Top 10 college football quarterbacks going into 2017 spring practice
By John Buhler
Trace McSorley
Quarterback, Penn State Nittany Lions
The Penn State Nittany Lions will likely enter the 2017 NCAA season as a top-five team. They went on a tear in October, November and December to win the Big Ten Championship. Head coach James Franklin deserves the bulk of the credit, but some of it has to go to quarterback Trace McSorley.
McSorley will play his third college season at Penn State in 2017. He’s still a tad unrefined as a passer, but he is one of the most dynamic playmakers in the Power 5 at the quarterback position. McSorley thrives in winning time, able to carry the Nittany Lions offense on his back in moments of crisis.
In two years at Penn State, McSorley has completed 57.1 percent of his passes for 3,799 yards, 31 touchdowns and eight interceptions. While his accuracy has to improve in the next year or so to have serious NFL aspirations, McSorley has no issue with throwing the ball deep. His career yards per attempt of 8.9 is impressive and will only improve as he takes more snaps in the Penn State offense.
He’s undersized as a pro prospect, but isn’t afraid to carry the rock if need be in the Penn State offense. McSorley has rushed the ball 159 times for 408 yards and seven touchdowns. He doesn’t lean on his legs to win ball games, but the threat of him being able to scramble only accentuates his abilities as a passer.
Should Penn State hang around the Big Ten Championship and College Football Playoff picture, it wouldn’t be out of the question that McSorley can get an invite to the 2017 Heisman Trophy ceremony in New York. Then again, wouldn’t the best candidate to represent Penn State in New York City would be running back Saquon Barkley? All the more reason that Penn State should be a behemoth in college football this fall.