Athlon Sports News
Colt McCoy Wins 2009 Golden Arm Award
Texas quarterback Colt McCoy won the 2009 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, which is presented annually to the top senior quarterback in the country by the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Foundation.
“Like Johnny Unitas, Colt McCoy has been a leader on the playing field and off, carrying the ideals of football forward into his relations with his community and his fellow man,” said John Unitas Jr., President of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation, Inc.
“The winner of the Golden Arm Award is recognized not only for his athletic achievements, but also for his character, citizenship, scholastic achievement and leadership qualities. With respect to each of these measures, Colt McCoy is truly outstanding and a most worthy recipient of this prestigious award.”
The award encapsulates all that is positive in college sports, rewarding performance on the field along with character, citizenship, integrity and those who honor the game.
This season, McCoy completed 70.5 percent of his passes for 3,512 yards, 27 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, while tucking the ball to scramble for 348 yards and three trips to the end zone. More important, McCoy led the Longhorns to a perfect 13–0 season, a Big 12 Conference title and a berth in the BCS National Championship Game against Alabama.
McCoy is the 22nd recipient of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, joining former winners such as Boston College's Matt Ryan (2007), Notre Dame's Brady Quinn (2006), USC's Matt Leinart (2005), Ole Miss' Eli Manning (2003) and Tennessee's Peyton Manning (1997). McCoy beat out Florida’s Tim Tebow, Oklahoma State’s Zac Robinson, Central Michigan’s Dan LeFevour and Duke’s Thaddeus Lewis to win the award.
“With all of the great quarterbacks around the country, it’s definitely humbling to be picked as the winner of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award,” said McCoy, who has compiled a 44-7 record while completing 70.6 percent of his passes for 13,060 yards and 112 touchdowns as a four-year starter at Texas.
“This is an honor I can’t wait to share with my teammates and coaches. Without them, I wouldn’t be able to accomplish anything. So this is an award that reflects the success we’ve had as a team and is a tribute to all of them.”
McCoy was honored on Dec. 11, at a ceremony at the Tremont Grand Plaza in downtown Baltimore - the city where Johnny Unitas starred for the Colts from 1956-72, winning Super Bowl V before being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979.
Texas quarterback Colt McCoy won the 2009 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, which is presented annually to the top senior quarterback in the country by the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Foundation.
“Like Johnny Unitas, Colt McCoy has been a leader on the playing field and off, carrying the ideals of football forward into his relations with his community and his fellow man,” said John Unitas Jr., President of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation, Inc.
“The winner of the Golden Arm Award is recognized not only for his athletic achievements, but also for his character, citizenship, scholastic achievement and leadership qualities. With respect to each of these measures, Colt McCoy is truly outstanding and a most worthy recipient of this prestigious award.”
The award encapsulates all that is positive in college sports, rewarding performance on the field along with character, citizenship, integrity and those who honor the game.
This season, McCoy completed 70.5 percent of his passes for 3,512 yards, 27 touchdowns and 12 interceptions, while tucking the ball to scramble for 348 yards and three trips to the end zone. More important, McCoy led the Longhorns to a perfect 13–0 season, a Big 12 Conference title and a berth in the BCS National Championship Game against Alabama.
McCoy is the 22nd recipient of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, joining former winners such as Boston College's Matt Ryan (2007), Notre Dame's Brady Quinn (2006), USC's Matt Leinart (2005), Ole Miss' Eli Manning (2003) and Tennessee's Peyton Manning (1997). McCoy beat out Florida’s Tim Tebow, Oklahoma State’s Zac Robinson, Central Michigan’s Dan LeFevour and Duke’s Thaddeus Lewis to win the award.
“With all of the great quarterbacks around the country, it’s definitely humbling to be picked as the winner of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award,” said McCoy, who has compiled a 44-7 record while completing 70.6 percent of his passes for 13,060 yards and 112 touchdowns as a four-year starter at Texas.
“This is an honor I can’t wait to share with my teammates and coaches. Without them, I wouldn’t be able to accomplish anything. So this is an award that reflects the success we’ve had as a team and is a tribute to all of them.”
McCoy was honored on Dec. 11, at a ceremony at the Tremont Grand Plaza in downtown Baltimore - the city where Johnny Unitas starred for the Colts from 1956-72, winning Super Bowl V before being inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1979.
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2009 Heisman Watch: Colt McCoy
"Wow, what a great honor it is to receive an award named after Johnny Unitas, one of the greatest football players ever,” McCoy said. “I had a chance to talk to John, Jr. and Raymond Berry last night when they told me I was this year's winner and I was pretty speechless.
“With all of the great quarterbacks around the country it’s definitely humbling to be picked as the winner of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award. But, like I told them last night, this is an honor I can't wait to share with my teammates and coaches. Without them I wouldn't be able to accomplish anything, so this is an award that reflects the success we've had as a team and is a tribute to all of them."
“With all of the great quarterbacks around the country it’s definitely humbling to be picked as the winner of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award. But, like I told them last night, this is an honor I can't wait to share with my teammates and coaches. Without them I wouldn't be able to accomplish anything, so this is an award that reflects the success we've had as a team and is a tribute to all of them."
Often times college football fans and the media become so enthralled with touchdown passes, elusive runs, ferocious tackles and quarterback sacks that we lose sight of other important matters of college athletics. The Golden Arm Award, presented annually to the top senior quarterback by the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Foundation encapsulates all that is positive in college sports. The award acknowledges performance on the field for sure. But it goes beyond completion percentage and touchdown strikes. The award values character, citizenship, integrity and those who honor the game.
"The winner of the Golden Arm Award is recognized not only for his athletic accomplishments, but also for his character, citizenship, scholastic achievement, leadership qualities, and athletic abilities," says John Unitas, Jr., President of the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation, Inc. The Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award bears the name of the man many refer to as the finest quarterback ever to play the game of football.
In addition to honoring a player with the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award, the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation, Inc., has awarded more than $500,000 in scholarships to deserving scholar-athletes from local area high schools both in Maryland and Kentucky.
"Despite my Dad's outstanding accomplishments, he never forgot his humble beginnings, and this won him a permanent place in the hearts of all who ever knew him," notes Unitas, Jr. "Giving life to his commitment to 'give back,' the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation, Inc. was established to promote football on all levels by providing financial aid to deserving young athletes."
GOLDEN ARM WATCH LIST
Jarrett Brown
West Virginia earned its 15th consecutive victory over Rutgers, holding on for a 24–21 win in New Jersey. Brown completed 10-of-20 passes for 116 yards, as the Mountaineers punched their ticket to the Gator Bowl, where they will face Florida State and former WVU coach Bobby Bowden in his final game.
Daryll Clark
Penn State rolled to a 42–14 win at Michigan State in the Big Ten season finale. Clark completed 19-of-27 passes for 310 yards, four scoring strikes and zero interceptions in the final regular season game of his Nittany Lion career.
Armanti Edwards
Appalachian State rallied for an impressive 35–31 win at defending FCS champion Richmond in the quarterfinals of the Football Championship Subdivision playoffs. Edwards completed 21-of-33 passes for 216 yards, one touchdown — a game-winning four-yarder to Matt Cline with 10 seconds remaining — and zero picks, while scrambling on 12 carries for 51 yards and two trips to the end zone.
Matt Grothe
South Florida lost 29–27 to Connecticut, but Grothe did not play due to a season-ending ACL injury suffered against Charleston Southern on Sept. 19.
Max Hall
BYU won the Holy War over Utah, with a 26–23 overtime thriller in Provo. Hall’s stats were not overly impressive, as the senior signal-caller completed just 12-of-32 passes for 134 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions. But his 25-yard scoring strike to Andrew George clinched the victory in overtime after the Cougars defense held the Utes to a field goal.
Tim Hiller
Western Michigan was shocked by Ball State, 22–17, in Kalamazoo. Hiller struggled in defeat, completing 33-of-62 passes for 354 yards, one score and four picks.
Mike Kafka
Northwestern pulled off a season-ending upset of Wisconsin, 33–31. Kafka played mistake-free football, completing 26-of-40 passes for 326 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions in his final home game.
Dan LeFevour
Central Michigan rolled to a 20–10 win over Ohio in the MAC Championship Game at Ford Field in Detroit. LeFevour completed 28-of-39 passes for 255 yards, two touchdowns and one interception in CMU’s third MAC title in four seasons. In the process, LeFevour broke the FBS record for career total touchdowns (passing, rushing, receiving), previously shared by Hawaii’s Colt Brennan (2007) and Texas Tech’s Graham Harrell (2008), with 148 scores (101 passing, 46 rushing, 1 receiving).
Corey Leonard
Arkansas State won its season finale, 24–20, against Western Kentucky. Leonard, however, was unable to play due to a knee injury.
Thaddeus Lewis
Lewis became the 60th player in FBS history to pass for 10,000 career yards during his final game at Duke. Unfortunately, the Blue Devils could not defeat Wake Forest, suffering a 45–34 loss.
Colt McCoy
Texas found a way to outfight an aggressive Nebraska team led by defensive tackle Ndumakong Suh, winning 13–12 on a 46-yard field goal that went through the uprights as time expired — for a second time. One second was added to the clock following an incomplete McCoy pass that sailed out of bounds before the game-winning kick. Under pressure all night, McCoy completed 20-of-36 passes for 184 yards and three touchdowns, but did secure the most important stat of all — a victory that capped a perfect regular season, Big 12 championship and a trip to Pasadena for the BCS title game against Alabama.
Tony Pike
Cincinnati pulled off an amazing 45–44 win in the snow at Pittsburgh in the de facto Big East title game. Pike completed 22-of-44 passes for 302 yards, three touchdowns and three interceptions. Trailing 31–17 at halftime, Pike threw three second-half scoring strikes — a 68-yard bomb to star receiver Mardy Gilyard, an 8-yarder to D.J. Woods and a 29-yard over-the-shoulder spiral to Armon Binns to take a one-point lead the Bearcats would not relinquish with 33 seconds to play.
Patrick Pinkney
East Carolina knocked off Houston, 38–32, to clinch its second straight Conference USA title and a trip to the Liberty Bowl in Memphis. Pinkney completed 21-of-34 passes for 262 yards, one touchdown and zero turnovers in a clutch win at Dowdy-Ficklen Stadium in Greenville, N.C., where the Pirates have not lost since falling to the Cougars last year.
Todd Reesing
Kansas could not hold on to a late lead in the 117th Border War with Missouri. The Jayhawks lost 41–39 despite a career outing from Reesing, who completed 37-of-55 passes for a school-record 498 yards, four touchdowns and one interception.
Zac Robinson
Oklahoma State lost out on a shot at a BCS berth by losing 27–0 at Oklahoma. Robinson fought through a shoulder injury to complete just 9-of-21 passes for 44 yards, no scores and one interception in the disappointing shutout loss to unranked OU.
Tyler Sheehan
Bowling Green took care of business against Toledo, winning 38–24 in the season finale. Sheehan completed 19-of-31 passes for 137 yards, two touchdowns and zero interceptions in victory.
Riley Skinner
Wake Forest cruised to a 45–34 win over Duke, as Skinner completed 28-of-38 passes for a career-high 372 yards, a school-record five touchdowns and zero interceptions. The win snapped a five-game losing streak for the Demon Deacons.
Rusty Smith
Florida Atlantic held on to beat Florida International, 28–21, in Miami. Unfortunately, Smith did not play due to a season-ending shoulder injury suffered in a Halloween loss to Middle Tennessee.
Tim Tebow
Superman ran into Crimson kryptonite, as Florida fell to Alabama 32–13 in the SEC Championship Game at the Georgia Dome in Atlanta. In a disappointing effort, Tebow completed 20-of-35 passes for 247 yards, one touchdown and one interception through the air, while tucking the ball on 10 carries for 63 yards. The Gators will not compete for their third national title in Tebow’s four seasons. Instead, UF will play Cincinnati in the Sugar Bowl on New Year’s Day.
Chris Turner
Maryland lost its seventh straight game, falling 19–17 to Boston College. After missing two weeks recovering from a knee injury, Turner completed 11-of-17 passes for 101 yards during his final college start.
Joe Webb
UAB’s one-man offense was not enough to avoid a 34–27 loss to UCF. Webb did all he could, completing 20-of-35 passes for 322 yards, three touchdowns and one interception through the air, while adding 18 carries for 137 yards and one touchdown on the ground.
Juice Williams
Illinois lost a heartbreaker to Fresno State in a 53–52 shootout in Champaign. Williams completed 8-of-16 passes for 211 yards, three touchdowns and two interceptions, but was unable to lead the Fighting Illini to victory, as Illinois was outscored 22–14 in the fourth quarter of a one-point loss on Senior Day.