ESPN draft guru Mel Kiper Jr. is back with his early predictions for the 2027 NFL Draft. The quarterback class is loaded with star power, including Texas sensation Arch Manning and Ole Miss’s Trevin Chambliss. Kiper also highlighted an unexpected name whose future looks bright, provided he returns to college football after next season.

“Like I said, for Drew Mestemaker, he’s one of those guys,” Kiper Jr. said on the First Draft podcast with Field Yates when they talked about Mestmaker. “We had this discussion, Field, and I did a couple of days ago about how we’re not going to have all these quarterbacks coming out. But why? Because if they go back, then he can become the number one pick, a top 10 pick.

“You only have an x amount of teams that are going to say we got to get a quarterback. And if we have three or four other guys that are going to be way up there, some of these quarterbacks are going to have to make a decision. “We’re going to get a little lost in the shuffle, but if we go back, we become the guy by going back another year, and Mestemaker will have to make that decision based on how he performs going from North Texas to Oklahoma State.”

Just like 2024, the next year’s QB draft class will be loaded. There are some headliners in Oregon’s Dante Moore, Texas’s Arch Manning, and Notre Dame’s CJ Carr. Even Miami’s Darian Mensah, Ole Miss’s Trinidad Chambliss, Ohio State’s Julian Sayin, and LSU’s Sam Leavitt come into the tier-2 conversation. We haven’t even mentioned the likes of John Mateer and LaNorris Sellers.

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In such a scenario, some of these names will likely return to their respective teams or find new ones in the portal after the 2026 season. Dante Moore could have gone to the pros this year, but he came back for another season. Oklahoma State’s Drew Mestemaker can easily follow that trajectory.

In EA Sports’ College Football 27, Mestemaker was one of the only three quarterbacks nationwide to earn a 90+ rating in all three passing accuracy categories.

According to NFL scouting reports, multiple evaluators have compared Mestemaker’s game directly to the young Philip Rivers. He possesses a downfield “cannon” of an arm and commands the pocket with a fearless demeanor. The QB can also effortlessly throw into tight windows even when staring down a heavy pass rush.

After an impressive 2025 campaign, Mastemaker followed his North Texas coach, Eric Morris, to Oklahoma State through the portal. The only thing that can derail the QB is the Cowboys’ continued struggles in the Big 12. Last season, Oklahoma State finished with a 1-11 record. In 2024, they were 3-9.

The program has now roped in Eric Morris to replace Mike Gundy. The new head coach likes what he’s seeing from Mastemaker.

“He’s super vocal in the huddle,” Moris said to Yahoo Sports. “When a receiver split wasn’t where it’s supposed to be, he’s been able to take charge and almost be a coach out there as opposed to a receiver’s coach screaming across the field that we’re lined up wrong. Drew sees it like that, and he’s able to go and address that for us.”

Drew Mestemaker’s breakthrough year at North Texas

Mestemaker’s time in North Texas was nothing less than an unbelievable underdog story. He threw for exactly 4,841 yards and 34 touchdowns before transferring to the Big 12. The QB went from an unheralded, zero-star high school backup who had to beg for a walk-on spot to the absolute leading passer in the entire FBS. 

In 2025, he finally won the QB1 battle, and that was the rise of an elite athlete. In a single game against Charlotte, Mestemaker set both school and American Athletic Conference historical records. He threw for an astonishing 608 yards and 4 touchdowns. He led the program to a record of a 12-win season and a New Mexico Bowl victory.