Austin Aune is quarterbacking the Mean Green of North Texas.
In a 40-13 win Saturday over Western Kentucky, he was 19-of-28 for 317 yards and 3 TD passes.
Nothing out of the ordinary until you realize Aune is far older than a significant number of NFL starting quarterbacks.
Aune graduated high school in 2012 and was drafted by the New York Yankees in the second round of that year’s MLB draft.
Aune spent six seasons in the Yankees farm system.
He had 20 home runs and 148 RBIs but floated between High-A and Class-A teams. Aune had a career batting average of .226 and was released by the Tampa Yankees following the 2017 season.
“Couple lockers down from me was Aaron Judge,” Aune told WFAA in September. “Some of the guys that are on the big league roster now, I knew back then,” he told WFAA in September.
He went to Arkansas for a spell in 2018 before switching to North Texas.
Now, at 29 — his birth date is Sept. 6, 1993 — he is a redshirt junior with a wife and nearly-year-old daughter
Aune has started all 9 games for the Mean Green in 2022, throwing for 2,334 yards and 23 touchdowns.
Austin Aune delivers a perfect strike to Damon Ward 🎯
North Texas is rolling!@MeanGreenFB | #CUSAFB pic.twitter.com/hBSuTcKnPh
— Conference USA (@ConferenceUSA) October 29, 2022
UNT believes Aune is the oldest quarterback to play Division I college football in the modern era.
He would love to find a spot in the NFL eventually, according to WFAA, and finds inspiration in Tom Brady.
“Yeah, I’m throwing to guys 10 years younger than me,” Aune said. “But Brady is throwing to guys 20 years younger than him.”