Separating the fact from the fancy is becoming easier.

Contender. Pretender. Whatever you want to call it. Clear lines between elite, good, mediocre and bad are forming.

The best of those qualifiers is clear. There are two in the SEC. On the next tier, a couple more. Perhaps three. After that, well, make your own conclusions.

What is certain is while the SEC may not have the depth of quarterback play as its had in years past, right now, there are some awfully good ones at the top.

Here are the top 10 in the conference through three weeks. Last week’s ranking is in parenthesis.

10. Maty Mauk, Missouri (10)

America will pretend they never watched Missouri-Connecticut on Saturday. Just as well. Those 9-6 final scores don’t do a lot to move the sport forward. Mauk continues to be as advertised. That is not necessarily all that good of a thing. That said, he has the Tigers at 3-0, a better record than several quarterbacks ranked ahead of him.

Last week: 14-22, 145 yards, 0 touchdowns, 1 interception
Season: 42-80, 474 yards, 5 touchdowns, 4 interceptions

9. Will Grier, Florida (6)

Grier took his first backward step against Kentucky. Like a few others on the list, Grier is a better runner than passer. It doesn’t seem like he can make big plays with his arm against decent competition. But he’s also just a freshman and looked sharp in Florida’s first two games.

Last week: 13-22, 125 yards, 0 touchdowns, 1 interception; 12 carries, 61 yards, 1 touchdown
Season: 39-57, 442 yards, 4 touchdowns, 2 interceptions; 19 carries, 114 yards, 2 touchdowns

8. Brandon Harris, LSU (NR)

Harris’ job is easy. Take snap. Turn around. Hand ball to Leonard Fournette. Well, it’s a little more complex than that, but it’s a formula that’s made everyone forget the supposed LSU bugga-boos entering the year. Harris was competent enough throwing against Auburn to not get the Tigers in trouble and he was somewhat dangerous with his legs. Good enough.

Last week: 12-17, 74 yards, 1 touchdown, 0 interceptions; 8 carries, 66 yards, 2 touchdowns
Season: 21-31, 145 yards, 1 touchdown, 0 interceptions; 13 carries, 114 yards, 2 touchdowns

7. Jake Coker, Alabama (7)

Whether Coker was playing poorly enough for Nick Saban to yank him from the starting lineup or the coach simply wanted a surprise change, Alabama didn’t get enough quarterbacking to beat Ole Miss in Week 3. Coker tried to stage a comeback and despite numbers that ended subpar, his performance was not as bad as it appeared.

Last week: 21-44, 201 yards, 3 touchdowns, 2 interceptions
Season: 51-91, 628 yards, 5 touchdowns, 3 interceptions

6. Greyson Lambert, Georgia (9)

Ladies and gentlemen, the most accurate passer in the history of Division I football – Greyson Lambert. Go figure. After being almost chided in these rankings the last two weeks, Lambert made dopes out of us. Well, he made dopes out of South Carolina, anyway. Lambert can, apparently, make the plays necessary to get Georgia to the playoff.

Last week: 24-25, 330 yards, 3 touchdowns, 0 interceptions
Season: 43-58, 587 yards, 5 touchdowns, 0 interceptions

5. Brandon Allen, Arkansas (4)

The throws Brandon Allen didn’t make, for the second consecutive week, loomed larger than the ones he did. The question remains – and at this point, it’s less of a question and more of a fact – whether Allen has the stuff to provide Arkansas a fourth-quarter comeback. He’s never done it. But if he can do enough in early stages to build the Razorbacks a lead, he can hold on to one.

Last week: 16-21, 196 yards, 2 touchdowns, 1 interception
Season: 62-92, 916 yards, 6 touchdowns, 2 interceptions

4. Joshua Dobbs, Tennessee (8)

Dobbs fell too far in last week’s rankings after Oklahoma made him look bad. Granted, the Volunteers’ Week 3 opponent was hardly difficult, but Dobbs returned to what everyone figured at the beginning of the year. He’s as good a dual-threat as there in the SEC, save one.

Last week: 15-21, 144 yards, 2 touchdowns, 0 interceptions
Season: 43-74, 474 yards, 5 touchdowns, 1 interception

3. Kyle Allen, Texas A&M (3)

Allen continues to provide steady, slightly-above-average play for Texas A&M. Kyler Murray, his backup, has more flash, but Allen isn’t letting go of the job with continued good performances. It might be unspectacular. It might ordinary. It still has the Aggies in good shape.

Last week: 18-31, 270 yards, 4 touchdowns, 1 interception; 10 carries, 55 yards, 1 touchdown
Season: 43-70, 594 yards, 9 touchdowns, 2 interceptions; 22 carries, 66 yards, 2 touchdowns

2. Dak Prescott, Mississippi State (2)

Prescott got a deserved “week off” in the Bulldogs third game after nearly bringing Mississippi State all the way back against LSU two weeks ago. From a sheer talent perspective, Prescott is still arguably the best in the league. But few can argue what his counterpart up the road is doing.

Last week: 10-11, 227 yards, 2 touchdowns, 0 interceptions; 6 carries, 54 yards
Season: 66-101, 5 touchdowns, 0 interceptions; 24 carries, 104 yards, 2 touchdowns

1. Chad Kelly, Ole Miss (1)

Chad Kelly is as good as any quarterback FBS right now. He’s lead his team to two 70-point performances and then a win over Alabama last week. He isn’t on Heisman Trophy radars, not significantly, yet, but if he continues, there will be little doubt.

Last week: 18-33, 341 yards, 3 touchdowns, 0 interceptions; 8 carries, 21 yards, 1 touchdown
Season: 47-73, 898 yards, 9 touchdowns, 1 interceptions; 14 carries, 67 yards, 3 touchdowns