Quarterback U is a nickname used bysportswriters to refer to colleges that have trained a series of notable footballquarterbacks (QBs). It is a literary device invoked in the individual discretion of sportswriters and does not represent any formal decision-making process or organized sportswriters' poll. Generally speaking, the term implies that many of the school's former quarterbacks later had successful careers in professional football, particularly in theNational Football League (NFL).
As of 2023,Alabama andPurdue are tied for first in producing the most number of Super Bowl winning quarterbacks.[1] As of September 2017, the top five universities in terms of the most NFL quarterback passing yards were 219,064 forPurdue, 183,296 forNotre Dame, 157,855 forUSC, 152,627 forStanford and 142,524 forWashington.[2]
On November 18, 2012,The Wall Street Journal reported that, "Purdue may be the ultimate Quarterback U. Since the 1970 merger (between the AFL and NFL), quarterbacks from Purdue have started 724 NFL games, easily the most of any major-conference program." After Purdue QBs' 724 NFL games, the next best schools were the University of Washington (623 starts), Miami (573), University of Southern California (547) and Notre Dame (543).[3]
In August 2018, anAltoona Mirror writer sought to name "Quarterback U" by player achievements, such as NFL starts, Pro Bowl appearances, and Heisman Trophies won. He noted that, in the Super Bowl era,Washington (14),USC (13),Notre Dame (13),Miami (FL) (10),Stanford (10), andUCLA (10) produced at least ten starting NFL quarterbacks, whilePurdue recorded the most combined NFL career starts (704). The article concluded that no single program deserved the title significantly more than others.[4]
Sports writers dubbed theBYU as a Quarterback U from the 1980s through the 1990s under coachLaVell Edwards,[5] akin toUSC's reputation asTailback U.[6] It producedGifford Nielsen,Marc Wilson,Jim McMahon,Steve Young,Robbie Bosco,Ty Detmer, andSteve Sarkisian. In 2005, theDeseret News wrote that the last great BYU signal caller was 2001Heisman Trophy runner-upBrandon Doman, who also later served as the Cougars'offensive coordinator. It also asserted that, upon Doman's graduation, head coachGary Crowton rotated quarterbacks so frequently that it adversely affected their performance.[7][8]
An October 2019Sports Illustrated article describedNC State as "Quarterback U" after five former quarterbacks (Philip Rivers,Russell Wilson,Mike Glennon,Jacoby Brissett, andRyan Finley) from the school advanced to play in the NFL between the years of 2003 and 2019. The article noted that four of the five (Rivers, Wilson, Brissett, and Finley) are NFL starting quarterbacks.[9] NC State had been in the conversation as early as 2016 when a CBS Sports article ranked the school at number two behind the University of Southern California on a list that also included Purdue, Boston College, and Michigan. At that point, only Rivers and Wilson held starting positions in the NFL, but the article noted that Glennon had also been a starter for Tampa Bay.[10]
According to ESPN.com, Purdue QBs have won (and started)[11] more NFL games than any other school; thrown for the most touchdowns and yards in the NFL. Purdue QBs have won more League TD titles (14 through the 2022 NFL season) than any other school.Since the 1960s,Purdue has been known as 'Quarterback U' and 'Cradle of Quarterbacks' by media and rivals such asOhio State andNotre Dame due to its prominent QBs. Between 1967 and 1974, Purdue QBsLen Dawson andBob Griese started fiveSuper Bowls, winning three;Cecil Isbell led theGreen Bay Packers to an NFL title in 1939,Elmer Oliphant led theBuffalo All-Americans to a disputed NFL title in 1921. The tradition has continued through to this day withDrew Brees winning theSuper Bowl XLIV, in which he was also namedMVP.[12][13][14][15][16][17] Purdue is tied for first with Alabama in producing Super Bowl winning quarterbacks.[18][19] Sixteen (16) Purdue QBs reached the NFL; including starting QBs inBob DeMoss,Dale Samuels,Mike Phipps,Gary Danielson,Jim Everett,Mark Herrmann,Aidan O'Connell andKyle Orton;Scott Campbell andCurtis Painter were well-known backup quarterbacks.David Blough finished his playing career on the practice squad of theDetroit Lions in 2023. As of February 2024 he’s been an assistant QBs coach for the Washington Commanders.Danny Etling is on the roster of theGreen Bay Packers. Other Purdue quarterbacks who reached the NFL areRon Meyer, former head coach of theIndianapolis Colts andNew England Patriots;Ross Fichtner, who won an NFL title at cornerback with theCleveland Browns, even serving as the emergency backup quarterback for theBrowns in their1964 NFL Championship Game appearance;John Reeves spent time in the NFL as a linebacker.Joey Elliott andRobert Marve were starting QBs in theCanadian Football League.
Additionally,Bernie Allen, long-time 2B for theMinnesota Twins and theWashington Senators preceded Meyer under center for the Boilermakers.
As early as 1975, the term Quarterback U had been applied toStanford University, which had produced such players asFrankie Albert,John Brodie,Jim Plunkett,Don Bunce, andMike Boryla.[20] This reputation was enhanced whenBill Walsh joined the Cardinal as head coach, and quarterbacksGuy Benjamin,Steve Dils, andTurk Schonert promptly led the NCAA in passing in 1977, 1978, and 1979.[21] They were followed by perhaps Stanford's best-known quarterback,John Elway, who played at the university from 1979 to 1982, finishing second in the Heisman voting his senior season.[22] Elway would go on to have a Hall of Fame career with the Broncos and win the Super Bowl in 1997 and 1998.[23] By 1989, theSan Jose Mercury News surmised that Stanford's "once bright legacy" as Quarterback U appeared "to be flickering out".[24] However, recently Stanford's quarterback tradition has experienced something of a revival underAndrew Luck.Luck finished second in the voting for the Heisman trophy, the award given to college football's most outstanding player, in both 2010 and 2011.[25] When drafted by the Indianapolis Colts in the2012 NFL draft, he became the fourth Stanford quarterback taken with the first overall pick, following Elway, Plunkett andBobby Garrett,[26] but the first since Elway was taken by the Colts in 1983. Stanford quarterbacks have started 7 Super Bowls, winning 4, and garnering twoSuper Bowl Most Valuable Player Awards.
In 2005, aSporting News writer describedTexas Tech as Quarterback U in an article that bestowed several positional "U" monikers with the criteria being college performance since 2000. Its author cited head coachMike Leach's numerous 4,000-yard-plus passers. More recently, Texas Tech can claimKansas City Chiefs quarterback Patrick Mahomes among its ranks.[27]
During the 1980s, the term was also applied toMaryland, which produced several NFL-caliber quarterbacks during the tenures of head coachBobby Ross and offensive coordinator and quarterbacks/receivers coachJoe Krivak. TheseMaryland quarterbacks includedBoomer Esiason,Frank Reich,Neil O'Donnell,Scott Zolak, andStan Gelbaugh.[28][29][30] In 2005,The Washington Post reapplied the label to the Terrapins under head coachRalph Friedgen and offensive coordinatorCharlie Taaffe, afterSam Hollenbach became theAtlantic Coast Conference's leading passer. That coaching staff also groomedShaun Hill andScott McBrien.[31]
In the 1980s, the term was often applied to theUniversity of Miami.[32] In 2003, Tracy Gale, a sport publicist working for the University of Miami, namedFran Curci, who was Miami's quarterback in 1959, as the start of what he called "Miami's Quarterback U tradition."[33]George Mira,Jim Kelly,Bernie Kosar,Vinny Testaverde,Steve Walsh,Ken Dorsey,Craig Erickson, andGino Torretta are some Hurricanes quarterbacks that influenced his use of the term.[34][35] The term is still often applied, although Miami currently has fewer quarterbacks starting in the NFL than it has in the past. In 2008, all three Miami quarterbacks entered the season with no game experience, and pundits charged head coachRandy Shannon with rebuilding the program's reputation of producing high-quality signalcallers.[36][37][38]
In recent years, sportswriters have mentioned several schools as being appropriate for the designation. A 2005ESPN article cited that, since 1988,Michigan sent as many starting quarterbacks to the NFL as the University of Miami. It argued that "three yards and a cloud of dust" is no longer the offensive philosophy at Michigan.[39] A year later,Rivals.com proclaimed that Michigan was "the new Quarterback U."[40][41]Elvis Grbac,Todd Collins,Tom Brady,Jim Harbaugh,Brian Griese andChad Henne are some of the Wolverine quarterbacks who have gone on to start in the NFL.[39]
USC is traditionally known asTailback U,[6] but after the 2008 seasonThe Los Angeles Times claimed that it was the school most deserving of the designation Quarterback U.[42][43] Since 2009, eight former USC quarterbacks started in an NFL game:Matt Leinart,Matt Cassel,Carson Palmer,Mark Sanchez,Matt Barkley,Cody Kessler,Sam Darnold,Caleb Williams.
Washington quarterbacks have consistently advanced to the NFL, with16 of the previous 18 starting quarterbacks as of 2012 having started in the NFL.[44][45] Washington'sPro Football Hall of Fame memberWarren Moon isfourth in all-time passing yardage, reflecting his CFL and NFL careers. Other notable alumni includeChris Chandler,Mark Brunell,Damon Huard,Jake Locker. ESPN points to the program's history by the early 1980s.[46]
Since 1950, Purdue quarterbacks have compiled 865 NFL starts, more than any other school.