Kansas City, Mo ? Senior quarterbacks Seneca Wallace of Iowa State, Chris Simms of Texas and Kliff Kingsbury of Texas Tech passed for a total of 11,469 yards and 86 touchdowns last season.

“Our conference was the best quarterback conference in the country last year,” Texas Tech football coach Mike Leach said Thursday at Big 12 Conference Media Day, “and the best ones graduated.”

Maybe. But plenty of good quarterbacks remain, and some of the best are underclassmen.

So who is the best of the bunch?

“I don’t know,” said Missouri sophomore Brad Smith, the 2002 national Freshman of the Year who set an MU record with 3,362 yards of total offense.

Smith passed for 2,333 yards and threw more than twice as many touchdown passes (15) as interceptions (six), and his average of 280.2 total yards per game ranked 10th in the nation and second in the conference. He also rushed for 1,029 yards and seven TDs.

The sophomore already is being mentioned as a Heisman Trophy candidate — a lofty goal for a player on a team that has won just nine games in the last two seasons.

“I don’t think too much about (the hype),” Smith said. “It’s about playing, and I love to play. Whatever honors I get, I’m grateful for.”

The preseason All-American lost his top receiver, Justin Gage, who caught 82 passes for 1,075 yards and nine TDs as a senior.

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But Missouri coach Gary Pinkel thinks Smith (6-foot-2, 205 pounds) will improve his freshman statistics by reading defenses better.

“Things will slow down dramatically for Brad,” Pinkel said. “He’ll be able to see more. We’ll give him more options at the line of scrimmage. He’s a remarkable student of the game.”

Smith was a 160-pound, 16-year-old when he made his official recruiting visit to MU. At the time, Pinkel was concerned Smith was “too nice.”

“He’s very mild-mannered,” Pinkel said. “He says ‘Yes, sir’ and ‘No, sir’ to me so much I tell him to shut up. He’s a nice young man, but he’s a tremendous competitor. When he puts that helmet on, there’s a tremendous transformation.”

Another underclassman, Oklahoma State’s Josh Fields (6-1, 210), passed for 3,145 yards and 31 TDs as a sophomore.

Smith benefited from having All-American receiver Rashaun Woods, who caught 107 passes for 1,695 yards and 17 TDs last year and turned down the prospect of NFL riches to return for his senior season.

The Cowboys hope to build on last year’s 8-5 mark.

“I think any offensive team must be settled in what they’re going to do at quarterback and find the best guy to do those things,” Oklahoma State coach Les Miles said. “It appears to me, in our conference, we are pretty settled. For example, the decision A&M has made to have two quarterbacks play, their coaching staff is settling on what they’re going to do. I just look forward to having Josh Fields in that position. To me, he’s a tremendous playmaker.”

First-year Texas A&M coach Dennis Franchione either avoided a quarterback controversy or created a huge one by announcing he’ll use both returning starter Dustin Long (6-3, 205) and heralded sophomore Reggie McNeal (6-2, 195).

Long passed for 2,509 yards and 16 TDs last year as a sophomore, including a 399-yard, seven-touchdown performance against Kansas University. But he threw 16 interceptions and sometimes left the Aggie faithful chanting for McNeal.

McNeal got his chance against top-ranked Oklahoma when he came off the bench and led A&M to victory with four touchdown passes.

He and Long both said they were willing to share the role.

“I’ve always started,” McNeal said. “But this is another level. It’s a plus for us to have more than one quarterback. Anything can happen to either one of us, and we’re fortunate that if anything did happen to one of us, we have another guy to come in that’s just as good.”

KU learned the value of quarterback depth last season when Fort Scott Community College transfer Bill Whittemore missed the final three games of the season because of a knee injury. The Jayhawks scored only 27 points without Whittemore (6-0, 205).

The Big 12 Offensive Newcomer of the Year passed for 1,666 yards and 11 touchdowns in only nine games and rushed for 549 yards and 11 TDs.

One reporter asked Whittemore if he was the best quarterback in the league.

“I’m not,” he said. “That’s not for me to decide anyway. I’m going to go out there and play my best. I’m not worried about individual talk. I’m just trying to lead our team and have a much better year than last year.”

Oklahoma senior Jason White (6-3, 221) said he was recovered from a torn anterior cruciate ligament — his second in two years — that sidelined him in the 2002 season opener.

Like Whittemore, Kansas State’s Ell Roberson (6-1, 205) presents a threat as a runner and passer. He finished 2002 with 1,465 rushing yards and 17 TDs. He also passed for 1,580 passing yards and six TDs.

“Our players have gained a great respect for Ell over the years, in particularly last year with the improvement he made,” KSU coach Bill Snyder said. “They feel extremely confident about his capabilities and how he interacts with our offensive football team.”

Nebraska’s Jammal Lord (6-2, 220) also passed and rushed for more than 1,000 yards, but he threw as many touchdown passes (12) as interceptions.

Baylor junior Aaron Karas (6-2, 197) passed for 1,792 yards, but he had twice as many interceptions (13) as TDs (six).

Colorado must replace Robert Hodge. The leading candidate is sophomore Joel Klatt (6-1, 195), who spent two years in the San Diego Padres minor-league system before walking on at CU last fall.

With the departures of Wallace, Simms and Kingsbury, three other Big 12 schools will be looking for new starters.

Iowa State coach Dan McCarney will have to choose between three inexperienced players. Junior Cris Love (6-5, 214) threw 10 passes in four games last year. Red-shirt freshman Austin Flynn (6-1, 186) and transfer Waye Terry (6-3, 207) haven’t played a down at ISU.

Texas coach Mack Brown already named Chance Mock (6-2, 215) the successor to Simms. The junior will have the benefit of throwing to standout receiver Roy Williams, who caught 64 passes for 1,142 yards and 12 TDs last year.

Tech will turn to senior B.J. Symons (6-2, 215), who threw five TDs in a backup role last year.

“Anytime a quarterback is lost, it’s like the sky is falling,” Leach said. “Whenever a new guy starts, things are usually all right. He’s not a guy who’s new to the deal. He’s thrown to these guys for years. I don’t think it’s a big adjustment to the team.”