Marcus Mariota.

Who are Oregon's highest-rated quarterback prospects to ever sign with the Oregon Football program?

If you were expecting Marcus Mariota or this year's starting quarterback Justin Herbert to be near the top, you'll be disappointed.

The quarterback position at Oregon has been a bit of a mixed bag of sorts. The Ducks have been able to land some high profile quarterbacks who've gone on to do some really big things at Oregon. They've also signed multiple high-profile recruits who played sparingly or not even at all during their time with the Ducks.

At Oregon, some of the most successful quarterbacks in their rise from Pac-12 power to National Power were not considered a high recruit by the 247Sports Composite. Starting the run was unranked junior college quarterback Jeremiah Masoli in 2008. Then came four-star quarterback Darron Thomas from 2010 to 2011, but Thomas would be the program's only four-star quarterback to see success within the program to date. Marcus Mariota was a three-star quarterback in the eyes of the Composite rankings. In 2015 Vernon Adams was a transfer from Eastern Washington. In 2016, three-star quarterback Justin Herbert replaced Montana State transfer Dakota Prukop as a true freshman and hasn't relinquished the starting position yet.

As someone who covers Oregon football, Duck recruiting, and just recruiting in general, I always tend to side with the theory that the more four and five-star recruits you sign the better your program is. But I'd be lying if I was to say there are never misses. The results of Oregon's ten best quarterbacks say otherwise. Mariota, Herbert, Adams, and Masoli have either led their teams to national championship games, big bowl games or achieved some of the best individual records in Oregon football history. All four of them were also viewed as prospects who were middle of the road or even worse. Some of Oregon's highest-rated quarterbacks have also been some of the biggest busts.

What does this mean for Oregon's next incoming quarterback Cale Millen? The three-star signal-caller from Mount Si high school in the Seattle area is ranked as the nation's 29th best quarterback prospect in the country. He was a finalist for the Elite 11, but didn't advance and earn an invite to The Opening Finals. If he's to look at what history says, he's got just as good of a chance to become the next great quarterback at Oregon as some of Oregon's other higher ranked quarterbacks that have signed on with the Oregon Football program.

So, what players make up the program's 10 best quarterback prospects to ever sign with the Ducks? The list might surprise you. Here's the list of the 10 quarterbacks, starting with an honorable mention list of quarterbacks who landed outside the Top 10.