, and will need to prepare his body for the college game before he starts absorbing too many hits when taking off on a run.
According to reports he is well underway with that process already, adding 15+ pounds since arriving on campus. So that might not be an issue at all.
Marcel Reed
The biggest pro for putting Reed on the field this year is his potential to add value in a package.
His skillset is different to that of Weigman due to the combination of arm talent and athleticism on the ground.
If the Aggies are looking to switch up on the opposition’s defense they could build a couple of packages around Marcel Reed, but it’s not something they necessarily need to do…
…and that’s where the con lies. Conner Weigman could end up being so good you just don’t need to take him off the field. The Aggies have a rising star calling the shots for them at quarterback, so why disturb his rhythm?
If Texas A&M end up bullying lower level opponents maybe Reed see’s some playing time at that point, but the Aggies are very well positioned at quarterback as of right now with Weigman starting.
Why draft him in CFB Fantasy Leagues?
Avery Johnson
Pure explosive upside. Some of the plays he made in high school signal to that wow factor that attracts you to the very best quarterbacks in the game right now. He’s not going to stand in the pocket and pick out his receivers with limitations in other categories.
He can sling the football with the flick of his wrist, he can run, juke defenders, slip between tacklers, make plays on the move and extend plays when necessary. It might take some time to harness that talent at the next level but once he’s ready and he gets out there Kansas State football could be a must watch week to week.
He’s going to be a hot ticket in college football devy leagues because of that wow factor, so you might need to prepare to jump on him a little earlier than typical with four star caliber freshman quarterbacks.
Marcel Reed
Patience and potential, plus excellent value if you and your team can afford to be patient. Marcel Reed is in a lower tier right now because of Conner Weigman’s presence on the team. CFB fantasy players are not getting excited about Reed because there’s a very clear blocker to him making any major strides for at least a couple of seasons.
If you have a lot of roster spots available and you can hold onto him for a couple of years that could be a fun journey to go on with the young freshman quarterback.
Reed has really displayed a wide range of talent in high school including his ability to throw the football downfield, put some touch on it when called upon and extend plays outside of the pocket. So why not have some fun with his potential as a late bloomer with the Aggies?
Stock radar as an NFL prospect
Avery Johnson 9%
A quarterback of his size with the speed and athleticism that he has as a runner comes at the perfect time with the way the game is played right now. If he adds some muscle in the weight room and starts to show out in a balanced Kansas State offense, that film could be seriously entertaining to watch and analyze.
Marcel Reed 4%
Marcel Reed is not quite as thrilling a prospect as Avery Johnson is, but still a very capable dual threat quarterback who has the tools to grow as a player in college. One of the reasons my score here is a little lower is purely because it could be a while before Marcel Reed see’s any significant playing time.