And … The winner is …
You might be a little surprised here until we dig into the numbers. It’s also worth noting that there’s not a ton of all-time type players to choose from that wore the No. 17.
So, all that being said, our winner is former quarterback Todd Boeckman. Many view Boeckman as an immobile guy in the pocket that couldn’t get it done when it all mattered, but that’s not the full story.
Boeckman won the starting job after Heisman winner Troy Smith left the program in 2007 and quickly threw for 2,375 yards and 25 touchdowns. He eventually was named an All-Big Ten first-teamer. Not bad for a first-year starter. That year also resulted in Ohio State finding its way to the BCS National Championship Game in New Orleans where it lost to LSU.
Because of a redshirt, and then a gray shirt, Boeckman entered his senior season in 2008 as a sixth-year guy but eventually lost the starting job to a freshman by the name of Terrelle Pryor.
All in all, despite an up and down career, Boekman finished his career with the fourth-most touchdowns thrown (25), and best completion percentage (63.4 percent) in a season for an Ohio State quarterback. That has since changed, but it was still a solid, solid season.
Todd Boeckman, like Dwayne Haskins hopes to do Saturday, once passed Ohio State to a win at Penn State. Boeckman, like Clemson's Kelly Bryant, once lost his job to a freshman QB the year after reaching the playoff/title game. So I wrote about Todd Boeckman https://t.co/4TVxEOItsL
— Doug Lesmerises (@DougLesmerises) September 27, 2018
Jerome Baker, Chris Sanders, and Jalin Marshall make the honorable mention here, but nobody really comes too close to the pick of Boeckman as the best to don No. 17.
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