Three Quarterbacks to Buy, Sell, or Hold in Devy Leagues

Joe Milton

Brandon Haye Posted On July 28, 2023

We are back with another installment of Buy, Sell or Hold for devy leagues. This week we are back to quarterbacks. There are a few proven QBs this year but a lot of unknowns in college football at this position coming into the year. You can check out the last installment on quarterbacks here. Now let’s get to the QBs you should be looking at making a move on.

BUY: Kyle McCord, Ohio State

Ryan Day seems to just keep plugging quarterbacks in at Ohio State and keeping the offense rolling. He has not had just all three drafted, but all three were first-round picks. Can Kyle McCord be the next one to carry on this elite offense?

Well, he has the recruiting profile of a star. He was a top-50 player and top-ten quarterback in the 2021 class. Two years ago, some even thought he might be able to wrestle the job from CJ Stroud. That didn’t happen and he has been waiting his turn. He only has made 58 passes in two years but did show some potential in the one game he started against Akron in 2021.

While he is unproven at Ohio State, he knows the offense and was a high school teammate for three years with superstar receiver Marvin Harrison Jr. The offense returns a lot of firepower with Emeka Egbuka and TreVeyon Henderson, along with the usual five-star receivers brought in every year. So why is there uncertainty? Well, partly it is that everyone is enamored by the new recruits – and that is top-five quarterback Devin Brown in the 2022 class. It looks like McCord will get the nod and according to Campus2Canton’s ADP, he is going as QB15, four spots behind Brown. In DLF’s Devy Rankings, McCord is QB8 so at his ADP he is a value.

Will he put up enough production to be a one-and-done? I am not sure but until one fails, I am not going to doubt Day and his ability to produce top-notch quarterbacks.

SELL: Joe Milton, Tennessee

Are Tennessee back? Well they had a great season last year with Hendon Hooker at the helm and beat Clemson in their bowl game without their starting quarterback. Josh Heupel has put together a nice two years as the head coach. In 2021 he had the passing offense in the top 40 in passing yards and then in 2022, they were in the top ten. His offense is quarterback-friendly and allows for easier reads and players to be wide-open in the spread scheme.

There is a lot of hype around Milton coming into this year based on his profile and his 250-yard and three-touchdown performance against Clemson. His ADP is QB23 but at Campus2Canton, he is ranked as QB45 – a difference of 22 from ADP and Ranking.

Milton committed to Michigan as a four-star player but one who needed development. He always had a cannon but when he became a starter in the 2020 Covid-shortened season, he struggled and eventually was replaced by Cade McNamara. He then moved on to Tennessee but still struggled with reads and accuracy.

I think Milton has improved and the scheme is going to help with some of his inconsistent processing of where to throw the ball. I think he is a very good college quarterback, but some are comparing him to Anthony Richardson. They are not the same type of athlete; Milton can run but is not elite as he only has 362 rush yards in 30 games. Tennessee and Milton should put up good numbers this season, but I don’t see him being a guaranteed first-rounder. I would try to deal with him while the hype is high and get a couple of players who have a better path to the NFL as starters.

HOLD: Sam Hartman, Notre Dame

I have been a big fan of Hartman for the last couple of years, while he was at Wake Forest. He put up huge numbers and helped a lot of my C2C and CFF teams. In the last two years, he has passed for around 8,000 yards and 77 touchdowns. So, you may be asking why he is not higher rated. Wake Forest ran what some would call a gimmicky offense. They do a lot of RPO and Hartman would wait till the last moment to pull the ball from the running back. Many teams run RPO, but Wake Forest’s action truly was even more delayed, putting defenses in trouble and leaving more wide-open spaces. Hartman could be amazing but did have games where he made bad decisions. In the last two years, he had four games with three or more interceptions and six games with multiple interceptions.

Hartman decided to not declare for the NFL Draft in 2023 and instead transfer to a school where he could show his skills on a bigger stage and in a more traditional offense. Notre Dame was a perfect match for him as they needed a star quarterback and someone to add more diversity to their offense. Last year, the Irish only averaged 207 pass yards per game, which ranked 92nd in the nation. Hartman is going to have a massive upgrade in the skill positions, and I want to see how he fairs this year. That is why I would hold him and if he comes out and lights it up, you could then move him for a larger value. Notre Dame plays Ohio State in the first game, so he has a great opportunity to showcase his skills on the big stage.

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Brandon Haye

Contributor at Dynasty League Football

I am a data analyst for a health insurance company and try to bring both film and analytics together in my fantasy football analysis. I have been playing fantasy football for over 20 years and enjoy every type of format. I have a soft spot for Devy because of my love for college football.