We could go on and on about the best quarterbacks in college football history and where they rank among their peers.
One could do the same for the best individual quarterback performances, too.
But how about a strictly statistical ranking of signal-callers with the most passing yards in a single game?
FOX Sports Research did just that, compiling the list of players who top all the rest.
10 Players With The Most Single-Game Passing Yards in FBS History
10. Utah QB Scott Mitchell: 631 (1988)
Scott Mitchell led the WAC with 4,322 passing yards and 29 passing TDs in 1988. (Photo by Kevin Abele/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
On an October day in Salt Lake City in 1988, Mitchell was a menace for the Utes against Air Force. He completed 36 of 60 passes and averaged 17.5 yards per completion, as the Utah signal-caller threw for 631 yards and five touchdowns. Unfortunately for Utah, Mitchell’s heroics came in a losing effort, as the Falcons downed the Utes, 56-49.
9. Idaho QB Brian Lindren: 637 (2001)
Brian Lindgren led the Sun Belt Conference with a 134.8 passer rating in 2002. (Photo by Kevin Langley/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Lindgren went off against Middle Tennessee in 2001. The Vandals’ quarterback threw for 637 yards and five touchdowns, while completing 69.0% of his passes. Idaho’s problem? Middle Tennessee quarterback Wes Counts posted a 290.6 passer rating, and the Blue Raiders dropped 70 points en route to beating Idaho by double digits.
8. Texas Tech QB Cody Hodges: 643 (2005)
Cody Hodges led the Big 12 with 4,197 passing yards, 31 TDs and a 66.5% completion percentage in 2005. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
The Red Raiders got the offense rolling in the second quarter and cruised to a 59-20 victory over Kansas State in their 2005 matchup. Hodges was the superstar of the week, totaling 643 passing yards, five passing touchdowns and a 170.0 passer rating, while completing 67.7% of his passes.
7. Texas Tech QB Graham Harrell: 646 (2007)
Graham Harrell was a finalist for the 2008 Heisman Trophy Award. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Texas Tech and Oklahoma State teamed up for an offensive bout of epic proportions in 2007 and did so in polar opposite ways. For the Red Raiders, Harrell threw for 646 yards and five touchdowns, with wide receivers Michael Crabtree and Danny Amendola combining for 28 receptions for 470 yards and four touchdowns. Texas Tech’s problem? Oklahoma State had three players rush for 100-plus yards en route to a 49-45 victory.
Geno Smith led the Big 12 in passing touchdowns in both 2011 and 2012. (Photo by Justin K. Aller/Getty Images)
When a quarterback throws for 581 yards, like Baylor’s Nick Florence did, it should be enough to get the win. That wasn’t the case on a September 2012 day in Morgantown, though, as Smith totaled 656 yards, eight passing scores and a 248.0 passer rating, while completing 88.2% of his passes for the Mountaineers. West Virginia won, 70-63.
5. Texas Tech QB B.J. Symons: 661 (2003)
B.J. Symons threw for a nation-high 5,833 yards and 52 touchdowns in 2003. (Photo by Ronald Martinez/Getty Images)
Texas Tech got an out-of-conference win over Ole Miss in a highly competitive September 2003 matchup. Most notably, Symons threw for 661 yards and six touchdowns, while posting a 183.3 passer rating and completing 68.8% of his passes. He also rushed for another score, helping the Red Raiders get a 49-45 road victory.
4. TCU QB Matt Vogler: 690 (1990)
Matt Vogler played one season at Auburn before transferring to TCU. (Photo by Kyle Rivas/Getty Images)
Vogler and the Horned Frogs were on the losing end of a 1990 matchup against an undefeated Houston team, 56-35, but TCU’s quarterback tore the Cougars’ defense to smithereens. Vogler, who was making just his second career collegiate start, threw for 690 yards and five touchdowns.
3. Houston QB David Klingler: 716 (1990)
David Klingler was the No. 6 pick in the 1992 NFL Draft. (Photo by Bernstein Associates/Getty Images)
Klinger and the Cougars had an eventful, 62-45 road win over Arizona State in their final game of the 1990 season. Why mention the Houston quarterback? Well, he threw for 716 yards and seven touchdowns, leading the Cougars to their 10th win of the season. Kingler finished fifth in the 1990 Heisman Trophy voting.
T-1. Washington State QB Connor Halliday: 734 (2014)
Connor Halliday led the nation with 714 passing attempts in 2013. (Photo by Steve Conner/Icon Sportswire/Corbis/Icon Sportswire via Getty Images)
Imagine throwing for 734 yards and your team loses by one point. That’s what happened to Halliday in 2014, as Washington lost at home to Cal, 60-59. He threw for 734 yards and six touchdowns, posted a 186.4 passer rating and completed 70.0% of his passes. To boot, Washington State had a two-score lead in the third quarter.
Patrick Mahomes led the Big 12 in passing attempts in both 2015 and 2016. (Photo by John Weast/Getty Images)
If you spent your college days in Lubbock, Texas, there is a 40% chance that you end up on this list. In one of the most chaotic games in the history of college football, Oklahoma got a 66-59 road victory over Texas Tech in 2016. Mahomes threw for 734 yards and five touchdowns. He did so while completing 52 of 88 passes (59.1%) and also rushing for 85 yards and two touchdowns. By the way, the quarterback of the other team, Baker Mayfield, threw for a measly 545 yards and seven touchdowns, while posting a 266.3 passer rating and completing 75.0% of his passes.
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