Big 12 Football: 50 best players of all-time

Big 12 Football best players of all-time: 38. Chase Daniel, QB, Missouri football

Chase Daniel spent his freshman season of 2005 on the bench behind Brad Smith, one of the more exciting quarterbacks in Missouri history. In 2006, he took over for Smith and had some big shoes to fill. Despite the pressure that comes with that, Daniel stepped right in and not only filled those shoes, but he also put his name in the team record books.

In 2006, Daniel had 3,527 yards with 28 touchdowns and 10 picks while completing 63.5 percent of his passes. He only got better from there and threw for more than 4,000 yards in each of the two seasons that followed — while also improving his completion percentage to 68.2 as a junior and 72.9 as a senior.

For his career, Daniel had 12,515 yards passing with a 101-to-41 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He did this all while completing 68 percent of his passes. Daniel also had a list of awards that included the 2007 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year and was also a finalist for the Heisman that season. Following his senior season, he entered the 2009 NFL Draft with scouts varied on their opinion of him.

Some felt Daniel was one of the better prospects in the class whereas others lamented his height (6-foot-0) and said his numbers were padded due to the spread offense he orchestrated for the Tigers. In the end, the doubts won out as Daniel wasn’t drafted. However, he is still an active NFL quarterback and while he never ascended to stardom, he’s been one of the more well-respected backups in the NFL for the past 11 seasons.