OU football history 101: Frosh QBs rare at national title level

When was the last time a true OU football freshman started a game at quarterback.

I’ll give you a hint: it wasn’t in the current century.

It once was extremely rare for a true freshman quarterback to start a game for a major college program, but that is not the case anymore.

The game is producing better talent and bigger stars at every position and at a younger age than ever before. And quarterbacks seem to be leading the way in this transformation.

A year ago, Clemson freshman quarterback Trevor Lawrence stormed onto the college football scene, replacing two-year starter Kelly Bryant four games into the 2018 season and leading the Tigers to a national championship blowout win over defending national champion Alabama. Just a year earlier, Lawrence was setting Georgia state high school records for passing yards and passing touchdowns.

The year before Lawrence’s superstar performance in the College Playoff national championship game, Alabama freshman Tua Tagovailoa made similar headlines, coming off the bench in replace of former Crimson Tide starter and now projected Oklahoma starting QB Jalen Hurts, in leading Bama to an overtime national championship win over Georgia. But Tagovailoa did not start a single game his entire freshman season and appeared in only eight games.

While the game is seeing more and more quarterbacks earning starting assignments in their first season of college ball, it is still extremely rare for a freshman signal caller to start in a national championship game and lead his team to victory. Before Lawrence performed the feat, it hadn’t been done in 33 years.

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Here is where Oklahoma football history crosses paths with Lawrence’s historic 2018 Clemson season. Sooner true freshman Jamelle Holieway, who will forever be remembered as the player who replaced an injured Troy Aikman four games into the 1985 season, lead Oklahoma to an 11-1 season and a win over No. 1-ranked Penn State in the Orange Bowl for the Sooners’ sixth national championship.

Holieway owns the distinction of being the first collegiate quarterback to lead his team to a national championship as a true freshman. He is still the first to do it, but now he has company in the record book.

Circling back now to the question posed earlier in this article — who was the last true freshman to start a game for Oklahoma? — here’s a second hint. He is still associated with the Sooner football program.

Cale Gundy, who coaches the inside wide receivers and doubles as co-offensive coordinator, was the Sooner QB from 1990 to 1993 and was the last true freshman to start at the position at OU. Before Bob Stoops became the head coach at Oklahoma, in 1999, Gundy held virtually every Oklahoma single-game, single-season and career passing record.

Sam Bradford (2007), Landry Jones (2009), and Trevor Knight (2013) all drew starting assignments at quarterback in their first season of eligibility, but were redshirted in their true freshman season.

It has been reported that Gundy’s outstanding passing skills is the prime reason OU disposed of the famed wishbone offense. He currently ranks sixth on the all-time Oklahoma career passing list.

Gundy joined Stoops’ staff in 1999 as running backs coach, a position he held for 16 seasons. He has also played an integral role in the Sooners’ recruiting efforts the last five season.