College football duos: Ranking the 32 best dynamic duos in modern history

16. Peyton Manning and Marcus Nash, Tennessee

Peyton Manning’s recruiting process was an interesting one. He was sought by more than 60 colleges, being the next coming son of a professional quarterback showed he had the talent and the pedigree. He ended up spurning his father’s Ole Miss Rebels to choose the Tennessee Volunteers. He wanted to play under head coach Phillip Fulmer.

Also arriving on campus in 1994, but which much less fanfare, was Marcus Nash. He was sitting behind Joey Kent for the first three seasons, but he still put up 1,200 yards and seven touchdowns as the number two guy. Then, his senior year, these two took over.

Let’s rewind just a bit to Manning’s start at Tennessee. It seemed like fate that he was going to be the starting quarterback. He was third string to start his freshman season, but starter Jerry Colquitt suffered a season-ending injury on the first drive of the season. Then Todd Helton (yes the same Todd Helton from the Colorado Rockies) went down in the fourth game of the season. Manning was the starter and he never relinquished the position for the next four years.

Nash was always working from behind until the top receiver spot finally opened up. At this point, Manning was already considered the best quarterback in the country. Still, his statistics made a MAJOR jump from his junior to his senior year, when Nash was his number-one target.

Manning’s passing yards jumped by more than 500, he nearly doubled his touchdowns (20 in 1996, 36 in 1997) and he dropped his interceptions by one. They ultimately never hit the heights they expected, losing to No. 3 Florida and No. 2 Nebraska. Nash was still able to put up 13 touchdowns as one of the most underrated threats in the country. Manning definitely got the best out of Nash, but the numbers bear out that Nash also got the best out of Manning.