As we head towards a new football season in the fall of 2024, IdahoSports.com is once again getting fans ready by unveiling the Top 10 players at each position.  These lists feature players from all corners of the state, and from all six classification levels.  Each week, we'll publish a new list of Top 10 players.  Here's the schedule:

July 3 (Offensive Linemen)

July 9 (Defensive Linemen)

July 16 (Special Teams)

July 23 (Running Backs)

July 30 (Linebackers)

August 6 (Wide Receivers/Tight Ends)

August 13 (Defensive Backs)

August 20 (Quarterbacks)

Without further ado, here are the Top 10 Quarterbacks to watch out for in 2024.  These selections have been made by the editorial staff at IdahoSports.com, and are listed in alphabetical order by school.  We made these selections based on a number of factors, including: returning All-State or All-Conference pedigree, college recruiting hype, and the good old-fashioned eye test.

Mack Jensen, 12, Burley

The 6-foot-1, 195-pound Jensen burst onto the scene last year as the triggerman in Burley’s explosive offense.  Jensen completed 63% of his passes for 2,115 yards.  But check out his touchdown-to-interception ratio: 23:5.  And lest you think he’s just a statue back there, Jensen rushed for 283 yards and five scores last year, also.

Preston Wood, 12, Carey

Pardon the pun, but Wood can definitely bring the wood, standing 6-foot-2 and 180 pounds.  Wood doubles as a linebacker/defensive back hybrid on Carey’s defense, and can definitely beat you with his legs when he decides to take off and run.  But his sharp-shooting eye that plays well on the basketball court (17 PPG), also leads to pinpoint precision when dropping back to pass.

Caden Symons, 11, Coeur d’Alene

Two weeks into his sophomore season, it was apparent that Coeur d’Alene’s best chance to win came with the 6-foot-4 gunslinger in the lineup.  After earning the keys to the offense full-time, Symons delivered 2,165 yards, 16 touchdowns, six interceptions, and a 64% completion percentage.  Symons is also a talented basketball player (his dad Corey is the head men’s basketball coach at North Idaho College), but he has a future in football too, if he wants to pursue it.

Connor Perkins, 12, Dietrich

After spending his first two high school seasons at wide receiver, Perkins made the switch to QB as a junior and put up video game-type numbers.  The 5-foot-10, 150-pound Perkins is more speed than size, but used his skills to pass for more than 2,000 yards and rush for more than 1,000 yards last year.  It will be fascinating to see how new Dietrich coach Garrett Astle chooses to deploy Perkins in 2024.

Tristan Rea, 11, Filer

This is more of a speculative selection, as Rea completed only 50% of his passes a year ago.  The 5-foot-8, 150-pounder did throw for 2,018 yards, but also tossed 17 interceptions against just nine touchdowns.  But here’s the deal: Rea has been a starter since Day One of his freshman year, and has oftentimes felt that burden by trying to do too much.  With a very young Filer team finally maturing, Rea should be able to play within the system this year and really cash in on that potential.

David Kludt, 12, Kamiah

It certainly appears that the 6-foot-6, 200-pound Kludt is garnering more interest for his skills on the basketball court (19.8 PPG, 9.8 RPG, 6.5 APG), already picking up hoops offers from NAIA programs College of Idaho, Carroll College and Eastern Oregon.  But the son of head coach Nels Kludt can definitely sling the football, too.  Kludt was on our Top 10 Defensive Backs list a year ago, and earned 1st Team All-State honors at DB for the second consecutive year, but after throwing for 1,210 yards, 19 touchdowns and only one interception (while adding 628 yards and nine TDs on the ground), we had to switch him to our Top 10 QBs list.

Zeke Martinez, 12, Meridian

The 6-foot, 205-pound Martinez picked up a Division 1 offer this summer from Memphis.  As a junior, Martinez completed 73% of his passes for 2,507 yards and 27 touchdowns, but perhaps the most important stat he thrives at is winning.  Since taking over for his injured brother Malakai a couple of games into his freshman season, Meridian has gone 26-9 overall in those three seasons.

Noah Velasco, 12, Moscow

Velasco stands 6-foot-1 and 190-pounds, and was named 1st Team All-Inland Empire League as a junior after leading the Bears with 1,926 yards and 16 touchdowns on a 58% completion percentage.  With Moscow moving down a level to the Intermountain League this year, Velsaco has an even bigger chance to impress.

Drew Lehman, 12, Sandpoint

Now that Velasco’s Moscow Bears have moved down to the Class 4A level, there’s no doubt about it: the 5A Inland Empire League is Lehman’s now.  The 6-foot-1, 190 pound senior was the MVP of the IEL a season ago.  Directing Sandpoint’s run-heavy offense, Lehman still managed to throw for 1,545 yards and 12 touchdowns, with just five interceptions.  Lehman will probably play baseball in college, but he’s still deserving of his spot on this list.

Josh Hardy, 12, Valley

The diminutive Hardy only stands 5-foot-8 and 145 pounds, but boy, is he slippery.  A true dual-threat quarterback, it’s not uncommon to see Hardy throw for 200 yards and rush for 100 yards, all in the same game.  Many are expecting Valley to take another step forward this season in the newly configured Class 2A ranks, and Hardy’s steady play at QB will be a big reason why.