Courtesy of OhioStateBuckeyes.com
COLUMBUS, Ohio – Ohio State junior quarterback J.T. Barrett has been named one of 15 finalists for the 2016 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, presented to the country’s top college quarterback.
Barrett, Ohio State’s all-time leader with 60 touchdown passes in just 22 career starts, has been outstanding through five games, accounting for 19 TDs (15 passing, 4 rushing) while completing 79-of-123 passes for 981 yards. He tossed a career-high six TD passes to four different receivers in the season-opening win over Bowling Green while throwing for a career-high 349 yards. He also rushed for a score to set an Ohio State record with seven TDs accounted for in that contest.
In the road win at No. 14 Oklahoma, he tossed four TD passes – all to Noah Brown – and added 74 yards on the ground. Against Rutgers, he tossed another four TD passes and now ranks ninth in the FBS with his 15. Last week he rushed for a season-high 137 yards and a score and added 93 yards and a TD through the air in the win over the Hoosiers.
The Wichita Falls, Texas native is responsible for 86 career TDs (rushing and passing) and needs three more to break Braxton Miller’s school record of 88. Barrett’s 86 scores also are the second-most among active FBS players.
Barrett, who is 20-2 in his career as a starter, leads the No. 2-ranked Buckeyes into Madison, Wis., to take on the No. 8 Wisconsin Badgers at 8 p.m. ET Saturday on ABC.
Remaining candidates for the prestigious annual award are:
J.T. Barrett, Ohio State
Joshua Dobbs, Tennessee
Luke Falk, Washington State
Chad Kelly, Ole Miss
Trevor Knight, Texas A&M
Patrick Mahomes, Texas Tech
Baker Mayfield, Oklahoma
Mason Rudolph, Oklahoma State
Cooper Rush, Central Michigan
Seth Russell, Baylor
Zach Terrell, Western Michigan
Mitch Trubisky, North Carolina
Greg Ward, Jr., Houston
Deshaun Watson, Clemson
Davis Webb, California
The Golden Arm Award is presented at the end of each season since 1987 to the nation’s top college quarterback, based on his accomplishments both on and off the field. Candidates must be a college senior or fourth-year junior on schedule to graduate with their class. These strong leaders have demonstrated a commitment to excellence and worked hard for themselves and their teams during the season and beyond.
“The Golden Arm Award considers character, citizenship, integrity, leadership, and honor – characteristics that were displayed by my father – to be every bit as important as the quarterback’s completion rate or number of touchdowns scored,” says John C. Unitas, Jr., President of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation, Inc. “Despite my Dad’s outstanding accomplishments, he never forgot his humble beginnings and that won him a permanent place in the hearts of everyone who ever knew him,”
This season, the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation, Inc. has aligned itself with new and returning local partners. As a media partner, 120 Sports, the OTT network, will work to tell the stories that surround the selection of candidates, profiling their football career and community involvement.
In 2016, The Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award will be presented at a ceremony on Friday, December 9, in Baltimore, MD. For the 2016 Golden Arm Award ceremony, The Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation, Inc. is happy to be returning to The Embassy Suites Baltimore Inner Harbor & Grand Historic Venue.
Proceeds from the event help support the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation, Inc. The Foundation provides financial assistance to underprivileged and deserving young scholar-athletes throughout Maryland and Kentucky.
The namesake of the Golden Arm Award has a storied history. Johnny Unitas was an 18-year veteran of the NFL, who played his collegiate career at the University of Louisville before joining the Baltimore Colts in 1958. His career passing figures include 2,830 pass completions for 40,239 yards, 290 touchdowns and throwing a touchdown pass in 47 consecutive games.
Past standout winners of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award® include: Peyton Manning (Tennessee, 1997); Carson Palmer (USC, 2002); Eli Manning (Ole Miss, 2003); Brady Quinn (Notre Dame, 2006); Matt Ryan (Boston College, 2007); Colt McCoy (Texas, 2009); and Andrew Luck (Stanford, 2011), Marcus Mariota (Oregon, 2014) Last year’s winner Connor Cook, Michigan State.
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