With the Green Bay Packers set to take on the Detroit Lions in a Thanksgiving showdown, there’s no better time to take a trip down memory lane and see how far Packers starting quarterback Jordan Love has come since his time as an Aggie at Utah State.
As a three-year player, Love was cited as a sit-and-develop quarterback with a high ceiling because of his physical traits at 6-foot-4. Utah State would be the only college to offer Love a scholarship coming out of Liberty High School in Bakersfield, but ultimately would be the only offer the future Packers QB1 needed.
Jordan Love Takes Over at Utah St.
Love would only start six games as a redshirt freshman for the Aggies, but it was clear the Bakersfield native was headed for success as he threw for over 1,600 yards. Utah State went 3-3 in Love’s six games at the head of the offense, finishing their season with an OT loss to New Mexico, yet leaving with excitement for their young quarterbacks next season.
- PFSN College QBi Score: N/A
- Completions: 129
- Attempts: 235
- Yards: 1,631
- TDs: 8
- INTs: 6
- Rush Attempts: 46
- Rush Yards: 165
- Rush TDs: 2
Love Looks Like an NFL Starter
The 2018 season was the one to put Jordan Love on NFL radars and the college football map as the Utah State QB finished the season ranked eighth in passing touchdowns (32) and led the Aggies to a New Mexico Bowl win at the end of the season. He’d set the Aggies’ single-season passing yards record while only tossing six interceptions in the 13 games played that year.
Love would be snubbed for first-team All Mountain West honors, but with such a solid season, he was deemed a quarterback to watch for the NFL Draft in the following year. His arm talent, charisma, and size were immediate attractions to scouts in his first year as a full-time starter.
- PFSN College QBi Score: N/A
- Completions: 267
- Attempts: 417
- Yards: 3,567
- TDs: 32
- INTs: 6
- Rush Attempts: 43
- Rush Yards: 63
- Rush TDs: 7
Three Years Prove to Be Enough for NFL
Jordan Love’s last season in college wound up underwhelming to say the least, as the Aggies quarterback came into the year with tons of hype to be one of college football’s best. It would be unfair to pin the blame on him, though, as most of the regression in Love’s 2019 season had to do with a new staff at Utah State and a slate of new starters around him.
Still, the 6-foot-4 gunslinger found a way to throw for over 3,400 yards for a second consecutive season, but an FBS-high 17 interceptions put a dent in Love’s high draft stock to cap off his junior year. Physical traits ultimately kept Love in the early round conversations, and a solid NFL combine put him in a deserving first-round selection.
- PFSN College QBi Score: N/A
- Completions: 293
- Attempts: 473
- Yards: 3,402
- TDs: 20
- INTs: 17
- Rush Attempts: 81
- Rush Yards: 175
- Rush TDs: 0
Jordan Love’s Time in Green Bay
Proving to be true, Love indeed was a sit-and-develop quarterback for his first two seasons in the NFL. Fortunately for the former Aggie QB, he got to sit behind one of the best quarterbacks ever to lace up the cleats in Aaron Rodgers and learn the intricate Matt LeFleur offense.
In his first season as a starter, Love led Green Bay to the playoffs and surpassed 4,000 yards, proving to be worth the first-round selection the Packers used on him in 2020. Following that year, the Packers would find themselves in the playoffs once again, but would fall to Philadelphia.
Now in his third year at the helm of the Packers offense, Green Bay is 7-3-1, currently chasing a Wild Card spot as they sit one game behind the Bears in the NFC North. Their game against the Lions will be crucial for both teams as they each try to inch their way one game closer to an NFL playoff spot.