Late last week the Manning Award announced its watch list of 30 quarterbacks, the signal-callers it believes are the best in the nation. The Pac-12 took home the title a season ago with All-Everything Marcus Mariota, but can the conference do it again in 2015? It had four players named to the list.

1. Jared Goff, Cal: The rising junior is preparing for a big year in Berkeley. Goff has been garnering all sorts of NFL attention this offseason, but his focus remains on the season ahead with the Bears. "I'm trying to soak it all in," Goff recently told the AP. "It's still kind of surreal." Two weeks ago, Goff spoke to reporters about the progress he has made and said that he's very excited to get back on the field this season.

2. Kevin Hogan, Stanford: One writer believes that Hogan is ready to have a huge senior season for the Cardinal. Scout's R.J. Aneytia analyzed Hogan's stats from the season and took a closer look at the final three games. Surprisingly (or not surprisingly, depending on how closely you follow Stanford), Hogan was markedly better than the first 10 games of 2014. "When you factor in the insane amount of talent he's got running routes for him from all three receiving positions, the table is certainly set for Hogan to feast on opposing defenses this season," Aneytia wrote. Matt Murschel of The Orlando Sentinel recently ranked Stanford as the No. 35 team in the country. He noted Hogan as one of the team's strengths, but also suggested that this could be a year in which the departed talent could catch up to the team.

3. Cody Kessler, USC: Bleacher Report recently named Kessler as a top 10 college QB and said his NFL counterpart is Drew Brees. "Kessler is not the biggest quarterback at 6-foot-1, 210 pounds, but he has good pocket presence and a strong, accurate arm," Greg Wallace wrote. "He also runs a pro-style offense and has done well against pressure in the pocket." Bill Connelly of SBNation wrote a good preview of the 2015 Trojans and his opinion of Kessler is this: "Kessler doesn't carry much of a swagger, and he does tend to take safe throws more often than not. So maybe that damages his 'USC QUARTERBACK' cred. But you can win a lot of games with this guy, especially if you provide him with a running game."

4. Anu Solomon, Arizona: Tucson.com had a full rundown of Arizona's quarterback situation. Of Solomon it said: "The coaches saw plenty to like in terms of the passing game and Solomon’s decision making. If he can continue to improve on the decision making he was showing in the first half of the season, it would be a welcome development for the Wildcats." One thing Solomon has going his way is the number of returning offensive playmakers. Running back Nick Wilson will be ready to take on more this season as a sophomore and his stable of wide receivers is "filled with size, speed and dependability."