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College Football: 10 players who will make 2017 the year of the quarterback

By Cody Williams

Oct 1, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Southern California Trojans quarterback Sam Darnold (14) in action during the second half against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports
Oct 1, 2016; Los Angeles, CA, USA; Southern California Trojans quarterback Sam Darnold (14) in action during the second half against the Arizona State Sun Devils at Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum. Mandatory Credit: Kelvin Kuo-USA TODAY Sports /
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Dec 10, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Lamar Jackson from the University of Louisville wins the Heisman Trophy at Playstation Theater. Mandatory Credit: Todd J. Van Emst/Heisman Trust via USA TODAY Sports
Dec 10, 2016; New York, NY, USA; Lamar Jackson from the University of Louisville wins the Heisman Trophy at Playstation Theater. Mandatory Credit: Todd J. Van Emst/Heisman Trust via USA TODAY Sports /

6. Lamar Jackson – Louisville Cardinals

The 2016 Heisman Trophy winner only shows up at No. 6 on this list, which might seem a bit crazy. After all, the Louisville Cardinals quarterback put up numbers that are near unheard of in how ridiculous they were. Jackson finished the season with 3,543 yards passing, 30 touchdowns and only nine picks. Additionally, the Cardinals man under center rushed for 1,571 yards and 21 more touchdowns to his credit.

No other word short of electrifying describes what Jackson was able to do when he was on the field for Louisville. On any given play, seemingly no matter the situation, Jackson was liable to take off and break a 50-plus-yard touchdown run or get the defense to bite on the run and burn them deep. It was fast, it was fun, and it was indubitably worthy of the Heisman now sitting in Jackson’s trophy case.

However, Jackson falls in behind other players on this list for a couple of reasons. Starting with the lesser of the two, Jackson still struggled with his efficiency as a passer in his Heisman-winning effort, completing only a meager 56.2 percent of his throws. More importantly, though, defenses also appeared to figure him out by season’s end. It shouldn’t go unnoticed that Louisville lost their final three games of the 2016 campaign, including the Citrus Bowl to LSU, while Jackson played possibly his worst three games of the year.

With that said, Jackson is still a dynamic athlete with the physical tools to make plays on every snap. Would it be shocking to see him put up similar numbers to what he did in 2016? Well, maybe a bit, but it certainly wouldn’t be unheard of by any measure.

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