Pro Football Focus released its latest mock draft, and Miami is currently picking 3rd overall if the season ended today; with the 3rd overall pick, they’d take the first quarterback off the board.
Drew Mestemaker never started a varsity game in high school. At Vandegrift High in Austin, Texas, he played behind a Power Five quarterback recruit and spent his senior year on special teams and defense, earning honorable mention as a punter and safety. No recruiting stars, no scholarship offers.
He walked on at North Texas under head coach Eric Morris and redshirted in 2024, appearing in five games with one start, in the First Responder Bowl against Texas State, where he accounted for 448 yards of total offense including a 70-yard rushing touchdown – the most total offense by any player in the 2024-25 bowl cycle.
Starting all 14 games as a redshirt freshman in 2025, Mestemaker led the FBS with 4,379 passing yards and threw 34 touchdowns against nine interceptions, setting single-season records at UNT for passing yards, touchdowns, completion percentage (68.4), and passer efficiency (168.69). He won the Burlsworth Trophy as the nation’s best former walk-on, was named American Conference Offensive Player of the Year and a First Team All-AAC selection, and was a semifinalist for the Davey O’Brien and Walter Camp awards. He followed Morris to Oklahoma State ahead of the 2026 season, where he is expected to run the same Air Raid-based system.
Mestemaker is one of the more unusual evaluations in the class, a zero-star walk-on who never started a varsity game in high school, redshirted in 2024, then rewrote the North Texas record book in 2025 with 4,381 yards and 34 touchdowns, taking American Conference Offensive Player of the Year and the Burlsworth Trophy as the nation’s top former walk-on. The arm talent and the production are clearly there; his release is fast, the deep and intermediate accuracy is a real strength, and he plays with the timing and patience the Air Raid demands.
The signature games show the ceiling. He shredded Rice for 469 yards and three scores without a turnover and dropped a school-record 608 on Charlotte. He can fit throws into windows most college quarterbacks would not attempt, and he gets the ball out quickly enough to keep himself clean. He transferred to Oklahoma State to reunite with head coach Eric Morris and several former teammates, which should ease the jump to Power Four football.
The questions sit alongside the production. His release starts low, almost from the hip, and when he does not finish the follow-through the ball sails, which showed up on outside throws and drove several of his interceptions; for a 6-4 quarterback he also had too many passes tipped at the line. His two worst outings came against the only ranked defenses he faced, and that is not something to wave away even for a redshirt freshman. He is thin and needs functional weight. Overall, the release, the arm and the competitive wiring give a staff a real foundation, and the 2026 Big 12 tape against better competition is the most important film in his evaluation, with the mechanics the priority.
Measureables
Height: 6’3″
Weight: 215 lbs
Statistics
2025: 319 completions from 463 attempts, 4,379 yards, 34 touchdowns, and nine interceptions.
2024: 30 completions from 46 attempts, 462 yards, two touchdowns, and two interceptions.
The Tape
Games Watched: at Western Michigan, at Tulane (conference championship), and San Diego State (bowl game).
Strengths
Mestemaker operates a spread system, allowing him to get into a nice rhythm. He will make his read, often on what one defender does, and get the ball out on time. When called for, he takes something off his passes and throws a catchable ball.
There are other elements to the offense, which will appeal to the NFL. Mestemaker shows the ability to get through progressions, resetting his feet as he does.
He will throw with timing and anticipation, most often on out-breaking routes, where he throws before or as the receiver is making his break. His ball placement is good.
Mestemaker’s arm is big enough to make all the throws, including when he’s on the run. His deep ball doesn’t have too much air, not allowing defensive backs that extra second to recover.
When plays break down, Mestemaker is able to extend plays while keeping his eyes down the field. He does this a lot, rolling to his right. Doing this, he uses his legs to buy time to pass, rather than scrambling as his first option. You also see his ability to manipulate the pocket, with a subtle move to sidestep pressure.
On either scrambles or designed runs, Mestemaker shows he’s a good enough athlete to pick up yardage. He builds up speed, and when up to full speed, he eats up the yards, but he’s not an instant accelerator.
Areas to Improve
2025 was Mestemaker’s first year as a starting quarterback, and that inexperience does show. He needs to speed up his processing when his first read isn’t there. This will come as he sees more snaps and situations. The same can be said of his overall decision-making.
His pre and post-snap reads also need to improve. This was evident more against Tulane and San Diego State. He needs to identify blitzes or who is dropping into a passing lane more efficiently. These two areas to improve manifest in him taking too many sacks as he’s holding the ball too long. Again, this will come with time.
Right now, Mestemaker tends to climb the pocket and then turn into a scrambler. You don’t see him climb the pocket and drive the ball. While his arm is good, you don’t see him really drive the ball. This should improve as he becomes more confident in his reading and decision-making. Right now, there’s a little uncertainty, and once he processes quickly and commits, this type of pass should become part of his game. He has the raw traits to do this.
Mestemaker does show touch, but he is still developing as a deep touch passer, including layering throws over defenders. He also gets too many passes batted at the line, partly a product of his giving away his target with his eyes. His release point is also inconsistent and should be a focus this off-season.
Mestemaker would also benefit from adding a little weight. He looks a little thin, and adding bulk will help him hold up physically.
Drew Mestemaker Key Tests in 2026
A week two out-of-conference matchup, hosting Oregon, is a fantastic early litmus test for Mestemaker.
Reigning conference champions, Texas Tech, are the other obvious big test on the schedule. They host the Red Raiders in week 11.
Other tests include at West Virginia (week four), UCF (week six), at Kansas State (week 10), and at Arizona State (week 12).
The full schedule can be found here.
Drew Mestemaker Summary
Elements of Mestemaker’s game jump off the tape. He clearly has the raw traits to be a first-round pick. He’s in a similar bucket to Arch Manning in that they are both not finished products as of today.
Entering his redshirt sophomore season, he needs to improve his decision-making and processing. If he does so in 2026, expect to hear a great deal about this former walk-on.