With spring football getting underway this is that grinding time of year when teams look to rebuild or reload, and the rest of us abuse Netflix just hoping to find something to keep our minds off the thought that any real football is still months away.

Regardless of whether they exceeded expectations last year, or didn’t win a single game, everyone starts 2016 with a clean slate. Plenty of big-name quarterbacks will be back for this season too. Which of our conference’s quarterbacks are primed for a big-time 2016 run and which ones face the hardest uphill battles? It’s probably too early to figure that out now, but there’s only so much on Netflix, so why not?

1. Baker Mayfield (Oklahoma)

Baker Mayfield was a walk-on this time last year but would end up fitting offensive coordinator Lincoln Riley’s system like a glove. Mayfield would not only win the job but would burst onto the national scene by throwing 36 touchdowns to only seven interceptions in 2015. As if that wasn’t enough, he would lead OU to a coveted spot in the College Football Playoff.

Mayfield, now a senior, has Sooner Nation’s expectations sky-high. Not only is he a good decision-maker but he’s accurate, elusive and now, perhaps most importantly, seasoned. Multiple games on big stages may have given Mayfield the edge he needs to guide the Sooners to back-to-back playoff runs.

However even with all that going for him, what should strike the most fear in opposing defenses is Lincoln Riley and his system. After last year’s dominance in the Big 12 he and Baker now know what each other is going to do before they do it. They enter Spring firing on all cylinders.

2. Patrick Mahomes (Texas Tech)

In 2015 Mahomes was perhaps the best quarterback in the country who wasn’t talked about. He torched defenses on a weekly basis and put up 4,653 yards through the air, 36 touchdowns and 15 picks. However even with those monster numbers, the non-existent Red Raider defense couldn’t make the stops it needed which held Tech to seven wins. This, in turn, kept Mahomes out of the headlines.

Now that he has some experience under his belt I think the game will slow down even more for Mahomes this year. What he has working against him is the loss of some key offensive weapons. He’ll be without Tech’s all-time leading receiver Jakeem Grant along with the reliability of back-to-back 1000-yard rusher DeAndre Washington.

The smart money says Kliff Kingsbury’s offense will produce more play-makers. However if Tech’s defense can’t get their act together he’s in danger of having another stellar year that you’ll never read about.

3. Seth Russell (Baylor)

Russell was the next Baylor quarterback in line to set the college football world on fire. And he did for a couple of months in 2015 until he suffered a scary neck injury. If he’s healthy, Seth Russell has as much talent as any quarterback in the conference.

Through seven games last year, Russell put up 2,104 yards, 29 touchdowns and only six interceptions. The only concern I see with his game is that his accuracy can slip a bit at times. When healthy, he had only a 59.5% completion rate and that was against pitiful defenses for the most part.

Once again Baylor will have no shortage of offensive talent for their quarterback to choose from. If he stays healthy look for Russell to make some serious waves for the Big 12’s top quarterback.

4. Mason Rudolph (Oklahoma State)

Mason Rudolph was, at times, inconsistent to start 2015 season although you’d never know it by the Poke’s 10-0 start. He would find his stride around mid-season but would suffer an injury in the Baylor game, a week before Bedlam. However for the year Rudolph put up a solid completion rate of 62.3% with 21 TD’s and nine interceptions.

I’m optimistic about Rudolph for 2016. Primarily because his counterpart in the Cowboy’s 2015 two-quarterback system, J.W. Walsh, has graduated and won’t be in the picture this year. Last year Rudolph’s job was to get the Pokes into scoring position only to give way to the more mobile Walsh to finish off the drives. Obviously you can’t argue with OK-State’s record last year but that strategy can hinder a quarterback’s growth.

Now that he will, more-than-likely, have total control of the offense Rudolph will be one of the more interesting Big 12 quarterback story-lines this Spring.

5. Kenny Hill (TCU)

The jury is still out on Kenny Hill. The Texas A&M transfer had an entire season to learn the system and soak in the freak, athletic prowess that is Trevone Boykin. Hill turned some heads in Aggieland when he lit up South Carolina two years ago while breaking a couple of A&M records in the process.

Things didn’t work out in College Station though, and there’s a giant question mark that’s following him around this Spring. Is the ceiling as high as it appeared to be at A&M? A lot of people think so. But he’ll have serious competition in four-star prospects Foster Sawyer and Grayson Muehlstein.

Should he win the TCU starting job, and I think he will, Kenny Hill could be the most intriguing quarterback to watch in the Big 12.

6. Skyler Howard (West Virginia)

Howard was the epitome of inconsistency last year. While he did have 26 passing touchdowns, he also had 14 interceptions to go with them. During the season, there were times where it seemed like he was finding his groove but poor decision-making would force him to take a step backward.

However just when some were giving up on him, Howard torched Arizona State for over 500 yards and five touchdowns in their bowl game. ‘Eers Nation is hoping that was the confidence-builder he was looking for to put WVU in the Big 12 championship conversation.

7. Jesse Ertz (Kansas State)

The Wildcats have an interesting battle brewing at the quarterback position this Spring. However for this ranking I’m going with Jesse Ertz as he was the starter going into 2015 before missing the entire season due to injury. In fact, the injury bug put the entire K-State quarterback position in complete disarray last year.

Given the lack of playing time last year, Ertz will be starting from behind the eight-ball. But now he has a clean slate and a fresh start which will help. Also on the plus side for Ertz is competition. Four-star QB recruit Skylar Thompson is an early enrollee and he’ll be in the mix with Joe Hubener and Alex Delton to try to beat out Ertz for the job.

If he can win the job among that kind of competition, Ertz could be the guy to get State back in the Big 12 title race.

8. Joel Lanning (Iowa State)

Lanning showed flashes of brilliance in 2015 although he had his forgettable moments as well. Still, he ended up completing 55.4% of his passes while tossing ten touchdowns and four interceptions. There’s a lot to be excited about these days in Ames and Lanning is one of them.

He looked raw last year but there’s no question Lanning has the tools to be one of the top quarterbacks in the conference. He will have a young and exciting new head coach backing him in Matt Campbell. Campbell, who’s already making waves on the recruiting scene, maybe just what Lanning needs to take a big step forward this year.

However he shouldn’t get too comfortable. Dominic De Lira and junior college transfer Jacob Park will be battling for the position as well along with freshman Zeb Noland and walk-on Kyle Kempt.

9. Jerrod Heard (Texas)

The Texas quarterback position is a bit of a coin flip. Tyrone Swoopes and Jerrod Heard will be slinging it out through the spring, but Heard looks to be a slight favorite.

Regardless of who’s taking the snaps though, Texas’ offense was one-dimensional, predictable and inefficient last season. If the Longhorns want to return to prominence, things have to change. Luckily for the Burnt Orange Nation, change is already underway. You can expect to see a fast-paced, up-tempo look from the ‘Horns in 2016 as Sterling Gilbert, former co-offensive coordinator at Tulsa, is tasked with the offensive overhaul.

While Swoopes and Heard are thought to be battling for the one and two spot, don’t overlook highly-touted ESPN 300 recruit Shane Buechele. Matthew Merrick and Kai Locksley, both redshirt freshmen, will be nipping at Swoopes’ heals as well.

Gilbert’s system will be QB friendly, so whoever gets the start could catapult up the list in a hurry. Change doesn’t come without growing pains though, and QB1 in Austin could be a bit of a revolving door early; especially as Gilbert plays around with the pieces to figure out which ones are going to fit his offense.

10. Ryan Willis (Kansas)

In what seems to be a common theme in the world of Jayhawk football these days, Ryan Willis is already off to a bad start heading into Spring. Willis, who showed some good flashes in a winless 2015 KU campaign, hurt his wrist in a pick-up basketball game (hey, it’s Kansas after-all).

Willis has started Spring off doing what he can on the field. However in his downtime he’ll have a chance to get fully acquainted with the 2016 playbook. A playbook which will now be overseen by head coach David Beaty who will be calling the plays this season.

If Willis can build on last year’s experience (and stay off the hard-wood), he just may have what it takes to get Kansas a win this year. But, until then, last place is a fitting spot for the Jayhawk quarterback.