It's not hyperbole to say that Arizona Cardinals quarterback was one of the most efficient passers in the history of the college game. Murray is one of the most talented quarterback prospects to come out of the state of Texas — he was also signed by the Oakland Athletic's to play professional baseball — and after a one-year stop at Texas A&M, he developed into a Heisman Trophy winner and No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft.
Here's everything you need to know about Kyler Murray's college career.
The vitals on Kyler Murray
Schools: Texas A&M, Oklahoma
Position: Quarterback
Height: 5-10
Weight: 192 pounds
Years active: 2015-18
Here are Kyler Murray's career stats in college. Scroll to the right to view the complete stats.
| Year | games | completions | attempts | comp. % | Yards | Y/A | TD | int | rating |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2015 | 8 | 72 | 121 | 59.5 | 686 | 5.7 | 5 | 7 | 109.2 |
| 2017 | 7 | 18 | 21 | 85.7 | 359 | 17.1 | 3 | 0 | 276.5 |
| 2018 | 14 | 260 | 377 | 69.0 | 4,361 | 11.6 | 42 | 7 | 199.2 |
| Career | 29 | 350 | 519 | 67.4 | 5,406 | 10.4 | 50 | 14 | 181.3 |
Where did Kyler Murray go to college?
Kyler Murray enrolled at Texas A&M, where he appeared in eight games as a true freshman in 2015, before transferring to Oklahoma after the season. He sat out the 2016 season in accordance with the transfer rules at the time, then he backed up Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield in 2017, before winning a Heisman of his own the next season.
What kind of prospect was Kyler Murray in high school?
Murray was an elite prospect in high school. The 247Sports Composite rankings ranked him as the No. 1 dual-threat quarterback in the 2015 recruiting class and the No. 34 prospect overall. An Under Armour All-American, Murray was also named the National Gatorade Player of the Year and the 2014 Offensive Player of the Year, according to USA TODAY.
What was Kyler Murray's record in college?
In the 29 games that Murray played in college, his teams went a combined 24-5. Texas A&M went 6-2 in the games in which Murray appeared in 2015, then Oklahoma went 6-1 in the games he played in 2017 and 12-2 the following season when Murray was the starter.
Records set by Kyler Murray
Here are the records and statistical rankings set by Murray in college:
- NCAA record for most passing yards gained per attempt in a season (min. 375 attempts): 11.6 yards (2018)
- NCAA record for highest average gain per play in a season (min. 3,000 passing yards): 10.37 yards
- One of 35 players in FBS history with at least 2,000 passing yards and 1,000 rushing yards in a season
- 2018 NCAA total offense leader: 383.0 yards per game
- 2018 NCAA leader in yards per pass attempt: 11.57 yards per attempt
- 2018 NCAA leader in passing yards per completion: 16.77 yards per completion
- 2018 NCAA co-leader in points responsible for: 324 points
- 2018 Big 12 passing efficiency leader: 199.2 (2018)
- 1st in NCAA history in career passing efficiency among players with 325-399 completions: 181.3
- 1st in Oklahoma history in career completion percentage (min. 200 attempts): 69.8 percent
- 1st in Oklahoma history in single-game passing efficiency (min. 15 attempts): 348.04 (against Baylor on Sept. 29, 2018)
- 1st in Oklahoma history in passing efficiency in a season (min. 100 attempts): 199.18 (2018)
- 1st in Oklahoma history in career passing efficiency (min. 200 attempts): 203.26
- 1st in Oklahoma history in total offense in a season: 5,362 yards (2018)
- 1st in Oklahoma history in most Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week honors in a season: Five times (2018)
- T-2nd in Oklahoma history in touchdown passes in a game: Six touchdowns (against Baylor on Sept. 29, 2018)
- 3rd in Oklahoma history in touchdown passes in a season: 42 touchdowns (2018)
- 3rd in Oklahoma history in 300-yard passing games in a season: Nine games (2018)
- 4th in NCAA history in passing efficiency in a season (min. 15 attempts per game): 199.2 (2018)
- T-4th in Oklahoma history in 200-yard passing games in a season: 13 games (2018)
- 5th in Oklahoma history in passing yards in a season: 4,361 yards (2018)
- 5th in Oklahoma history in completion percentage in a season: 69.0 percent (2018)
- 6th in Oklahoma history in career touchdown passes: 45 touchdowns
- 8th in NCAA history in season passing yards: 5,362 yards
- 8th in Oklahoma history in career passing yards: 4,720 yards
- 9th in Oklahoma history in career completions: 278 completions
What were some of Kyler Murray's best games in college?
In his first and only season as a full-time starter from the beginning and end of the 2018 season, Murray won the Heisman Trophy, then became the No. 1 overall pick in the NFL draft. So despite his stints as a backup at Texas A&M and Oklahoma, he has no shortage of games to choose from in which he put up monstrous statistical numbers.
Here are some of Murray's most notable performances in college:
Texas A&M 35, South Carolina 28 | Oct. 31, 2015
In Murray's first five college games, he played sparingly, attempting just 31 combined passes in those games. Then Texas A&M played South Carolina on Halloween, when Murray went 20-for-28 passing (71.4 percent) for 223 yards and a touchdown, while rushing 20 times for 156 yards and a score. That's 379 total yards of offense in a conference win, showing Murray's potential as an uber-efficient passer and dangerous runner. It was by far his best game in his first three years of college, given that he wasn't Oklahoma's starter for three more seasons until 2018.
Oklahoma 56, UTEP 7 | Sept. 2, 2017
In his first game with Oklahoma, after sitting out the 2016 season, Murray saw some action in a blowout win over UTEP and he was nearly perfect, completing 10-of-11 attempts for 149 yards and a touchdown. That's a passing efficiency rating of 234.7 if you're keeping score at home. For the season, Murray went 18-for-21 passing as Heisman Trophy winner Baker Mayfield's backup.
Oklahoma 66, Baylor 33 | Sept. 29, 2018
In a September win in which Oklahoma doubled up Baylor, Murray set career records for passing yards (432), passing touchdowns (six), total touchdowns (seven) and single-game passing efficiency rating for a game in which he had at least 10 attempts (348.0). Oh, he also completed 81 percent of his pass attempts, having two more passing touchdowns than incompletions (four).
Oklahoma 59, West Virginia 56 | Nov. 23, 2018
This game — given its opponent, location and timing within the regular season — was one of the most consequential games of the Sooners' 2018 campaign. The Mountaineers were ranked No. 13 in the College Football Playoff rankings at the time and they had the offensive firepower to hang with No. 6 Oklahoma, but the Murray-led Sooners were able to escape Morgantown with a road win to finish the regular season with an 11-1 record, setting up a Big 12 Championship berth and eventual CFP berth.
In the win, Murray was responsible for 478 total yards of offense and four total touchdowns, including a 74-percent completion percentage, 216.6 passing efficiency rating and 114 rushing yards on 12.7 yards per carry.
Alabama 45, Oklahoma 34 | Dec. 29, 2018
Murray led Oklahoma to the College Football Playoff as the No. 4 seed in 2018, which meant the Sooners ran into the buzzsaw of No. 1 seed Alabama. The Crimson Tide ran off to a 28-0 lead in the opening 17 minutes but thanks to Murray, Oklahoma was able to make the final score more respectable as he threw for 308 yards and two touchdowns, while rushing for 109 yards and another score.
What awards did Kyler Murray win in college?
Here are the awards and honors Murray won in college:
- 2018 Heisman Trophy winner
- 2018 AP College Football Player of the Year
- 2018 Davey O'Brien Award winner
- 2018 First Team All-American
- 2018 Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year
- 2018 First Team All-Big 12
- Five-time Big 12 Offensive Player of the Week
What did people say about Kyler Murray?
Former Texas A&M receiver Ricky Seals-Jones, on what he saw from Murray in his first start: "Poise. The first couple of series, he said he was kind of nervous. But then after he said that, he got stable and he let it rip and let it go and made plays."
Former Texas A&M coach Kevin Sumlin, after Murray's first start: "The biggest thing that I thought he did was not force the game, and not force things and let the game come to him. He guessed a little bit early on some of the quarterback read stuff. Once he settled down and actually started to read things out, he was effective."
Oklahoma coach Lincoln Riley, after Murray's first start at Oklahoma: "I thought he was efficient and commanded our group. I thought he did a nice job."
Former Florida Atlantic coach Lane Kiffin, after defeating the Owls 63-14 in the 2018 season opener: "I'd be shocked if there's a better team in the country than what I saw today."
UCLA coach Chip Kelly: "The only guy I would say I'm disappointed in is Billy Beane. I wish he gave the kid more money. If there was a little bit bigger prize, maybe number 1 wasn't out there because he's a real talented player."
Former Oklahoma wide receiver CeeDee Lamb: "I haven't seen anybody else do it better. He surprises me every week, just like he surprises y'all. I promise."
Former Kansas coach David Beaty: "He's a special player. That Heisman needs to go to him."