The NFL draft came and went, and not a single quarterback was taken from the SEC. Three days, seven rounds, 256 picks (seven of which were quarterbacks) and not a single SEC signal caller came off the board.

That’s quite a change of tune from last year’s draft, which featured four SEC quarterback selections: Johnny Manziel, Aaron Murray, A.J. McCarron and Zach Mettenberger. Now, there were a few SEC quarterbacks from this year’s draft class who signed with teams as free agents (Bo Wallace and Dylan Thompson), but there’s a strong possibility that not a single SEC quarterback from 2014 is on an opening day NFL roster this fall.

So to hell with this year’s draft class (not really, but I’m trying to make a point). Let’s look ahead to the draft classes of years to come to try and find which SEC quarterback will be the conference’s next “buzzy” NFL prospect.

We need look no further than next season, when Mississippi State fifth-year senior Dak Prescott finally enters the NFL draft. I’m well chronicled in my fondness of Prescott and the way he plays the position, and Dan Mullen’s track record of developing quarterbacks (he coached Alex Smith to the No. 1 pick in the 2005 draft and coached Chris Leak and Tim Tebow to national titles) speaks for itself.

So with a fifth year in Mullen’s system and a second as the guy on an SEC team, Prescott has a great chance to ascend into the higher rounds of next year’s NFL draft.

There a multitude of reasons why Prescott’s draft stock is likely to rise in the coming year. For starters, the added experience he’ll gain in the SEC will only make him a better player. UCLA head coach Jim Mora Jr. talked Brett Hundley into returning to quarterback UCLA last season by showing him evidence of how much better a quarterback often pans out in the pros when he’s made at least 30 starts in the NFL. Hundley hadn’t reached the 30-start mark prior to last season, and as it stands now Prescott has made only 20 career starts.

But he’d top 30 starts if he made it through the regular season healthy, and that added experience would come against a number of future NFL prospects on the defensive side of the ball in the SEC (the conference has led the nation with the most draft picks for eight years in a row).

Second, Prescott was a budding star last season and will now enter 2015 as one of college football’s best quarterbacks, along with TCU Trevone Boykin and Ohio State’s trio of signal callers. With a number of marquee games on the schedule and enough winnable games to nearly ensure bowl eligibly, Prescott should be able to dazzle fans across the nation just as he did a year ago. He’ll have less talent around him, but he’ll have the benefit of an oft-potent rushing attack at MSU and the return of top wideout De’Runnya Wilson.

His team may not be better, but he will be, and that can show at the quarterback position even if teams like Texas A&M and LSU avenge losses to the Bulldogs a year ago.

Third, Prescott has been coached by a man who knows a thing or two about NFL quarterbacks in Mullen, and he’s just the right blend of pocket passer and dual-threat athlete to star in the league. Prescott runs well, but he’s not looking to run unless he absolutely has to. He’s comparable to a poor man’s Ben Roethlisberger in that he’s a very mobile quarterback but does most of his running behind the line of scrimmage, extending plays to find receivers open downfield on a broken play.

He can keep defenses honest with his legs, but bring the fluency in a pro-style offense, the big frame and the strong arm that teams desire. This isn’t to say he’ll be a top 10 pick (although he might be depending on how things shake out), but it is to say that Prescott is going to be the SEC’s highest drafted quarterback since 2012 with the exception of one Johnny Manziel.

Quarterbacks like A&M’s Kyle Allen, a former five-star talent with early starting experience in a pass-happy offense, or Tennessee’s Joshua Dobbs, a highly athletic, highly intelligent playmaker at quarterback for Tennessee, may also qualify. Auburn’s new starter, Jeremy Johnson, has already shown signs of a potential NFL future as well following somewhat the same path as Prescott, minus the experience factor. Recent recruits like Ole Miss’ Shea Patterson or Alabama’s Blake Barnett could develop into great NFL talents, but it’s still too early to tell.

For now, the SEC quarterback with the best chance of living near the top of Mel Kiper’s big board is Prescott, the unofficial mayor of Starkville, the SEC’s crown gem at quarterback in 2015 and perhaps, one day, a pro sensation.