The Missouri football defense enters a new era in 2024.

Corey Batoon takes the wheel as the Tigers’ defensive coordinator. Five MU starters heard their name called in the 2024 NFL Draft. Several more either found a home on an undrafted free agent deal or exhausted their collegiate eligibility.

Mizzou replenished well in the portal, bringing in nine players on the defensive side — several of whom shape up to be instant-plug starters.

Now, who will they be up against?

For starters, not a single quarterback they faced in the 2023 season.

Here are the 12 QBs that Missouri likely will face next season, ranked by the Tribune in descending order by past production and their 2024 potential:

More: Missouri football learns kickoff times for Buffalo, Boston College games in September

More: ‘Not normal’: Darris Smith brings size, speed to Missouri football defensive end room

12: Murray State, Jayden Johannsen

Faces Missouri: Aug. 29 in Columbia

Murray State turned to D-II South Dakota Mines transfer Jayden Johannsen and Miami-Ohio freshman Joe Humphreys in the portal to fill a gap at quarterback. Whoever it is, Batoon’s group should have an FCS feast in the Thursday, Aug. 29, opener with sparing high-level reps between the pair.

More: What's different so far for Missouri football under new defensive coordinator?

11: Buffalo, CJ Ogbonna

Faces Missouri: Sept. 7 in Columbia

Missouri has seen Ogbonna before: In 2021, when he played for Southeast Missouri State in a 59-28 Tigers win on Faurot Field. JUCO transfer Gunnar Gray is Buffalo’s other option under center next season. Ogbonna is a threat on the run, but this is a chance for MU to pad some early season stats in Week 2.

10: UMass, Taisun Phommachanh

Faces Missouri: Oct. 12 in Amherst, Mass.

A sixth-year senior, Phommachanh played nine games for UMass last season, averaging 167.4 passing yards per game and throwing for six touchdowns and six interceptions. Missouri should be able to capitalize on his inconsistency.

9: Boston College, Thomas Castellanos

Faces Missouri: Sept. 14 in Columbia

Castellanos is more of a threat with his legs than his arm, which has been the Tigers’ achilles heel on occasion over the past few seasons. The QB averaged more than 85 yards per game on the ground last season for 13 touchdowns, while throwing for 15 touchdowns and 14 interceptions.

It’ll be intriguing to see what new Eagles coach Bill O’Brien does with the incumbent starter. If the first couple games go according to plan, Week 3 should give Batoon’s Mizzou team an early question to answer.

8: Arkansas, Taylen Green

Faces Missouri: Nov. 30 in Columbia

Green, a Boise State transfer, takes the reins from UCF-bound KJ Jefferson. The Razorbacks were in a bit of a lurch at QB, losing their starter and their backup, Jacolby Criswell. Green should bring some stability, if not explosivity.

With the Broncos, the quarterback averaged 134.8 passing yards and 33.5 rushing yards per game last season. He ran for 436 yards and nine touchdowns. The Razorbacks have all of their pass-catchers back, but that was a unit that struggled in 2023 with just two receivers among the top 60 in the SEC’s receiving yards.

7: Vanderbilt, Nate Johnson

Faces Missouri: Sept. 21 in Columbia

Vanderbilt lost a potential star in AJ Swann to LSU. The Commodores lost both of Swann’s backups, too, meaning they don’t have a single returning pass attempt. Johnson, a Utah transfer, is a capable replacement but lacks in-game experience — and he will head into a QB competition in fall camp.

As a Ute, Johnson saw the field in 12 games over two seasons as Cameron Rising’s backup. Johnson’s challenge in Nashville, Tennessee, will be finding weapons with which to work, as Vandy lost more than half of its returning pass-catching production to the portal.

Also competing for the job is New Mexico State transfer and the C-USA Offensive Player of Year, Diego Pavia, who was on Faurot Field for the Aggies in November 2022 in a 45-14 MU win.

6: South Carolina, LaNorris Sellers

Faces Missouri: Nov. 16 in Columbia, S.C.

Gamecocks coach Shane Beamer named Sellers as Spencer Rattler’s replacement as QB1 after the South Carolina spring game in April. Sellers, a former four-star prospect, has a big arm. You won’t find many QBs with a better rating than Sellers’ 445.6, stemming from a 4-for-4 relief appearance against Furman last season that went for 86 yards and two touchdowns. He pairs that with a substantial threat of taking off running, rushing five times last season for 51 yards and an end-zone trip.

Sellers’ upside is high, but his inexperience is a hurdle. South Carolina has a lot to prove on the offensive end — especially without top receiver and NFL first-rounder Xavier Legette.

5: Auburn, Peyton Thorne

Faces Missouri: Oct. 19 in Columbia

Thorne’s 16-touchdown, 10-interception first season as the starter on the plains was inconsistent, but second-year Auburn head coach Hugh Freeze seems to have put some serious weapons around him now. Penn State transfer KeAndre Lambert-Smith and five-star freshman Cam Coleman both could make Thorne’s life a whole lot easier in Year 2.

The quarterback competition isn't quite settled yet, but Thorne appears to be the heavy favorite.

4: Mississippi State, Blake Shapen

Faces Missouri: Nov. 23 in Starkville, Miss.

The quarterback competition in Starkville, Mississippi, isn’t quite settled, but Baylor transfer Blake Shapen is the frontrunner to suit up under new head coach Jeff Lebby ahead of four-star freshman Michael Van Buren. Shapen has back-to-back +2,000-yard passing seasons at Baylor in which cumulatively he completed 62.6% of his passes and tossed 31 touchdowns to 13 interceptions.

The Bulldogs were among the SEC’s least productive offenses in 2023, but with the offensive-minded Lebby now in charge and some experience at QB, that could be in for an uptick.

3: Oklahoma, Jackson Arnold

Faces Missouri: Nov. 9 in Columbia

Arnold made his first college start in the Alamo Bowl, and that was enough to seal his spot as the Sooners’ next starter as he went 26 of 45 for 361 yards, two touchdowns and three interceptions in a loss to Arizona.

The former five-star prospect replaces Dillon Gabriel, who transferred to Oregon in the offseason, and thus has big shoes to fill. Arnold was the 2022-23 Gatorade National Player of the Year and now gets his shot as a starting college quarterback.

2: Texas A&M, Conner Weigman

Faces Missouri: Oct. 5 in College Station, Texas

Texas A&M’s starter could very well be the best quarterback Missouri faces next season, but after a season on the sidelines, the former four-star prospect will need to prove that on the field. Before a season-ending injury after four games as a sophomore last season, Weigman averaged 244.8 yards per game on a 69% completion rate, tossing eight touchdowns and two picks.

Weigman has potential in abundance, and the early October matchup at Kyle Field could be pivotal in Mizzou’s run at a College Football Playoff berth. How the Tigers defense deals with the QB could be a big indicator for the remainder of the year.

1: Alabama, Jalen Milroe

Faces Missouri: Oct. 26 in Tuscaloosa, Ala.

The second half of Jalen Milroe’s debut season as Alabama — from 4th-and-31 in the Iron Bowl to a four rushing-TD performance against LSU — showed his potential as a dual-threat star. Under new head coach Kalen DeBoer, there’s a real shot he could take another step in his progression.

Already one of the best QBs in the country with his legs, if DeBoer can unlock some of the explosiveness he did with Michael Penix Jr. at Washington, Milroe could be in for a stellar year. The Tide lost some of their top pass-catching options, but the addition of Washington wideout Germie Bernard and freshman five-star Ryan Williams should help that cause.

More: Who will be Missouri football's toughest opponent on 2024 schedule? Ranking all 12

This article originally appeared on Columbia Daily Tribune: Ranking opposing quarterbacks on Missouri football's 2024 schedule