Coming into the 2025 college football season, there weren't many players who were talked about more than Garrett Nussmeier and Drew Allar. The two were expected to have huge seasons, including taking their respective teams deep into the College Football playoff at a minimum. The reality, however, is that maybe the expectations were too much for both.
Garrett Nussmeier returned to Baton Rouge instead of going to the NFL Draft, and that brought a lot of excitement to Baton Rouge. This was a guy who threw for over 4000 yards in 2024, and surely, he wouldn't make the same mistakes that he made a year ago against the likes of Texas A&M and Alabama.
Drew Allar also similarly entered the season, foregoing the NFL Draft for a return to Happy Valley in hopes of bringing the Nittany Lions their first championship since 1986. His numbers in 2024 were not anywhere near as impressive, but he did have Penn State within a play or two from playing in the National Championship game.
Neither quarterback has lived up to the expectations that were placed on them by the media and fans, but why were the expectations so high to begin with? Many have never understood the Drew Allar hype, as he fits the program's prototype of hyped QBs who never go from good to great.
There are those who believe Nuss hasn't been good due to injury, but maybe that is more of a scapegoat than the actual reason.
No matter the reason why both did not find success under center for their respective teams, it has led to both their coaches being fired and their draft stocks taking a big hit. I am far from an NFL scout, but I don't see Drew even being drafted, and his season-ending injury he sustained against UCLA does him no favors.
Garrett Nussmeier, on the other hand, fits more of the NFL QB prototype, so someone is going to take a chance on him, but it may be far later than expected coming into this season. It does, however, make you wonder why Brian Kelly or James Franklin weren't able to get the full potential out of either quarterback.
It doesn't help either player that guys with little to no expectation going into the season like Ty Simpson or Joey Aguilar, have flourished. One day, a documentary may have to be made on why so many QBs and teams with high expectations going into the season didn't live up to the hype from day one.