Quarterback Cade McNown - 1998 Season
Cade McNown, winner of the Johnny Unitas Award and the Pacific-10 Conference's career total offense leader, placed third in the Heisman Trophy balloting. In addition, he was selected first-team All-America by the American Football Coaches Assn. and Associated Press and second-team All-America by The Sporting News and College & Pro Football Newsweekly. The Pac-10 co-Offensive Player of the Year, he was also one of three for the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award, one of three finalists for the Maxwell Award and one of five finalists for the Football News Offensive Player of the Year Award.
He led the Bruins to a 10-2 record and a berth in the 1999 Rose Bowl and his offense averaged 40.5 points (No. 5 in the nation) and 482.6 yards (No. 8 nationally) during the regular season. UCLA scored 40 points in each of the first five games, a school record, and did it seven times overall.
In 12 games, McNown has completed 207 of 357 passes (58.0 percent) for 3,470 yards and 25 touchdowns. McNown had 119 completions of at least 10 yards and 31 of at least 35 yards (five each against Miami and Oregon and four vs Wisconsin in the Rose Bowl).
McNown set new school records for passing yards (3,470), passing touchdowns (25) and total offense (3,652) and UCLA set team records in all three categories. In addition, he ranks fifth on the Pac-10 season total offense list and eighth on the Pac-10 season passing yardage list (the Rose Bowl is not included in those totals.
He finished second in the Pac-10 in total offense (299.7 yards) and third in passing efficiency (156.9). He ranked ninth nationally in both total offense and passing efficiency. His final averages, including the Rose Bowl, were 289.2 yards passing and 304.3 yards on total offense - both new school records.
In the Rose Bowl, McNown completed 19 of 34 passes for 340 yards (fourth-most in Rose Bowl history), two touchdowns and one interception. His second TD pass, a 41-yard strike to Danny Farmer, was his 25th of the year, breaking the school record of 24 he held along with Troy Aikman. Eight of his completions measured at least 20 yards, including touchdowns of 41 yards to Farmer and 38 to Jermaine Lewis. McNown accounted for 355 yards of total offense, a UCLA bowl record, as was his 340 passing yards.
McNown owns six of the top 10 passing days in school history and is the only Bruin to pass for more than 355 yards in a game more than once (he has done it six times). He is also the only Bruin in school history to account for at least 360 yards total offense in a game more than once (he has done it seven times). He has also passed for at least 300 yards 10 times, another school record.
McNown saved his best for his final regular-season game. Against Miami in the Orange Bowl on Dec. 5, he shattered UCLA's single-game passing record, finishing with 513 yards by completing 26 of 35 attempts. He also tied his own school record by throwing five touchdown passes. In the process, he also set a school record with 515 yards total offense. Three of his touchdown passes measured at least 59 yards -- 77 yards to Danny Farmer, 61 yards to Brian Poli-Dixon and 59 yards to Brad Melsby - and he had six completions of at least 30 yards. The 77-yard TD to Farmer was the third-longest of his career and the 12th longest in school history. He also scored once, giving him a hand in all six touchdowns.
His 513 yards passing rank No. 3 on the Pac-10's single-game list and his 515 yards of total offense rank No. 2.
On Nov. 21, he became the first quarterback in the history of the UCLA-USC series to win four games, leading the Bruins to a 34-17 victory at the Rose Bowl. He completed 12 of 20 passes for 146 yards and one touchdown. The Bruins, leading 27-10 at halftime, attempted just six passes in the second half.
Against Washington, he became the Pac-10's career total offense leader with 10,231 yards. On the afternoon, he completed 12 of 24 passes for 233 yards, including two passes of at least 40 yards and led the offense to seven scoring drive (two touchdowns and five interceptions). UCLA attempted just eight passes in the second half of the Husky contest.
On Nov. 7 in the 41-34 victory at Oregon State, he demonstrated why he is one of the leading candidates for the Heisman Trophy. He rallied the Bruins from a third-quarter deficit by leading them to 24 points in the final 16:22. Oregon State tied the score twice in the final quarter and each time McNown moved the Bruins right down the field for a go-ahead score.
With UCLA trailing 24-17 in the third quarter, McNown drove the Bruins to the game-tying touchdown by running, passing and receiving. From his own 37-yard line, he scrambled 30 yards to put the Bruins in scoring position. Two plays later, he pitched the ball to tailback Jermaine Lewis, who passed back to McNown, who ran 22 yards to the four-yard line with the first reception of his career. After a five-yard penalty and a two-yard run by DeShaun Foster, McNown hit Danny Farmer for a seven-yard touchdown to tie the game.
With 10 minutes remaining in the game, McNown hit Farmer for a 43-yard yard touchdown to give UCLA a 31-24 lead. After OSU tied the game, he drove the Bruins to Chris Sailer's 30-yard field goal with just 1:17 remaining. After OSU tied the game at 34 with just 31 seconds remaining, McNown found Brad Melsby alone on the right sideline for the game-winning 61-yard touchdown pass.
On the afternoon, McNown completed 23 of 37 passes for 377 yards and four touchdowns with just one interception on a deflection. He also rushed for 37 net yards (three shy of the team lead) on five attempts and made one reception for 22 yards. His 414 yards of total offense rank No. 2 on UCLA's all-time list, trailing only Tommy Maddox's 445 vs. USC in 1990. His 377 passing yards rank eighth on that UCLA list and fourth on the McNown list. The four touchdown passes were just one shy of the school record of five he set last year at Texas.
On Oct. 31, McNown led the Bruins on two fourth-quarter touchdown drives to erase a 10-point deficit and defeat the Stanford Cardinal, 28-24 at the Rose Bowl. On the afternoon, he completed 19 of 31 passes for 254 yards and one touchdown, a 53-yard strike to Brian Poli-Dixon. He had four completions of at least 20 yards. He also had a touchdown pass negated by a holding call.
On Oct. 24, McNown used his left arm and his legs to lead the Bruins to their 16th straight victory, extending the school record. He completed 15 of 27 passes for 182 yards and two touchdowns - first-quarter strikes of 17 and 35 yards to Brian Poli-Dixon to give the Bruins a 14-7 lead. He also ran for net 57 yards, the second-best total of his career (he ran for 82 in the 1995 Aloha Bowl). His 34-yard scamper on third-and-six set up UCLA's third TD to give the Bruins a 21-9 halftime lead. He also had second-half runs of 16, 11 and 11 yards that produced first downs. His 16-yard sweep on second-and-four came two plays prior to Jermaine Lewis' touchdown pass.
On Oct. 17 against 11th-ranked and undefeated (5-0) Oregon, he fought off illness to lead the Bruins to a 41-38 overtime victory. McNown completed 20 of 36 passes for 395 yards and three touchdowns. In addition, he had two other passes dropped, one of which would have been a 59-yard touchdown. After becoming ill on the field in the third quarter and missing one play, he completed nine of his final 13 pass for 202 yards and one touchdown.
On the afternoon, he had five completions of at least 40 yards. His 51-yard scoring pass to DeShaun Foster opened the scoring and his 60-yard strike to Danny Farmer with 2:36 remaining in regulation gave the Bruins a 38-31 lead. After Oregon tied the game with 22 seconds remaining, McNown hit backup quarterback Drew Bennett on a 53-yard pass to put the Bruins in possession for a game-winning 21-yard field goal. The Bruins did not take advantage but won the game with a field goal in the first overtime period.
McNown's 395 passing yards against the Ducks tied the fourth best effort in school history (McNown vs. Arizona State in 1996) and tied for second on his personal list (he passed for 400 yards vs. Tennessee last year).
On Oct. 10 at No. 10 Arizona, he rebounded from a slow start to lead the Bruins to a 52-28 victory, their first in Tucson in 10 years. Beginning with the second quarter, he led UCLA to six touchdowns and one field goal on nine possessions, resulting in 45 points. During that span, he completed eight of 14 passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns and ran for the go-ahead score. His first TD pass was a 14-yard strike to Brian Poli-Dixon on an inside screen. On his second, with UCLA leading by three early in the final quarter, he faked an option run, dropped back and hit a streaking Danny Farmer for a 64-yard score. McNown's three-yard run with 20 seconds left in the third quarter gave UCLA the lead for good, 31-28.
On Oct. 3 against Washington State, he led UCLA to touchdowns on each of its first three possessions en route to a 49-17 victory at the Rose Bowl -- UCLA's school-record 13th straight win. The Bruins led 21-0 at the end of the first quarter and 35-10 at halftime. His most spectacular play was his six-yard touchdown run in the first quarter, on which he hurdled a would-be tackler at the goal line, twisted in mid-air and game down on his back.
On the day, McNown completed 14 of 27 passes for 205 yards, including a 51-yard pass to Danny Farmer and a seven-yard touchdown to Brian Poli-Dixon, and became the first Bruin to record over 8,000 career passing yards. Overall, he completed passes to six different receivers. It was his 18th straight game with at least 200 passing yards, extending his own school record.
On Sept. 19 at Houston, McNown became the only player in school history to pass for over 300 yards in back-to-back games. That afternoon, he passed for 315 yards and one touchdown as UCLA overcame a 6-0 deficit at the end of the first quarter to win, 42-24. McNown's touchdown pass, a 61-yard strike to Brian Poli-Dixon, gave the Bruins the lead early in the second quarter. On the afternoon, McNown had four completions of at least 40 yards and completed passes to eight different receivers.
In the opener against No. 22 (at the time) Texas, McNown completed 20 of 30 passes for 339 yards and three touchdowns with just one interception. He led UCLA to touchdowns on five of its first six possessions and six of its first eight and averaged 11.3 yards per pass attempt and 17.0 yards per completions. In the first 30 minutes, he completed 13 of 17 attempts for 222 yards, two touchdowns and nine first downs (including the two scores).
In 12 games in 1998, McNown was 72 for 119 for 1,188 yards and seven scores on first down, 81 of 124 for 1,319 yards and eight scores on second down, 54 of 113 for 963 yards and 10 touchdowns on third down and zero for one on fourth down. Forty-two of his 56 third-down completions resulted in first downs. Fifty-three of his completions measured at least 20 yards, 31 at least 35 yards.
McNown's 77-yard TD pass to Danny Farmer at Miami was the third-longest of his career and ranks 12th in school history. His 79-yard touchdown pass to Freddie Mitchell against Texas in the opener was the second-longest completion of his career and ranks eighth (tied) on UCLA's all-time list. He threw an 88-yard touchdown to Farmer in the 1996 opener at Tennessee.
McNown had a school-record streak of 18 games with at least 200 passing yards stopped in the victory at Arizona.
In 1997, McNown was one of three finalists for the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award. He led the country in passing efficiency, finished eighth in the Heisman race and was named a third-team All-American by Associated Press and The Sporting News.
McNown finished the 1997 regular season with a quarterback rating of 168.6, the 12th-highest in NCAA history. He was the first Bruin since Tom Ramsey in 1982 to lead the nation. He also broke the Pac-10 record of 164.5, set by Cal's Dave Barr in 1993.
In the 1998 Cotton Bowl, McNown engineered the second-largest comeback in the bowl's history, rallying UCLA from a 16-0 deficit in the 29-23 victory over Texas A&M. Only Notre Dame's Joe Montana led a bigger comeback (22 points).
CADE McNOWN SNAPSHOT
1998 Johnny Unitas Award winner
1998 Davey O'Brien Award finalist
1998 Maxwell Award finalist
1998 Pac-10 co-Offensive Player of the Year
Set a UCLA record with 3,470 passing yards in 1998, breaking his own record
Set a UCLA record with 3,652 total offense yards in 1998, breaking his own record
11 career games of at least 300 passing yards
Set school record with five touchdown passes against Texas in 1997 and tied it at Miami in 1998
Set school records with 513 yards passing and 515 yards total offense versus Miami in 1998, shattering the old records of 409 and 445, respectively
30-14 as UCLA's starting quarterback (most wins by a Bruin starting quarterback)
First in UCLA career completions (694)
First in UCLA career passing yards (10,708)
First in UCLA career passing touchdowns (68)
First in UCLA career total offense (11,285)
First in Pac-10 career total offense (11,285)
Second in Pac-10 career passing yards (10,708)
Forty-three consecutive starts, the most by a Bruin T-formation quarterback
In his final 22 games (20-2) he completed 350 of 592 passes (59.1%) for 5,929 yards, 47 touchdowns and 15 interceptions.
His 68 career touchdown passes also set a new school record, breaking the mark of 50, set by Tom Ramsey in 1979-82. He started 44 games, including 43 straight, and played in 47 contests. His 43 consecutive starts are a school record for a T-formation quarterback, breaking the mark of 24 held by Ramsey and Aikman.
His 11,285 yards of total offense rank first on the Pac-10 career list. His 10,708 passing yards rank second while his 68 touchdown passes rank third.
1998 McNOWN Passing
Game PA PC Int. Yds TD
TEX* 30 20 1 339 3
HOU* 32 17 1 315 1
WSU* 27 14 1 205 1
ARIZ* 24 10 0 171 2
ORE* 36 20 2 395 3
CAL* 27 15 0 182 2
STAN* 31 19 2 254 1
OSU* 37 23 1 377 4
WASH* 24 13 0 233 0
USC* 20 12 2 146 1
MIA* 35 26 0 513 5
WISC* 34 19 1 340 2
1998 357 207 11 3470* 25*
1997 312 189 6 3116 24
1996 336 176 16 2424 12
1995 245 122 8 1698 7
CAR 1250* 694* 41 10708* 68*
1997 McNOWN Passing
Game PA PC Int. Yds TD
WSU* 34 19 0 257 1
TENN* 43 27 2 400** 1
TEX* 23 15 0 202 5*
ARIZ* 24 18 0 266 0
HOU* 14 11 0 297 4
ORE* 25 15 1 248 1
OSU* 25 11 1 210 2
CAL* 20 11 0 259 2
STAN* 28 15 1 205 0
WASH* 23 16 0 320 3
USC* 24 15 0 213 3
TEXAS A&M* 29 16 1 239 2
Total 312 189 6 3116* 24*
** career high, #2 all-time at UCLA
(Tommy Maddox 409 vs. USC in 1990)
* school record
1996 McNOWN Passing
Game PA PC Int. Yds TD
TENN* 24 16 0 230 1
NELouisiana* 20 13 0 164 0
MICH* 27 8 3 39 0
ORE* 24 13 2 158 1
ASU* 41 22 1 395 3
WASH* 31 17 1 218 0
CAL* 28 16 2 273 1
STAN* 34 14 3 156 1
WSU* 32 16 2 230 3
ARIZ* 28 12 1 205 1
USC* 47 29 1 356 1
Total 336 176 16 2424 12
1995 McNOWN Passing
Game PA PC Int. Yds TD
MIAMI 2 2 0 15 0
BYU 18 9 0 91 0
ORE* 24 12 1 183 0
WSU 17 9 0 114 1
Fresno St.* 22 18 0 306 1
ARIZ* 18 3 1 80 0
STAN* 27 15 1 150 1
CAL* 24 13 0 157 1
ASU* 23 13 0 289 0
WASH* 19 7 3 61 0
USC* 17 8 2 131 0
KANSAS* 34 13 0 121 3
Total 245 122 8 1698 7
CHARTING McNOWN
Career Completions: 694, FIRST; #2 Tom Ramsey 441
Career Passing Yards: 10,708, FIRST, #2 Ramsey 6168
Career Total Offense: 11,285 FIRST; #2 Ramsey 6255
Career TD Passes: 68, FIRST; #2 Ramsey 50
Started 44 games, including 43 straight, and played in 47 contests overall.
UCLA SEASON PASSING LEADERS (YARDS)
Years PA PC Yds Pct. TD
Cade McNown 1998 357 207 3470 .580 25
Cade McNown 1997 312 189 3116 .606 24
Tom Ramsey 1982 336 209 2986 .622 21
Troy Aikman 1988 354 228 2771 .644 24
Tommy Maddox 1990 327 182 2682 .557 17
UCLA SEASON TOTAL OFFENSE LEADERS
Year Plays Rush Pass Yds
Cade McNown 1998 432 182 3470 3652
Cade McNown 1997 391 26 3116 3142
Tom Ramsey 1982 470 138 2986 3124
Troy Aikman 1988 432 83 2771 2854
Tommy Maddox 1990 417 148 2682 2830
UCLA CAREER PASSING LEADERS (YARDS)
Years PA PC Yds Pct. TD
Cade McNown 1995-98 1250 694 10708 .555 68
Tom Ramsey 1979-82 751 441 6168 .587 50
Troy Aikman 1987-88 627 406 5298 .648 41
Tommy Maddox 1990-91 670 391 5363 .584 33
Wayne Cook 1991-94 612 352 4723 .575 34
UCLA CAREER TOTAL OFFENSE LEADERS
Years Plays Rush Pass Yds
Cade McNown 1995-98 1563 577 10708 11285
Tom Ramsey 1979-82 1055 87 6168 6255
Tommy Maddox 1990-91 837 119 5363 5482
Gary Beban 1965-67 937 1271 4087 5358
Troy Aikman 1987-88 784 -4 5298 5294
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