The list of quarterbacks who have thrown for the most passing yards in an FCS game, season or career is in synch with the rich history of Walter Payton Award recipients.
From Jamie Martin and Steve McNair in the early 1990s to NFL veterans Taylor Heinicke and Jimmy Garoppolo in the 2010s to prolific passers such as Devlin Hodges and Eric Barriere in recent years, the Payton, which is presented annually to the national offensive player of the year, features many of the best arms in FCS history. There are numerous other finalists on the all-time passing lists as well.
Moving both in and out of the pocket, we dive into the record books to highlight the quarterbacks who have thrown for the most passing yards:
Most Passing Yards in an FCS Game
1. 730 – Taylor Heinicke, Old Dominion (vs. New Hampshire), Sept. 22, 2012
ODU outlasted New Hampshire 64-61 in a CAA Football game as Heinicke completed 55 of 79 passes – the most attempts in an FCS game without an interception – and five touchdowns. The mesmerizing performance catapulted Heinicke toward the 2012 Walter Payton Award. He added 61 rushing yards to finish with 791 yards of total offense, which also is an FCS single-game record.
2. 662 – Brady Attaway, Stephen F. Austin (Prairie View A&M), Sept. 28, 2013
3. 660 – Braden Hanson, North Dakota (Montana), Oct. 20, 2012
4. 647 – Cole Kelley, Southeastern Louisiana (UIW), Nov. 6, 2021
The 2020 Walter Payton Award recipient and 2021 runner-up completed 50 passes in a shootout with UIW’s Cameron Ward (see No. 9) in the only FCS game to feature two 600+ yard passers.
5. 624 – Jamie Martin, Weber State (Idaho State), Nov. 23, 1991
6. 623 – Drew Hubel, Portland State (Eastern Washington), Oct. 4, 2008
7. 619 – Doug Pederson, Northeast Louisiana (Stephen F. Austin), Nov. 11, 1989
The Super Bowl 52-winning head coach of the Philadelphia Eagles held the FCS single-game record for over two years before Martin surpassed him in 1991. SFA’s Todd Hammel hung 571 passing yards on Northeast Louisiana (now UL Monroe) in a head-to-head matchup against Pederson.
8. 618 – Bruce Eugene, Grambling State (Prairie View A&M), Oct. 1, 2005
9. 610 – Cameron Ward, UIW (Southeastern Louisiana), Nov. 6, 2021
T10. 600 – Casey Brockman, Murray State (Tennessee State), Sept. 17, 2011
T10. 600 – Eric Barriere, Eastern Washington (Idaho), Oct. 16, 2021
12. 599 – Willie Totten, Mississippi Valley State (Prairie View A&M), Oct. 27, 1984
13. 595 – Robert Kent, Jackson State (Alabama State), Oct. 6, 2001
14. 589 – Vern Harris, Idaho State (Montana), Oct. 12, 1985
15. 588 – Martin Hankins, Southeastern Louisiana (Arkansas-Monticello), Sept. 2, 2004
16. 587 – Steve McNair, Alcorn State (Southern), Oct. 22, 1994
17. 582 – Liam Welch, Samford (ETSU), Sept. 25, 2021
18. 577 – Dustin Long, Sam Houston State (McNeese State), Nov. 6, 2004
19. 576 – Ren Hefley, Presbyterian (St. Andrews), Sept. 4, 2021
Facing an NAIA opponent, Hefley passed for 10 touchdowns, the FCS single-game record.
20. 574 – Michael Herrick, Northern Arizona (Eastern Washington), Nov. 21, 2009
Most Passing Yards in an FCS Season
1. 5,160 – Gage Gubrud, Eastern Washington, 2016 (14 games, 386 of 570, 67.7%, 48 TDs, 14 INTs)
Gubrud became the first FCS quarterback to have 11 games of 300+ passing yards in a season, including all six times Eastern Washington played on the road.
2. 5,124 – Cole Kelley, Southeastern Louisiana, 2021 (13, 406 of 552, 73.6%, 44, 10)
Kelley joined Gubrud with 11 games of 300+ passing yards. His 406 completions are an FCS single-season record.
3. 5,076 – Taylor Heinicke, Old Dominion, 2012 (13, 398 of 579, 68.7%, 44, 14)
4. 5,055 – Eric Barriere, Eastern Washington, 2021 (13, 360 of 551, 65.3%, 46, 8)
Barriere flip-flopped with Kelley, winning the 2021 Walter Payton Award after being the runner-up in the 2020 season.
5. 5,050 – Jimmy Garoppolo, Eastern Illinois, 2013 (14, 375 of 568, 66.0%, 53, 9)
6. 5,003 – Jeremiah Briscoe, Sam Houston State, 2017 (14, 335 of 579, 57.9%, 45, 16)
There are only two two-time recipients of the Walter Payton Award, Briscoe (2016 and ’17) and Appalachian State quarterback Armanti Edwards (2008 and ’09).
7. 4,994 – Vernon Adams, Eastern Washington, 2013 (15, 319 of 486, 65.6%, 55, 15)
8. 4,891 – Tim DeMorat, Fordham, 2022 (12, 326 of 499, 65.3%, 56, 10)
9. 4,863 – Steve McNair, Alcorn State, 1994 (11, 304 of 530, 57.4%, 44, 17)
“Air” McNair also rushed for 936 yards, giving the 1994 Walter Payton Award recipient 5,799 yards of total offense, which is the FCS single-season record.
10. 4,686 – Lindsey Scott Jr., UIW, 2022 (14, 322 of 454, 70.9%, 60, 8)
In his only season at UIW, Scott earned the 2022 Walter Payton Award, setting FCS single-season records for touchdown passes (60) and total touchdowns (71, including 11 rushing).
11. 4,648 – Cameron Ward, UIW, 2021 (13, 384 of 590, 65.1%, 47, 10)
12. 4,602 – Jeremiah Briscoe, Sam Houston State, 2016 (13, 315 of 503, 62.6%, 57, 10)
13. 4,588 – Dustin Long, Sam Houston State, 2004 (14, 333 of 531, 62.7%, 39, 18)
14. 4,557 – Willie Totten, Mississippi Valley State, 1984 (10, 324 of 518, 62.6%, 56, 22)
Throwing to his favorite receiver Jerry Rice, Totten averaged an FCS single-season-record 455.7 passing yards per game.
15. 4,483 – Bruce Eugene, Grambling State, 2002 (13, 269 of 543, 49.5%, 43, 16)
16. 4,460 – Cameron Higgins, Weber State, 2008 (14, 304 of 464, 65.5%, 36, 13)
17. 4,380 – Michael Nebrich, Fordham, 2013 (13, 353 of 480, 73.5%, 35, 7)
18. 4,378 – Chris Lum, Lehigh, 2011 (13, 358 of 543, 65.9%, 32, 17)
19. 4,360 – Bruce Eugene, Grambling State, 2005 (12, 254 of 456, 55.7%, 56, 6)
20. 4,305 – Brett Gordon, Villanova, 2002 (15, 385 of 578, 66.6%, 36, 14)
Most Passing Yards in an FCS Career
1. 14,584 – Devlin Hodges, Samford, 2015-18 (1,310 of 1,896, 69.1%, 111 TDs, 41 INTs)
In his career, “Duck,” as the 2018 Walter Payton Award recipient is affectionately known, had 31 games with at least 300 passing yards, including 12 with 400+ and two with 500+. He holds the FCS career records for completions (1,310) and pass attempts (1,896), and has the highest completion percentage (69.1) among the top 25 FCS quarterbacks in career passing yards.
2. 14,496 – Steve McNair, Alcorn State, 1991-94 (927 of 1,680, 55.2%, 119, 58)
McNair’s career average of 345.1 passing yards per game ranks second all-time to Portland State’s Neil Lomax, who averaged 350 yards from 1978-80 and led a 105-0 win over Delaware State for the FCS’ single-game points record.
3. 13,809 – Eric Barriere, Eastern Washington, 2017-21 (1,007 of 1,623, 62.0%, 121, 29)
4. 13,513 – Bruce Eugene, Grambling State, 2001-05 (872 of 1,657, 52.6%, 140, 38)
Eugene’s 140 career touchdown passes are the FCS all-time record.
5. 13,461 – Tim DeMorat, Fordham, 2018-22 (1,033 of 1,685, 61.3%, 123, 39)
6. 13,455 – Dominic Randolph, Holy Cross, 2006-09 (1,131 of 1,786, 63.3%, 117, 46)
7. 13,401 – Jeremy Moses, Stephen F. Austin, 2007-10 (1,184 of 1,893, 62.5, 121, 55)
8. 13,264 – Scott Riddle, Elon, 2007-10 (1,168 of 1,779, 65.7%, 106, 41)
9. 13,212 – Ricky Santos, New Hampshire, 2004-07 (1,122 of 1,636, 68.6%, 123, 33)
The consistent Santos, who received the 2006 Walter Payton Award, had 3,000+ passing yards in each of his first three seasons and missed a fourth time as a senior by only 28 yards.
10. 13,156 – Jimmy Garoppolo, Eastern Illinois, 2010-13 (1,047 of 1,668, 62.8%, 118, 51)
11. 12,751 – Parker McKinney, Eastern Kentucky, 2018-23 (1,081 of 1,719, 62.9%, 94, 44)
12. 12,711 – Willie Totten, Mississippi Valley State, 1982-85 (907 of 1,555, 58.3%, 139, 75)
13. 12,638 – Anthony Lawrence, San Diego, 2015-18 (961 of 1,465, 65.6%, 120, 24)
14. 12,616 – Matt Nichols, Eastern Washington, 2006-09 (996 of 1,608, 61.9%, 96, 46)
15. 12,479 – Marcus Brady, Cal-Northridge, 1998-2001 (1,039 of 1,680, 61.8%, 109, 47)
16. 12,252 – Cameron Higgins, Weber State, 2007-10 (934 of 1,510, 61.9%, 98, 53)
17. 12,207 – Jamie Martin, Weber State, 1989-92 (934 of 1,544, 60.5%, 87, 56)
18. 12,136 – Aqeel Glass, Alabama A&M, 2017-21 (923 of 1,582, 58.3%, 109, 41)
19. 12,092 – Case Cookus, Northern Arizona, 2015-19 (892 of 1,431, 62.3%, 105, 21)
Cookus threw the fewest interceptions (21) among FCS quarterbacks who rank in the top 25 of career passing yards.
20. 11,918 – Austin Gahafer, Morehead State, 2013-16 (1,096 of 1,844, 59.4%, 85, 45)
Information provided by Stats Perform and NCAA Football Records.