Ranking Connor Halliday, Taylor Kelly, Sean Mannion among departing Pac-12 quarterbacks

5. Sean Mannion, Oregon St. Beavers

Avinash Kunnath: Weird that the all-time passing leader in Pac-12 history is near the bottom of the list, but Oregon State wasn't quite the dynamic offense they were the year before. Brandin Cooks look like the better end of the connection after last season. Mannion had a real struggle to get the Oregon State offense going, and only had a few signature moments.

Jamie Uyeyama: Sean Mannion didn't go out with bang in a disappointing senior season, but that's the not the reason I'm listing him as last on this list. I'm placing him last because I don't think he'd be a fit in the spread offense Gary Andersen prefers to run that requires more of a dual threat than the traditional drop back passer in Mannion. Andersen seems to be going more towards his Chuckie Keaton led offense at Utah State as opposed to the one he ran a Wisconsin. It's a new day at Oregon State and Mannion is probably better off not being a quarterback in a transition year for the Beavers.

Bill Stenlund: With the change in coaching regime's Mannion won't be missed as much as people would think. There will be other issues that will make him be forgotten fairly fast. While he had the yardage his senior season, he didn't get the wins to go with them.

4. Connor Halliday, Washington St. Cougars

Avinash Kunnath: Halliday was an outstanding passer last season, and just had some incredible misfortune with the interceptions he threw and the injury he suffered. But he turns the ball over a lot, which is a problem. It cost Washington State several chances at victory. Luke Falk seems serviceable and will provide a decent Halliday replacement at the very least.

Jamie Uyeyama: Connor Halliday had the misfortune of being the quarterback at Washington State at the start of the Mike Leach's tenure in Pullman. If he had been there a couple of years later, maybe he would have experienced more success in terms of wins and losses. When Leach was at Texas Tech it seemed like he was able to plug the next unheralded player into his Air Raid offense and they didn't miss a beat. I expect there will be similar results at Wazzu, but the next in line will have the benefit of a better team around him than Halliday had during his career.

Bill Stenlund: Yes the Cougars will have a replacement QB that will average over 400 yards a game next year. But Halliday was the heart and soul of WSU. His grit and determination to win can't be understated. If Halliday would have had just a little help, the Cougars could have turned the corner. There is a lot of uncertainty with a young QB on a young team, and Halliday's veteran presence really settled the Coug offense down. The Cougs will struggle scoring early in the season next year.

Sam Barbee: Say what you want about Mike Leach's scheme, but Halliday was still better than Luke Falk and the system didn't change. By pure numbers, Halliday was one of the best the country has even seen, and we know how much he meant to WSU's success on offense. I think Falk will be a decent player, but five years from now we'll look back on Halliday's numbers and will still be impressed.

3. Taylor Kelly, Arizona St. Sun Devils

Avinash Kunnath: Kelly is a good Sun Devil and served them well. He didn't look quite the same after his injury, and his inability to perform at 100% cost ASU a chance at another Pac-12 championship game. Mike Bercovici should be ready to step into his shoes. But like Hundley, Kelly proved to be very successful in guiding his teams to victory after victory. Great game manager.

Bill Stenlund: He will be missed, but Mike Bercovici is ready and able to replace him. Kelly never really was the same after the injury.

Sam Barbee: I think the thing that hurts Kelly most is how Bercovicci played when he was subbing for the injured Kelly. How much of it was the system and how much of it was Kelly? We won't know until Bercovicci becomes the full-starter, but Kelly was a pretty good player at Arizona State. He just wasn't top-three in the last-year guys.