2007 Athlon Awards: Quarterbacks

1. USC
Trojan quarterback John David Booty is believed to be the first player ever to graduate from high school a full year before his class and play Division I-A football. That first year out of Shreveport, La., Evangel Christian, he was No. 2 on the quarterback depth chart behind Matt Leinart. As a first-year starter in 2006, Booty completed 62 percent of his passes (269-of-436) for 3,347 yards and 29 touchdowns. His 269 completions in ’06 are tied for fourth on USC’s single-season passing chart. He opened his career as a starter with a bang — 24-of-35 for 261 yards and three touchdowns at Arkansas, followed in Game 2 with 25-of-36 for 257 yards and three more TDs. He added a rushing touchdown to his résumé in the Notre Dame game and finished the campaign by completing 27-of-45 for 391 yards and four touchdowns in a 32–18 Rose Bowl win over Michigan. He made first-team All-Pac-10 and enters 2007 as a front-runner for the Heisman Trophy. Backing up Booty is 2004 Parade All-America Player of the Year Mark Sanchez, now in his third year in the program.

2. Louisville
Louisville quarterback Brian Brohm has been fragile, but when he is healthy, he can take a defense apart with his arm. In 2004 he was the Conference USA Freshman of the Year as backup to Stefan LeFors. As a sophomore in 2005, Brohm finished second nationally in passing efficiency and was named Big East Offensive Player of the Year. He ended his junior season as MVP of the 2007 Orange Bowl, completing 24-of-34 passes for 311 yards in the Cardinals’ 24–13 win over ACC champ Wake Forest. He has started 21 games and thrown for 6,751 career yards and 41 touchdowns. He is a career 66 percent passer. Backup Hunter Cantwell has proven remarkably effective during Brohm’s frequent absences. Cantwell has started four games and completed 59 percent of his passes for 1,340 yards and 10 touchdowns. He has one more year as the Cardinals’ insurance policy and should be the regular starter in 2008.

3. Hawaii
The 2006 Warriors led the nation in passing yards (441.3), total offense (559.2) and scoring (46.9), and pulling the trigger was quarterback Colt Brennan, who decided to bypass the 2007 NFL Draft and have a go at his senior year. Brennan completed 72.6 percent of his passes (406-of-559) for 5,549 yards and an NCAA-record 58 touchdowns. Brennan’s 93 touchdown passes over the last two years are also an NCAA record. He led the nation in passing efficiency at 186.0, breaking the record of 183.3 set by Tulane’s Shaun King in 1998. Brennan has broken or tied 25 school records and 16 NCAA records. He is the reigning WAC Offensive Player of the Year and finished sixth in last year’s Heisman voting. Junior Tyler Graunke was 32-for-43 as Brennan’s backup. He threw four touchdown passes and zero interceptions.

4. West Virginia
West Virginia coach Rich Rodriguez believes quarterback to be the strength of his team. Patrick White, the Big East 2006 Offensive Player of the Year and reigning Gator Bowl MVP, is a lethal ball-carrier — after only 17 starts, he already holds the conference career quarterback rushing record of 2,171 yards. When he gets past the line he leaves defenders looking at his heels. He ran for 1,219 yards and 18 touchdowns last season, averaging 7.4 per carry, and had he thrown one more pass he would have qualified for the Division I-A passing efficiency chart and come in ninth. Backup Jarrett Brown started and won the Mountaineers’ season-ending triple-overtime classic against Rutgers, and he’s back along with Adam Bednarik, a dropback passer and seven-game starter in 2005 before giving way to White.

5. Boston College
If Matt Ryan isn’t the best quarterback in America, he’s certainly in the running for the toughest — he played seven games last year with a broken foot. His Jan. 5 surgery repaired the fracture, and he was back for spring practice learning the offensive system installed by new coach Jeff Jagodzinski, and the coach expressed pleasure at how easily the QB assimilated it. Ryan completed 62 percent of his passes for 2,942 yards and 15 touchdowns and also ran for four scores last season. The 6'5" Ryan, now a senior, has thrown for 4,806 career yards with 25 TDs despite not cracking the starting lineup until midway through his sophomore year. Ryan’s backup, junior Chris Crane, also returns after connecting on 22-of-32 pass attempts in limited duty last year.

Next Up:
6. Kentucky
7. Missouri
8. Texas
9. Tulsa
10. Tennessee

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