Greatest quarterback debate continues
Fans love to debate who was the greatest this, that or the other, and with Matthew Stafford much in the news of late, the discussion about UGA’s all-time greatest quarterback comes up frequently. The Athens Banner-Herald has put a new twist on the discussion by surveying Bulldog football insiders on Georgia’s greatest quarterback ever. Some of the answers, particularly, Vince Dooley’s, may surprise you. The overall winner in the ABH survey is David Greene, the winningest QB in NCAA history, followed by sentimental choice Buck Belue (a national championship is hard to trump), Fran Tarkenton, Charley Trippi (yeah, he played quarterback as well as halfback), Johnny Rauch, Eric Zeier, D.J. Shockley and Stafford. If I’m pinned down on the subject, I have to equivocate a little by saying it depends on whether you’re talking Georgia’s greatest college quarterback or greatest quarterback, period. As a college QB, I don’t think you can argue with the cool reliability and winning record of Greenie, so I’d go along with the results of the survey. But if you take their entire career as a quarterback into consideration, not just their time in Athens, I don’t see any way Tarkenton doesn’t top the list by a mile. Feel free to continue the debate. …
Elsewhere, USA Today says that if Stafford is the Detroit Lions’ first-round draft pick, history is stacked against him. … The Diamond Dogs suffered a rare road loss at Jacksonville State Wednesday, going down 9-7. That’s only their third loss on the road so far this season. The other two were also in the state of Alabama, in Tuscaloosa. Let’s hope Perno’s Pups get over their problems with that state before the SEC tournament in May in Hoover. Meanwhile, the road gets tougher this weekend with three games against a tough Ole Miss team.
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103 comments Add your comment
Lee
April 23rd, 2009
7:38 pm
Jeff Pyburn
icedawg
April 23rd, 2009
8:16 pm
I agree, Buck Belue, 2 SEC & 1 National Championships. David Greene is close behind as well as Fran Tarkenton.
The greatest UGA athlete to play the position was Hines Ward.
jcallen12003
April 23rd, 2009
8:33 pm
Compared to Alabama QB’s ..none of these guys can really measure up,maybe a few but the majority..NO!
Bill Berry
April 23rd, 2009
8:39 pm
Absolutely no brainer, Fran Tarkenton by a mile. If he didn’t have Wally Butts playing Charlie Britt ahead of him his sophmore and junior years he would have had two other great seasons……..
Bill
beanuga
April 23rd, 2009
8:41 pm
I would have to say Stafford is the best. He had a young OL.
Matt Stafford will be like David Greene
April 23rd, 2009
8:41 pm
Die on the bench!
Joey Hester???
April 23rd, 2009
8:49 pm
Johnson lives here in Athens, Glynn Harrison is a high school coach in the Rome area, I believe. To the question at hand. pure passer? ‘Z’, leader? Greene, Goff, or Johnson, athlete? Goff or Johnson, with Fran very close behind. Don’t forget Fran was a part time starter at UGA, just as Goff split time with Robinson, another great pure passer who played in the NFL for several years. best play action? Greene, hands down. strongest arm? Stafford, who overthrew more deep passes than any qb ever to play in Athens. finally, Buck may have been more noted for handing off to Herschel, but as I recall the play that beat Florida was a pass to Lindsay. BTW, can you imagine Knowshon running behind Herschel’s line?
Wally Butts
April 23rd, 2009
8:50 pm
Larry Rakestraw & Preston Ridlehuber, without a doubt, had the best names.
Fran?
April 23rd, 2009
8:54 pm
Bill Berry, interesting comment about Fran. I agree with Shane, and actually go him one further to say that the original germination of the West Coast offense did, in fact, formulate itself in the mind of Johnny Rauch based on some of Coach Butts’ ideas. I have to believe, though, that that same Coach Butts’ played Charlie ahead of Fran because he was a better fit for the offense AT THAT TIME. Fran was great, but his greatness came in the NFL, which is outside the purview of this discussion. I wish Stafford in ‘07 and Greene in ‘03 had Fran’s scrambling skills.
do the dew
April 23rd, 2009
8:55 pm
Don’t forget the guy that flunked out of UGA and went from the bench at GA to the hero’s seat at Tech…funny he flunked out of UGA and graduated from Tech….John ‘I’m No. 1′ Dewberry
Tyrone, too
April 23rd, 2009
8:56 pm
Tyrone Sorrells is another player who flunked out of UGA and made it at Tech….hmmmm
Staf
April 23rd, 2009
8:58 pm
Ed,
I agree completely.
braveshater
April 23rd, 2009
9:01 pm
Georgia would have been undefeated had D.J. Shockley been allowed to play as he should have. We all know politics rule at that level, it was obvious he was a better playmaker. Just one of the many reasons Georgia hasnt been to the pinnacle of the sport since number two on the list BB.
Tommy
April 23rd, 2009
9:20 pm
Another Z was pretty good – Zeke Bratkowski; good enough to be Bart Starr’s backup during the Packers’ dynasty.
Goff doesn’t get the consideration because the younger fans are punishing him for his coaching tenure. He was also a helluva QB; ask Florida in ‘76.
Can’t argue with Trippi and Greene with next to Zeier, Goff. Johnson and Ward were more athletes and Tarkenton had much more success in NFL.
superDawg
April 23rd, 2009
9:25 pm
David Green- broke the drought against tennesee,made verron haynes famous with Larry munson’s help.D.J.SHOCKLEY stayed with UGA great guy,good luck with the falcons.Buck Belue he had Hershal and Lindsey Scott enough said.Well that leaves Joe Cox that book has not been written yet i hope it is a best seller.Last but not least reganald ball he was good.
Mikey
April 23rd, 2009
9:27 pm
David Greene was as cool as a bag of UGA’s ice.
simply unflappable…
CHill Dawg
April 23rd, 2009
9:55 pm
Maybe im biased not having seen Tarkenton play myself, but c’mon it’s David Greene EASY. ALL-TIME Winningest NCAA QB nuff’ said. I love Buck but come on, there was a certain running back on his team that might have helped just a little bit.
waynester
April 23rd, 2009
10:44 pm
I remember seeing Ray Goff as a teenager a Mack-Tharpe stadium in Moultrie and being absolutely stunned by his athleticism–my grandad, who had coached him in little leagues told me to watch out for this guy and sure enough, he was all that and more. A dawg to be proud of!
murfdawg
April 23rd, 2009
10:47 pm
David Greene would have to be considered the best, because of all the games he won.
Buck Belue would have to be considered the best by the people who only look at championships.
But if I’m down by six, 65 yards to go with 1:29 left on the clock, I want Andy Johnson!
If I’m playing Auburn, I want Tarkenton.
If I’m playing Fla, I want Mike Cavan. Who by the way, was the Sophmore of the Year ahead of Archie Manning and Scott Hunter.
I guess that makes me a candidate for possibly winning the definite maybe contest.
mikemike
April 23rd, 2009
10:59 pm
brian smith won at clemson in 95. loudest ive ever heard any
stadium. i think hines ward didn’t play that game b/c they
couldn’t figure out yet where to put him!!! can anyone confirm
that? tks.
Cuz
April 23rd, 2009
11:27 pm
Matt Robinson.
Robster
April 23rd, 2009
11:39 pm
Tommy,
I’m one of the “younger fans” who wasn’t around during ray goof’s playing days. It’s very difficult for me not to vomit, when I see his name somehow associated with the word “great.” However, it’s difficult for me to consider any UGA QB “great.” Why? Because my sophomoric eyes haven’t seen a modern Georgia QB lead his team to multiple victories over Florida. Yes, I went there. As a Bulldog, you can not achieve greatness, without conquering your most hated rival on a consistant basis. What UGA QB has done so? Tarkenton? Trippi? Belue? I wasn’t alive back then, so you tell me. As far as goff getting punished for his tenure as coach…Somebody should be!
Hal Vernon
April 24th, 2009
12:36 am
Is it 10-9 in Dallas or is it the game that Dooley knowingly played kids that had already flunked out (ie Pulpwood Smith, etc)
joe
April 24th, 2009
12:47 am
Greene is not even close to the best QB at UGA. He had little to no talent, and the only reason he’s the winningest QB in NCAA history is because his great defenses won most of his games for him. If Stafford had Greene’s defenses and offensive lines, there’s not telling what UGA would have done in his three years.
As for the most physically talented UGA QB, it’s easily Stafford. As for the QB who did the most at UGA, it’s either Tarkenton or Belue.
Alabamadawg
April 24th, 2009
1:10 am
I loved watching Belue play, but having said that, I’m not sure he’d ever see the field at Georgia these days…
Dontgothere
April 24th, 2009
7:25 am
Hey Joe, get a clue when you start talking about David Greene. You talk like he was a hack that just happened to be the QB with great defenses. Well if that is the case, riddle me this oh great one, why is David Greene still listed as the all time leading PASSER in SEC history. That’s right brainiac, he not only won more games than anyone in NCAA history as a starter, he threw for more yards in the SEC than anyone that ever played QB. So in the future on this and other subjects, know your subject matter before you take a stance on an issue.
AltamahaDawg
April 24th, 2009
7:34 am
Player Goff was a 3 yr letterman, a SEC player of the year, an SEC title winner, won 19 games in his 2 years as a starter, NEVER lost to Florida, (btw, would THAT be considered a modern day Qb with multiple wins over Fl?) and considered the best option QB we have ever had.
Coach Goff did not hire himself. Your problem appears to be with Coach Dooley.
ACC>SEC
April 24th, 2009
8:24 am
Joe Hamilton was the best quarterback that ever played college ball in Georgia.
GeoffDawg
April 24th, 2009
8:51 am
Correction – I think he meant to write that Joe Hamilton was the drunkest quarterback to ever play in Georgia.
Red Elephant
April 24th, 2009
9:08 am
1.) Greene – Best stats
2.) Belue – Most Championships
3.) Tarkenton – Golden oldie
4.) Zeier – Probably the best QB you ever had
5.) Stafford – Supreme goose egg layer – the King of ‘what could have been.’
6.) Rauch – Helped lay the foundation for your tradition.
7.) Shockley – Probably would have won another SEC title if he didn’t share time with Greene.
Long time dog.
April 24th, 2009
9:13 am
Buck Belue won a N/C That alone makes him #1 To me.
Huh?
April 24th, 2009
9:27 am
Joe has a point. Greene had a much better supporting cast than Stafford ever had. If you don’t believe that you’ve got your head stuck in the sand. I remember very well that there were games that Greene was not on top of his game but we still won because of the defense. On the other hand, I don’t think Stafford can match Greene’s consistency. Anyway, its a closer call than most seem to think. You can measure a quarterback by wins and championships if you want, but I just have a problem with it. Its not very objective. Its a team game.
Jay
April 24th, 2009
9:30 am
david greene sucked. never could win the big game. and dont give me that bs florida win against the zooker. im a georgia grad, and love the dawgs but david greene really doesnt belong on this list. better than tarkenton? belue? even shock? i dont think so…
Jay
April 24th, 2009
9:31 am
ohh, and i didnt even bring up when he wet his pants in death valley…
Saint Simons
April 24th, 2009
9:48 am
Barney fife was uga’s best qb!!
OKCBULLDOG
April 24th, 2009
9:58 am
It is a tough call between Shockley, Green, and Zeier. David Green was great as he was real efficient, but his accomplishment of being the winningest quarterback in not only UGA history but college football history is somewhat a little overstated. There is no coincedence that he happen to be at the helm during the time the bulldogs had their best defenses in a long time. They only had to score 20 points agame during that run (2001-2004) to win as the defense was only giving up about 18 points a game during that run. During Green’s tenure it was the defense that sticks out more in my mine than the play of the quarterback or any position on the offensive side of the ball.
scdawg
April 24th, 2009
10:04 am
Most talent- Stafford
Winner- David Greene
Best under pressure- Buck Belue
Most potential but didn’t get to play – Preston Jones
most accurate- Zeier
Best college/pro – tarkenton
best athlete- Quincy Carter
worst- Talley
Voice of Reason
April 24th, 2009
10:12 am
haha saint simons that was REAL funny… you should go on the road. moron
Voice of Reason
April 24th, 2009
10:14 am
no no— worst- Joe T
MA Merrill
April 24th, 2009
10:42 am
Eric Zeier! Hands down!! I have always said that, even during all the Stafford fanfair. I love seeing so many people on here agree with me. No one threw with such accuracy as Zeier and if he had the team his last 2 years that Stafford had, he would have won the National Championship and the Heisman! He was so much fun to watch. I was at UGA those years and a lot of the time, he WAS out team and he had heart and such intelligence about the game. I would love to see him on Georgia’s coaching staff. He is the best QB Georgia has ever had!
MA Merrill
April 24th, 2009
10:46 am
Ryan…I could have written your comment myself. I couldn’t agree more with everything you said. Georgia will do fine without Stafford…the loss of Knowshon will hurt. And your QB list…right on!
GGTOG & THWGT
April 24th, 2009
11:00 am
mikemike: In that Clemson game in ‘95 I believe Hines Ward was playing running back. That was the year we ran through about 7rbs and 3 qbs because of injuries.
Huh?
April 24th, 2009
11:00 am
MA Merrell, Zeier would not have won any national championships if his defense were giving up 30+ points per game like Georgia’s was in the second half of last season. You’re out to lunch pal.
Matthew
April 24th, 2009
11:52 am
If you’re going with Best Drinking Ability, its Cory Phillips hands down. However, for Best Overall Substance Abuser, Quincy still reigns supreme. Best QB to catch a TD pass before he threw one is still JOE T 3. On a serious note, it is Greene by a mile
Ed
April 24th, 2009
11:59 am
Ray Goff’s tenure as head coach has absolutely nothing to do with his ranking as a Georgia quarterback. I’ll take a guy who beats Florida, wins the SEC, and plays for the national title (mythical though it may be) in the Sugar Bowl year in and year out. He also was a top-notch recruiter and assistant for Georgia. He just wasn’t a good head coach. He joins a distinguished list in that regard.
ben barton
April 24th, 2009
1:36 pm
i like shockley! for the time he played! in 05 shockley brought us back against auburn and the defense lost that game then he got hurt and didnt play against fla then our defense got us behind in the sugar bowl and shockley brought us back within 3! everytime shockley touched the ball we rolled! please tell me why my falcons dont have shockley as starter! any way GO DAWGS!
Robster
April 24th, 2009
6:07 pm
Alt and Ed,
Point taken. See ya on the other blawg.
David
April 26th, 2009
8:26 pm
David Greene gets the nod for being the best overall QB at UGA for sure. Eric Zeier sure had tons of Talent, but what seperated the two was not the Coaching or the Players around them, but just the head factor. Eric was a very charged up Ra-Ra kinda guy that often acted a bit dramtic in the moment. He could force throws and actually kind of left Athens with the fans a little less enchanted with him than they had been his first three years. Greene was the calm cool collective QB. Stafford has the biggest arm, but he always seemed like a guy that already new he was in the NFL. He didnt have that true UGA vibe for reason to me. Almost as if UGA was a necessary “minor football league” requirement for the NFL. Greene along with David Pollack seem to really be true UGA Bulldawgs. David Greene played 4 yrs, won more than any QB ever in college football. This is an easy choice.
FLDAWG
April 26th, 2009
10:23 pm
Greene was the best QB when you take into account winning %, leadership, and talent. Zeire would be 2. Belue was great, but he had Hershel to carry the team to the NC. He did make some plays but it was Walkers who carried the load. Shockley just didn’t have enough time as a starter. As for Tarkenton and a number of other QB’s, I didn’t see them so I can’t comment intelligently on them. Bobo also deserves some mention as well.
macondawg
April 28th, 2009
5:23 pm
i would have to say Belue because he was the last one to win the National Championship. yeah having that record as the qb with most wins in ncaa is all fine well and good but i bet you greene wishes that one of those wins was a National championship. had he not lost to FL in 2002 he probably would have gotten a chance to play for it.13-1 in so. yr