Ask a TCU fan for the best three quarterbacks in the Big 12, and they all list proudly the name, Casey Pachall. Ask a Longhorn fan, and they refuse to list a TCU player.
When two passionate fans get to arguing, stats and logic can sometimes go out the window. That’s what’s great about about sports, fans will stick by their man through thick and thin (or they should).
So let’s take a look at where Casey Pachall actually ranked versus other Big 12 signal callers a year ago.
A passer efficiency rating takes into account yards, touchdowns, interceptions, and completions compared to the number of attempts for a quarterback.
Heisman trophy winner Robert Griffin III set a Big 12 conference record last year with a passer efficiency rating of 189.49. Griffin eclipsed Sam Bradford’s 2008 season where he had a PER of 180.84.
By comparison, TCU quarterback Casey Pachall had a PER of 158 which would have ranked him third in the Big 12 a season ago. Pachall’s 158 rating was just one point behind Oklahoma State quarterback Brandon Weeden.
With Weeden and Griffin now playing on Sundays, Pachall becomes the top rated passer returning to the Big 12 this season.
Pachall will face faster and more savvy defenses this season as the Horned Frogs play their first in the Big 12, but Pachall did not shy away from big games as a sophomore.
Mountaineer QB Geno Smith is another new threat in the Big 12
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Pachall threw for a cool 473 yards and 5 touchdowns against Boise State which garnered him a passer rating of 211.4. And by completing 68 percent of his passes on the road, Pachall proved that he could play well away from the friendly confines of Amon Carter stadium.
West Virginia quarterback Geno Smith ranks second among returning quarterbacks in passer efficiency rating. Smith was at his best a year ago when throwing to dynamic wide receiver Tavon Austin.
Austin averaged 15 yards per touch last season. Austin and Smith hooked up 101 times a season ago.
Texas quarterback David Ash narrowly escaped the dubious distinction of having the worst passer efficiency rating in the Big 12 last season.
By averaging just 6.2 yards per pass attempt, Ash struggled when not throwing to Jaxon Shipley or Marquise Goodwin. Goodwin and Shipley were the only receivers on the team to average over 10 yards per catch when Ash was under center.
| Big 12 Returning Passing Efficiency Leaders Leaders
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 Below is the list of returning passing efficiency leaders for the Big 12. (Based on at least 100 attempts) |
| NAME |
School |
COM |
ATT |
YARDS |
TD |
INT |
EFF. |
| Casey Pachall |
TCU |
228 |
343 |
2,921 |
25 |
7 |
158 |
| Geno Smith |
West Virginia |
346 |
526 |
4,385 |
31 |
7 |
152 |
| Landry Jones |
Oklahoma |
355 |
562 |
4,463 |
29 |
15 |
141 |
| Seth Doege |
Texas Tech |
398 |
581 |
4,004 |
28 |
10 |
138 |
| Dayne Crist |
Kansas (NDame '10)
| 174 |
294 |
2,033 |
15 |
7 |
129.3 |
|
| Collin Klein |
Kansas State
| 161 |
281 |
1,918 |
13 |
6 |
125 |
|
| David Ash |
Texas |
99 |
173 |
1,079 |
4 |
8 |
107 |
| Steele Jantz |
Iowa State |
138 |
250 |
1,519 |
10 |
11 |
106 |
| Nick Florence |
Baylor |
9 |
12 |
151 |
2 |
0 |
235 |