Every 3,000-Yard Passer in SEC History

Saturday Down South has built an exclusive, searchable database of every SEC quarterback who has thrown for 3,000 yards in a season. We scoured and compared media guides and statistical websites, found and fixed occasional mistakes and omissions, and created a one-of-a-kind database.

One notable caveat: Our interactive database includes 3,000-yard passers from every current SEC team — even if the player didn’t play in the SEC. Those players are noted with an * by their name. Spencer Rattler and Quinn Ewers are noteworthy because they appear in the database multiple times — with and without an * by their name, based on when and where they were at the time they threw for 3,000 yards. Jalen Hurts* didn’t throw for 3,000 yards at Alabama, but he did at Oklahoma, before the Sooners joined the SEC. So he’s included — with the * — along with every other Sooners QB who topped 3,000 yards. (Yes, that’s Tennessee Volunteers head coach Josh Heupel, the first 3,000-yard passer in Oklahoma football history.)

The big takeaways? One, the database reinforces the belief that the SEC has forever preferred a run-first style of play. That helps explain why there are almost 3 times as many 1,000-yard rushers in SEC history as there are 3,000-yard passers. It also shows the difference in playing styles, as Oklahoma and Mizzou QBs take up 7 of the top 11 spots in an all-inclusive top 20 single-season passing yards list. And all 7 played before the Sooners and Tigers joined the SEC.

The numbers also reveal a recent shift in philosophy: There were 71 3,000-yard passing seasons from 2010-2024 — more than half of the total of 3,000-yard seasons in SEC history.

Perhaps most emphatically, the database shows that Joe Burrow’s single-season passing yards record might be the most unbreakable mark in the entire SEC record book.

Let’s take a deep dive into the complete history of 3,000-yard passers in the SEC entering the 2025 season.

SEC’s 3,000-Yard Passers

Entering the 2025 season, more than 120 QBs at current SEC schools have thrown for 3,000 yards in a season. Here is the complete list of every SEC QB who has thrown for 3,000 yards in a season (* indicates the player was not in the SEC at the time):

Every SEC Team’s First 3,000-Yard Passer

Pick your favorite watering hole in SEC country. You could be tailgating in The Grove, imbibing on Broadway, pregaming at Walk-ons or The Loose Cockaboose outside Willy B. It doesn’t matter where. This is the easiest bar bet you’ll ever win:

Who was the first SEC quarterback to pass for 3,000 yards in a season?

You’ll probably hear Peyton Manning or Tim Couch. Maybe Danny Wuerffel (even though he wasn’t even Florida’s first 3,000-yard passer).

The correct answer? Vanderbilt’s Kurt Page, who threw for 3,178 yards in 1983 — a full 30 years before Alabama produced its first 3,000-yard passer.

Here’s is every SEC team’s first QB to throw for 3,000 yards in a season (* indicates the player wasn’t in the SEC at the time):

Every SEC Team’s Single-Season Record Holder for Passing Yards

In 2021, Bryce Young (Alabama) and Will Rogers (Mississippi State) became the most recent SEC QBs to set their school’s single-season passing yards record.

Here’s every SEC team’s record holder, entering the 2025 season (* indicates the player was not in the SEC at the time):

SEC QBs with Most 3,000-Yard Passing Seasons

Georgia legend Aaron Murray holds the distinction of being the only quarterback to throw for 3,000 or more yards 4 times in the SEC. (Oklahoma’s Landry Jones also had 4 3,000-yard seasons, but the Sooners weren’t in the SEC at the time.)

Here’s the complete list of every QB from an SEC school who threw for 3,000 yards at least twice (* indicates the player wasn’t in the SEC at the time):

Top 25 Passing Seasons in SEC History

This chart is for the SEC purists. To qualify, a player had to play in the SEC. Here are the SEC’s Top 25 QBs for passing yards in a season:

What the Top 25 Passing Seasons Would Look Like …

Here’s the Top 25 for most passing yards in a season if we include QBs on current SEC teams who didn’t play in the SEC at the time (* indicates player did not play in the SEC):

3,000-Yard Passing Seasons by SEC School

Oklahoma has more 3,000-yard passing seasons than any SEC team — though the Sooners enter 2025 looking for their first 3K passer in the SEC. Here is every SEC school’s total of 3,000-yard passing seasons, entering 2025:

Chris Wright

Managing Editor

A 30-time APSE award-winning editor with previous stints at the Miami Herald, The Indianapolis Star and News & Observer, Executive Editor Chris Wright oversees editorial operations for Saturday Down South.