For far too long it was too easy of an question. Who was on the Mt. Rushmore of Mississippi quarterbacks? Obviously it was Archie and Eli Manning, Steve McNair and Brett Favre. We could debate order, but they were the best.

Now what about Dak Prescott? He's set to play his final regular season game for Mississippi State in the Egg Bowl on Saturday, and it's come to the appropriate time to start talking legacy. Does he belong? And if he does, then who do you leave off? Five writers each made the pitch for their man (using only their college accomplishments), and why he is one of the four best. Relive the plays and moments that made these five quarterbacks college football legends, and you can also vote for your favorite four at the bottom.

The Case For ... Archie Manning

The list of reasons why Archie Manning is the greatest of all Mississippi quarterbacks should begin with this: he’s Archie Freakin’ Manning. Really, that should be enough.

But if you want more, there’s plenty to discuss. How about the fact that he broke every school record Ole Miss ever had, and still has three of them (and a share of a fourth)? That he finished fourth in Heisman Trophy voting in 1969, third a year later and has been a member of the College Football Hall of Fame since 1989? Have we mentioned that Manning’s No. 18 is the only number you cannot ever wear at Ole Miss?

But those are just lines on the resume. Less of us saw Manning play live, so it’s easy to rely on the honors and everything he has done since he left Oxford. But go to YouTube and type in Archie Manning Ole Miss highlights. They’re amazing.

Just take the Alabama game in 1969. It’s when Manning became a star. The game was nationally televised, which was a really big deal back then, and it was a heck of a game. And while yes the Rebels lost that night, Manning was the guy everyone was talking about. He threw for 436 yards (still a record) and three touchdowns, and ran for another 104 yards. If he’d had a couple more seconds, Manning might have won it.

Manning was the Johnny Manziel of his time. He would wiggle through defenders, fght off glancing blows and just refuse to give up on plays. How many of his 25 rushing touchdowns only came after he saw a hole no one else did or put his body on the line? The Alabama game made Manning a star, but he was terrific in the 1970 Sugar Bowl (an upset of then-No. 3 Arkansas)

Mostly this is why Manning is the greatest Mississippi quarterback: he was first. Everyone before that and ever since has been compared to him in some way or another. The boy from Drew did not play on the best Ole Miss teams of that era, but he got the most out of them he could. He did it running and throwing. He was the kind of player who could become a sensation (“Is it really wrong for a 40-year-old man to be in love with a 21-year-old boy?" a man once asked a Sports Illustrated writer), and never be forgotten. In a lot of ways, Ole Miss football is still Archie Manning. There’s something to be said for that.

-- Hugh Kellenberger, Sports columnist

The Case For ... Brett Favre

It’s a story that’s been told countless times, so what’s once more?

Mark McHale had only recently been hired as an assistant coach at Southern Miss in 1986 when some of his contacts asked him (independent of one another) if he’d been down to Kiln to see the raw, but talented, Hancock North Central quarterback Brett Favre, the son of the same school’s head coach.

McHale hadn’t. Matter of fact, McHale combed over every recruiting list in his arsenal and found nothing on Favre whose only offer to that point was to play defensive back at Delta State – or so Favre’s father, Irvin, told McHale.

Long story short, McHale convinced the Golden Eagle coaching staff to take a flier on Favre, who ran the Wing-T in high school and very rarely threw the ball in games.

Next thing you know, the happy-go-lucky Favre, who had confidence to spare even then, according to McHale, is thrust into the quarterback job as a true freshman at Southern Miss in 1987. In the second game of the season, Favre came on in the second half for the injured starter, threw two touchdowns and led the Golden Eagles to a come-from-behind, 31-24 victory over Tulane.

Then, he and Southern Miss beat Louisville. Then, Mississippi State.

As a sophomore, Favre got the best of Louisville and Mississippi State again and added a victory over Virginia Tech to the mix, leading Southern Miss to a 10-2 season – tied for the most wins in school history at the time.

The next two seasons were more of the same. But it was the Golden Eagles’ win over No. 6 Florida State in the season opener in 1989 that put Favre on the map. His game-winning touchdown pass came with only 23 seconds left. In his senior season, Favre and Southern Miss knocked off Alabama, Auburn and Louisville again.

Point is, sure, Favre put up some nice numbers during his playing career at Southern Miss – 7,695 passing yards and 52 touchdowns, both of which still rank third on the school’s career lists.

But the wins. Boy, oh boy, the wins. That’s what it’s all about in college football. Or any sport. Winning. Numbers are good for helping a player gain notoriety. But wins put the entire program on the map. And Favre’s cartography skills during his time at Southern Miss make him the best college quarterback this state has ever seen.

-- Jason Munz, Southern Miss beat writer

The Case for ... Steve McNair

If it were up to most of the college coaches who recruited him, the late Steve “Air” McNair probably would have never been in consideration for the Mt. Rushmore of Mississippi quarterbacks.

“Everybody wanted to recruit him as a defensive back at that point in time, a lot of people came down and visited at home,” said Steve’s brother, Fred, who is now the assistant head coach and quarterbacks coach at Alcorn State. “Jackie Sherill was one and he told him he was going to be a defensive back at Mississippi State … His other visits were the same thing, everybody wanted him to play defensive back but we wanted to be a quarterback.”

Steve got the chance to play quarterback at then-Division I-AA Alcorn State, and his star shined so bright in Lorman that it didn’t matter what the level of college football he played.

McNair was an electrifying playmaker who could amaze fans with his strong throwing arm or his ability to make defenders miss and gain big yardage with his legs. He led Alcorn State to SWAC titles in 1992 and 1994, became the first player in NCAA history to amass more than 16,000 yards (16,823) of total offense, and finished third in the 1994 Heisman race.

“He is the most exciting football player I’ve ever watched in Mississippi for sure,” said Rick Cleveland, executive director of the Mississippi Sports Hall of Fame.

It took the Braves 20 years to win another conference title after McNair moved on. All of his college accomplishments helped him get selected No. 3 overall by Houston Oilers in the 1995 NFL Draft.

McNair holds the Football Championship Subdivision record for most yards gained in a single season with 5,799, which he posted in 1994. He passed for 4,863 yards while rushing for 936 that season. He finished his college career with 119 passing touchdowns and 33 rushing scores.

He had the talent and the performance that transcended the level he played on.

“There’s no doubt that if he played at (Mississippi) State or Ole Miss those State or Ole Miss teams of those years would have won a whole lot more games,” Cleveland said. “He would have been a difference maker.”

-- Antonio Morales, SWAC beat writer

The Case for ... Eli Manning

Former Ole Miss quarterback Eli Manning attempted 33 passes as a redshirt freshman in 2000, which couldn’t have given former coach David Cutcliffe much confidence when he put Manning into the team’s bowl game while trailing 49-16 in the third quarter.

However, Manning threw three fourth-quarter touchdowns to turn what could’ve been an embarrassing loss to West Virginia in the Music City Bowl into a respectable 49-38 defeat.

There’s just something about Manning being able to deal with big moments late in games.

But, of course, that’s not the only reason he deserves to be considered among the four best quarterbacks to ever play for a college in Mississippi.

Manning broke 45 school records during his five-year career with the Rebels, including 27 marks that had previously been held by his father, Archie.

Imagine the pressure the younger Manning felt when he chose to play at his father’s alma mater, a place the elder Manning finished in the top four for the Heisman Trophy twice.

But Eli Manning still finished with 10,119 passing yards and 81 touchdowns against 35 interceptions, much better production than Brett Favre and pretty similar, at least with the arm, to Dak Prescott, who is playing in a more pass-happy era in college football.

Archie Manning’s excellent career at Ole Miss ended with more interceptions than touchdowns (40-31), though he had 25 rushing touchdowns to Eli Manning’s five.

Manning led Ole Miss to some fantastic seasons, including his senior year in 2003 when the Rebels went 10-3 and were a three-point home loss to LSU away from going to Atlanta as the SEC West champs. Ole Miss has never come closer before or since to making to the SEC Championship Game. Manning’s talent made him the first overall draft choice in 2004, ahead of Philip Rivers and Ben Roethlisberger. The San Diego Chargers selected Manning despite his not even wanting to play there because the opportunity to have him made it too difficult to pass on him.

Favre was taken in the second round, and Archie Manning and Steve McNair still slotted behind Eli Manning at second and third overall, respectively.

There’s a reason the speed limit on Manning Way, which loops around the football stadium and indoor practice facility, is only 10 mph, honoring Eli Manning’s former number: because he is one of the best quarterbacks to ever play college football in Mississippi.

-- Daniel Paulling, Ole Miss beat writer

The Case for ... Dak Prescott

Tears streamed down Dak Prescott’s face as Mississippi State’s perfect season spiraled downward to an 8-5 finish and a Gator Bowl loss in 2012.

The program had celebrated eight regular-season wins and a January-bowl game in the past, so even though the five losses stung, Prescott’s teammates still accepted it as the program’s ceiling. Prescott was only a redshirt freshman then, but he made up his mind to be the one who could carry the program further. He did.

“He wanted to go somewhere and be the difference,” Phil Ebarb, Prescott’s uncle said. “He wanted to be a part of the reason they are winning. He just didn’t want to be another number.”

He has numbers. Within the Book of Prescott, also known as the Mississippi State record book, his name sits atop 36 categories, including every passing record.

“It shows what type of player he is,” coach Dan Mullen said. “He’s a special player for us. Holding all those school records is unbelievable.”

Where the school records stop, his Heisman Trophy candidacy begins. Prescott finished eighth last year. Las Vegas recognized the Mississippi State quarterback with the second best odds to win the award entering this year, though his candidacy slid with Mississippi State out of the national spotlight.

To find the only other Bulldog candidate in school history, you have to go back to another century, in time when football players went by nicknames like “Crazy Legs” Elroy Hirsch or Red “Galloping Ghost” Grange. MSU’s Tom “Shorty” McWilliams finished 10th in the Heisman in 1944.

“He’s a program-changing player. He really is,” Mullen said. “…I honestly don’t know if Mississippi State, how many guys they’ve had like Dak Prescott.”

The Bulldogs have had zero like Prescott.

Between the quarterback’s sophomore and junior seasons, Mississippi State finished construction on a $75 million renovation on Davis Wade Stadium. Within the new Gridiron Club, MSU immortalized two plays in its 115 seasons of football.

The school plastered Prescott’s game-winning fourth-and-1 run against Ole Miss in 2013 on a pillar, while he still had two years of eligibility left!

Tears helped Prescott endure the five losses of his freshman season. As MSU’s full-time starter the last two years, he is 18-6 (and 10-5 in the SEC, with a game to play).

Prescott re-opened Davis Wade with the best season in program history. He carried Mississippi State to a No. 1 ranking and its first 10-win regular season.

“When you’ve got guys around you like Dak, you get immune to those things,” wide receiver Donald Gray said. “After a while you expect it.”

-- Michael Bonner, Mississippi State beat writer