Best Mobile QBs of the Past 15 Years

SI Staff | Aug 22, 2006

Best Mobile QBs of the Past 15 Years /

Best Mobile QBs of the Past 15 Years

Brad Smith

Best season: Went 7-5 in 2005 '05 passing stats: 237 of 399 (59.4 percent), 2,304 yards, 13 TDs, 9 INTs '05 rushing stats: 229 carries, 1,301 yards, 16 TDs Smith never won a Big 12 North title in his three-year reign as the Tigers' starting QB, but he was a staple on national highlight reels. In a 41-24 win over Nebraska on Oct. 22, 2005 -- the signature game of his final college season -- he put on a dazzling display of running (246 yards, three TDs) and passing (234 yards, TD).

Antwaan Randle El

Best season: Led Hoosiers to five wins in 2001, closest they've come to a bowl since 1994. '01 passing stats: 118 of 231 (51.1 percent), 1,664 yards, 9 TDs, 5 INTs. '01 rushing stats: 188 carries, 964 yards, 8 TDs. How good was Randle El? Good enough to be Big Ten Player of the Year and finish sixth in the Heisman vote in '01, despite piloting a sub-.500 team. He played wideout instead of QB for the Steelers, but in January he became the first receiver to throw a touchdown pass in the Super Bowl.

Donovan McNabb

Best season: Went to Orange Bowl in 1998 '98 passing stats: 157 of 251 (62.5 percent), 2,134 yards, 22 TDs, 5 INTs '98 rushing stats: 135 carries, 438 yards, 8 TDs The woeful Orange long for the days of Donovan in the Carrier Dome. Now the Eagles' workhorse QB, Mr. Chunky Soup carried 'Cuse to the Orange Bowl in '98. McNabb's full range of skills were on display in a Big East-title-clinching 66-13 rout of Miami that season, in which he passed for three TDs and ran for two more.

Woody Dantzler

Best season: 2001 -- even though the Tigers went 6-5 '01 passing stats: 188 for 311 (60.5 percent), 2,360 yards, 17 TDs, 11 INTs '01 rushing stats: 206 carries, 1,004 yards, 10 TDs In '01, Dantzler, whom N.C. State coach Chuck Amato once called "more athletic than Charlie Ward," became the first player in the history of the NCAA to pass for 2,000 yards and rush for 1,000 in the same season. Dantzler went undrafted by the NFL but eventually signed with the Cowboys as a wideout, and played in the Arena League in '06.

Shaun King

Best season: Won Liberty Bowl in 1998 '98 passing stats: 223 of 328 (68.0 percent), 3,232 yards, 36 TDs, 6 INTs '98 rushing stats: 140 carries, 532 yards, 10 TDs King orchestrated the greatest season in Tulane history, leading the Green Wave to a 12-0 record in '98 while setting a I-A record for pass efficiency (183.3). He capped off the year by running for 109 yards and passing for 276 in a 41-27 win over BYU in the Liberty Bowl.

Charlie Ward

Best season: Won national title in 1993 '93 passing stats: 264 of 380 (69.5 percent), 3,032 yards, 27 TDs, 4 INTs '93 rushing stats: 65 carries, 339 yards, 4 TDs How many other quarterbacks are versatile enough to win the Heisman Trophy and then go on to become an NBA point guard? Ward was a first-round draft pick of the Knicks in 1994 and proceeded to have an 11-year career in the league.

Michael Vick

Best season: Reached Sugar Bowl in 1999 '99 passing stats: 90 of 152 (59.2 percent), 1,840 yards, 12 TDs, 5 INTs '99 rushing stats: 108 carries, 585 yards, 8 TDs No newcomer has taken the NCAA by storm like Vick did as a redshirt freshman in '99, leading the Hokies to an 11-0 regular season and a spot in the national-title game against Florida State. He made dazzling plays with his feet -- he was clocked at 4.25 in the 40 that year -- and was ranked No. 1 in the nation in pass efficiency with a 180.4.

Steve McNair

Best season: Reached I-AA playoffs in 1994 '94 passing stats: 304 of 530 (57.4 percent), 4,863 yards, 44 TDs, 17 INTs '94 rushing stats: 119 carries, 936 yards, 9 TDs McNair was so prolific in '94 that he finished third in the Heisman Trophy vote despite playing in the obscurity of Division I-AA. The Sept. 26 cover of SI cover from that season, which featured McNair and read, "Hand Him the Heisman," also may have helped his cause.

Tommie Frazier

Best season: Won national title in 1995 '95 passing stats: 92 of 163 (56.4 percent), 1,362 yards, 17 TDs, 4 INTs '95 rushing stats: 97 carries, 604 yards, 14 TDs In the B.V. era -- before Vince -- Frazier was the gold standard for running QBs. He led the Huskers' option offense to back-to-back national titles in 1994 and '95, and although he was only an average passer, his TD-to-INT ratio in his final season was a stellar 4.25 to 1.

Vince Young

Best season: Won national title in 2005 '05 passing stats: 212 of 325 (65.2 percent), 3,036 yards, 26 TDs, 10 INTs '05 rushing stats: 155 carries, 1,050 yards, 12 TDs Young's legs were a lethal weapon. USC found that out the hard way after his transcendent, game-winning final drive in the Rose Bowl. But V.Y. also flourished as a passer his junior season, finishing third in the nation in efficiency (163.9) and securing his future as a quarterback in the NFL.

Published Aug 22, 2006

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