Big 12 Football: 50 best players of all-time

Big 12 Football best players of all-time: 13. Colt McCoy, QB, Texas football

During his tenure at Texas, Colt McCoy was one of the most accurate and most beloved quarterbacks in school history. McCoy joined a winning organization as he was a redshirt when they won the title in 2005. He then spent the next four seasons as the starter for Texas and when he was done, he was the Big 12 leader in completion percentage at 70.3. To show just how deadly accurate he was, McCoy also set the FBS record for a single-season by completing 76.7 percent of his passes in 2008.

That same season, Texas finished 12-1 and was No. 4 in the polls. McCoy had 3,859 yards passing with a 34-to-8 touchdown-to-interception ratio. He finished second in voting for the Heisman behind Sam Bradford that year.

McCoy was again a runner-up in 2009 when he and the Longhorns went 12-0 during the regular season before knocking off Nebraska in the Big 12 Championship Game. He then found himself suffering an injury and having to leave during the first offensive series of the game. Garrett Gilbert came in for McCoy but Alabama scored the win.

Even with that loss, McCoy finished 45-8 as a starter and was a third-round pick for the Cleveland Browns. As of 2021, he’s the backup quarterback for the New York Giants. He never became a full-time starter in the NFL but he has carved out a long career and has a reputation for his ability to run an offense as the reserve.