Top Five Big Ten Starting Quarterbacks Entering Spring Practice

Aug 30, 2014; Champaign, IL, USA; Illinois quarterback Wes Lunt (18) looks for an open receiver in the game against Youngstown State at Memorial Stadium. Illinois beat Youngstown State 28-17. Mandatory Credit: Mike Granse-USA TODAY Sports

 No. 4: Wes Lunt- Illinois

Lunt is very interesting quarterback to say the least. Originally an Oklahoma State Cowboy, Lunt transferred to Illinois in hopes of playing time as well as returning close to home.

Lunt has a great arm and has great size coming in at 6-foot-5. However, he still needs to add more weight as he only comes in at 215 pounds.

But in Lunt’s first four career starts, he lead the Illini to a three and one record. He completed 100 of 152 passes for 1,237 yards and 11 touchdowns to go along with just three interceptions. That included a 456-yard performance against Western Kentucky in which he completed 70.0% of his passes.

However, after a 42-35 win at Texas State, injuries began to riddle Lunt’s season and he only appeared in four more games the rest of the way. In those four games he completed 53 of 89 passes, a six percent decrease in completion percentage from his first four stats. One good sign however in those last four starts is that he did not throw any interceptions.

After his 2014 season, Lunt will enter 2015 looking to prove his worth as a quarterback in the Big Ten and could quickly rise up draft boards with strong performances. Last season, he was projected to finish the regular season with 3,711 yards, 33 touchdowns and just nine interceptions. A season like that could make the Illini a tougher team to face in 2015 and help lead the Illini to a winning record.