Today we continue our all-time high school quarterback rankings based on the regions they played in. Next up on the list is the Southwest region, which features a Hall of Famer and the greatest high school QB of all time, plus one of the top quarterbacks currently in the NFL.
For this group, we pulled the all-time great high school quarterbacks from teams in the following states: Arkansas, Louisiana, Mississippi, New Mexico, Oklahoma and Texas.
More All-time HS QB rankings:
1
Peyton Manning: Isidore Newman (La.) 1993
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Unlike his chief rival, Manning achieved outstanding success at every level of the game – especially in high school, where he’s widely considered the greatest QB of all time. The legend of Peyton began at Isidore Newman, where he went 34-5 as a starter and won Parade All-American honors. At Tennessee, he was an All-American in 1997. The Indianapolis Colts picked him first overall in the 1998 NFL draft and he won a Super Bowl with them a few years later, then another with the Denver Broncos in 2015. All together, Manning made 14 Pro Bowl teams, earned seven All-Pro honors and went into the Hall of Fame in 2021.
2
Kyler Murray: Allen (Texas) 2014
Rob Schumacher/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK
Murray’s football career got started at Allen, where he posted a 42-0 record and won three Texas state championships. In college he won the Heisman at Oklahoma in 2018 after transferring from Texas A&M, then the Arizona Cardinals picked him first overall in the 2019 NFL draft. While his pro teams teams haven’t been great, Murray’s performance has been exceptional for the most part. So far he has made two Pro Bowls, thrown for 84 touchdowns and rushed for 23 more. Murry is currently recovering from an ACL tear but healthy he’s still a top-10 quarterback in the NFL.
3
Brock Berlin: Evangel Christian Academy (La.): 1999
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Berlin crushed the competition at the high school level, throwing for 13,902 total career yards and winning three consecutive state titles – no small feat in a state as competitive as Louisiana. In college Berlin played for Florida and Miami. Afterwards he went undrafted but did eventually play in a couple of games for the Rams in the NFL.
4
Joe Ferguson: Woodlawn (La.) 1968
MICHAEL SCHWARZ/Rochester Democrat and Chronicle file photo
As a Senior in high school, Ferguson led Woodlawn to a 14-0 record and a state championship. In college he played at Arkansas, where he won Southwest Conference Offensive Player of the Year. Ferguson went on to play a remarkable 18 seasons in the NFL, going 79-92 in 171 career starts.
5
Garrett Gilbert: Lake Travis (Texas) 2008
Brian Fluharty-USA TODAY Sports
Gilbert led Lake Travis to two straight Texas state titles and won the USA Today Offensive Player of the Year in 2008. In college he played three years at Texas and another at SMU. Gilbert also played in the NFL a few seasons, serving as a backup QB for Carolina, Cleveland, Dallas and Washington.
