ESPN released their annual top 100 college quarterbacks of the 21st century list, and three Clemson players broke into the top 100. Tajh Boyd slipped in with the 97th slot, Trevor Lawrence came in at 11th, and Deshaun Watson was placed 6th.
Boyd came into Clemson in 2009 as a five-star prospect and a foundational piece of Swinney’s recruiting class. He helped lead Clemson to three 10+ win seasons for the first time since 1988-90. Boyd is the team’s all-time leader in both passing yards and touchdowns, and was the first Tiger quarterback to make back-to-back All-ACC bids since Steve Fuller in the late ’70s.
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Trevor Lawrence not making the top ten is surprising to say the least. The five-star recruit, three-year starter, and first overall pick outshines many members of the top ten. His 10,098 passing yards and 90 passing touchdowns are superior to 70% of the top ten. He lost two games as a starter while winning three ACC titles, appearing in three college football playoffs, and 2 National Championships. His win percentage trails only Ken Dorsey and Matt Leinart for quarterbacks who have started at least 30 games. He’s the winningest quarterback in school history, and is the 6th quarterback in ACC history with at least 10,000 passing yards.
ESPN’s blurb about Deshaun Watson reads as follows: “Remember when ‘Clemsoning’ meant ‘failing spectacularly on the big stage?’ No? That’s because Watson came to town and flipped Dabo Swinney’s program from good to elite. He averaged 4,351 passing yards and 867 rushing yards in 2015-16, first leading the Tigers to the CFP title game, then winning it the next year. ‘Clemsoning’ now means ‘winning big.'”
Deshaun transformed Clemson as a program. When he came in, the Tigers were a solid team, racking up ten wins a season while consistently falling to Florida State and South Carolina. Deshaun changed that. He played through a torn ACL to defeat the Gamecocks in his first year as a student. He led Clemson to the National Championship in his two healthy seasons, capping off his collegiate career with the program’s first Natty in 35 years. When Dabo was one of the premier coaches in college football, Watson was the foundational piece. He’s the greatest quarterback in the history of this program, and the most critical piece of Clemson’s run as one of the best teams in football.
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This article originally appeared on Clemson Wire: Clemson QB’s featured in ESPN’s top 100 Quarterbacks of the century
