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Jason White (American football)
Encyclopedia
Jason White is a former American football
quarterback
who played for the University of Oklahoma
from 1999 to 2004, during which he won the 2003 Heisman Trophy
. White is currently a business owner in Oklahoma.
and played high school football for the Tuttle Tigers.
and a national championship. The team was led at quarterback
by senior Josh Heupel
.
beat out White for the starting quarterback job in 2001 in an attempt to defend the national title. Hybl hurt his right side in the first quarter of the Sooners' 14-3 win over No. 5 Texas and did not return. Jason White replaced him and was 16-of-23 for 108 yards and ran 12 times for a team-high 38 yards. White's performance excited Sooner fans for both the immediate and long-term future of the QB position. Jason White started the next week against Kansas, throwing 4 TD passes to Nate Hybl's roommate, TE Trent Smith
. White continued to start the following games for the Sooners including a showdown with Nebraska, featuring the top 2 teams in the BCS for the second consecutive year. During the second quarter Jason White injured his ACL while completing a long pass to RB Quentin Griffin
. He would be unable to return the rest of the year, giving Nate Hybl the chance to start once again. Hybl eventually led the Sooners to the 2002 Cotton Bowl Classic. White ended up getting to throw the ball 113 times during the 2001 season as Hybl's backup.
tears, White had reconstructive knee surgeries on both knees during the 2001 and 2002 seasons. Despite the fact that White could not scramble and the Sooners had to run every offensive play out of a shotgun formation, White won the Heisman Trophy
in 2003 after throwing 40 touchdown passes and 8 interceptions. White was also the recipient of the Associated Press Player of the Year, consensus All-American, consensus Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year, the Davey O'Brien Award
and the Jim Thorpe
Courage Award in his 2003 season. He was also the 2003 NCAA QB of the Year as awarded by the Touchdown Club of Columbus. He was awarded a medical hardship by the NCAA and allowed to play a second senior year in 2004. He led the Sooners to the Big 12 championship game in 2003, which they lost to Kansas State.
White was again a finalist for the Heisman Trophy
in 2004, trying to become just the second player after Archie Griffin
to win the honor twice, but instead finished third behind his Sooner backfield mate, runner-up Adrian Peterson and winner Matt Leinart
. White did win the Davey O'Brien Award
for the second straight year, becoming the third quarterback ever to win the prestigious award two years in a row. White and Peterson led the Sooners to another national championship
game, the Orange Bowl, in 2004, but lost 55-19 to Leinart's USC Trojans
.) White finished his collegiate career as the University of Oklahoma
's all-time leader in career passing yards (8,012) and touchdown passes (81).
White's on-the-field accomplishments have been further honored in Tuttle with the painting of a local water tower to read "Home of Jason White 2003 Heisman Trophy Winner". This tower is readily seen from the center of town, just west of State Highways 4 and 37. Additionally, a section of Cimarron Road in the city was renamed "Jason White Boulevard".
and did not receive a tryout from any NFL team in the first several weeks of post-draft free agency. He did eventually receive a tryout from the Kansas City Chiefs
, who opted not to sign him. Eventually the Tennessee Titans
signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2005, but White decided to quit professional football, citing weak knees. White has expressed an interest in coaching.
shoe store. He also worked with insurance agent Steve Owens
, another former Sooner Heisman Trophy winner and former athletic director at the University of Oklahoma
. Prior to that, White worked briefly for a securities firm in downtown Oklahoma City. He is a co-founder and board member of St. Anthony Hospital's YourCARE Clinic community health centers.
In 2007, a bronze statue of White was dedicated on the University of Oklahoma campus in Heisman Park, commemorating his 2003 award.
American football
American football is a sport played between two teams of eleven with the objective of scoring points by advancing the ball into the opposing team's end zone. Known in the United States simply as football, it may also be referred to informally as gridiron football. The ball can be advanced by...
quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
who played for the University of Oklahoma
Oklahoma Sooners football
The Oklahoma Sooners football program is a college football team that represents the University of Oklahoma . The team is currently a member of the Big 12 Conference, which is a Division I Bowl Subdivision of the National Collegiate Athletic Association...
from 1999 to 2004, during which he won the 2003 Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
. White is currently a business owner in Oklahoma.
Early life
White was raised in Tuttle, OklahomaTuttle, Oklahoma
Tuttle is a city in Grady County, Oklahoma, United States. The population was 4,294 at the 2000 census.Tuttle is a largely agricultural community with a focus on wheat, cotton, corn, alfalfa hay, Bermuda grass hay, and cattle. Nearby Braum's Dairy, the largest farm in the area, is located just...
and played high school football for the Tuttle Tigers.
1999
White played in a reserve role his true freshman season. Josh Heupel was the starting quarterback.2000
White redshirted his sophomore season in 2000. The Sooners went on to win the 2001 Orange Bowl2001 Orange Bowl
The 2001 FedEx Orange Bowl game was a post-season college football bowl game and BCS National Championship match between the University of Oklahoma Sooners and the Florida State Seminoles on January 3, 2001, at Pro Player Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida...
and a national championship. The team was led at quarterback
Quarterback
Quarterback is a position in American and Canadian football. Quarterbacks are members of the offensive team and line up directly behind the offensive line...
by senior Josh Heupel
Josh Heupel
Josh Heupel, , is the current co-offensive coordinator at the University of Oklahoma. He was the quarterback for the Oklahoma Sooners football team in 1999-2000, and led Oklahoma to the 2000 national championship.-Personal:...
.
2001
Nate HyblNate Hybl
Nate Hybl is a former NFL quarterback. In the NFL, he was part of the Cleveland Browns, and the Jacksonville Jaguars, Mostly working on the practice squads. During his time with the Browns, he was allocated for development in NFL Europe...
beat out White for the starting quarterback job in 2001 in an attempt to defend the national title. Hybl hurt his right side in the first quarter of the Sooners' 14-3 win over No. 5 Texas and did not return. Jason White replaced him and was 16-of-23 for 108 yards and ran 12 times for a team-high 38 yards. White's performance excited Sooner fans for both the immediate and long-term future of the QB position. Jason White started the next week against Kansas, throwing 4 TD passes to Nate Hybl's roommate, TE Trent Smith
Trent Smith
Darrell Trent Smith was a tight end in the National Football League. He played college football for the University of Oklahoma. He last played for the San Francisco 49ers. Before college stardom, Smith was a Redoak Ram for Redoak Elementary School in Moore, Oklahoma...
. White continued to start the following games for the Sooners including a showdown with Nebraska, featuring the top 2 teams in the BCS for the second consecutive year. During the second quarter Jason White injured his ACL while completing a long pass to RB Quentin Griffin
Quentin Griffin
Quentin LaVell Griffin is an American football running back.-Early years:Griffin started his football career as a youth playing in the Humble Area Football League.-High school:Griffin starred at Nimitz High School in Houston....
. He would be unable to return the rest of the year, giving Nate Hybl the chance to start once again. Hybl eventually led the Sooners to the 2002 Cotton Bowl Classic. White ended up getting to throw the ball 113 times during the 2001 season as Hybl's backup.
2002
The 2002 season started out with a preseason battle for the starting QB spot between Jason White and senior QB Nate Hybl. White eventually won a close a battle and was named the starter for the first game against Tulsa. After a slow start, the offense finally got rolling and they easily cruised to a shut out win. In the second game, the Alabama Crimson Tide came to Norman. White again went down with a knee injury, this time tearing the ACL in the opposite knee. Hybl came in as a backup and led the team to a hard-fought come-from-behind win, but the offense experienced some struggles in the second half. White would again be out for the season and Hybl led the team to a Big 12 championship and a victory over Washington State in the 2003 Rose Bowl game, being named MVP.2003
After suffering from consecutive anterior cruciate ligamentAnterior cruciate ligament
The anterior cruciate ligament is a cruciate ligament which is one of the four major ligaments of the human knee. In the quadruped stifle , based on its anatomical position, it is referred to as the cranial cruciate ligament.The ACL originates from deep within the notch of the distal femur...
tears, White had reconstructive knee surgeries on both knees during the 2001 and 2002 seasons. Despite the fact that White could not scramble and the Sooners had to run every offensive play out of a shotgun formation, White won the Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
in 2003 after throwing 40 touchdown passes and 8 interceptions. White was also the recipient of the Associated Press Player of the Year, consensus All-American, consensus Big 12 Offensive Player of the Year, the Davey O'Brien Award
Davey O'Brien Award
The Davey O'Brien Award, officially the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award, named after Davey O'Brien, is presented annually to the collegiate American football player adjudged by the Davey O'Brien Foundation to be the best of all National Collegiate Athletic Association quarterbacks. The...
and the Jim Thorpe
Jim Thorpe
Jacobus Franciscus "Jim" Thorpe * Gerasimo and Whiteley. pg. 28 * americaslibrary.gov, accessed April 23, 2007. was an American athlete of mixed ancestry...
Courage Award in his 2003 season. He was also the 2003 NCAA QB of the Year as awarded by the Touchdown Club of Columbus. He was awarded a medical hardship by the NCAA and allowed to play a second senior year in 2004. He led the Sooners to the Big 12 championship game in 2003, which they lost to Kansas State.
- 2004 BCS National Championship Game2004 Sugar BowlThe 2004 Sugar Bowl, the BCS title game for the 2003 college football season, was played on January 4, 2004 at the Louisiana Superdome in New Orleans, Louisiana. The teams were LSU Tigers and the Oklahoma Sooners...
- Oklahoma 14, LSU2003 LSU Tigers football teamThe 2003 LSU Tigers football team represented Louisiana State University in the college football season of 2003–2004. Coached by Nick Saban, the Tigers played their home games at Tiger Stadium in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. After a bit of controversy, LSU won the BCS National Championship, the first...
21
| Finalist | First place votes (3 pts. each) |
Second place votes (2 pts. each) |
Third place votes (1 pt. each) |
Total points |
| Jason White | 319 | 204 | 116 | 1,481 |
| Larry Fitzgerald Larry Fitzgerald Larry Darnell Fitzgerald, Jr. is an American football wide receiver for the Arizona Cardinals of the National Football League, and currently ranks fourth all-time in league history in receiving yards per game for a career , behind Andre Johnson, Torry Holt, and Marvin Harrison... |
253 | 233 | 128 | 1,353 |
| Eli Manning Eli Manning Eli Nelson Manning is an American football quarterback for the New York Giants of the National Football League. He is the younger brother of NFL quarterback Peyton Manning and the son of former NFL quarterback Archie Manning... |
95 | 132 | 161 | 710 |
2004
White was granted a medical hardship for the 2004 season.White was again a finalist for the Heisman Trophy
Heisman Trophy
The Heisman Memorial Trophy Award , is awarded annually to the player deemed the most outstanding player in collegiate football. It was created in 1935 as the Downtown Athletic Club trophy and renamed in 1936 following the death of the Club's athletic director, John Heisman The Heisman Memorial...
in 2004, trying to become just the second player after Archie Griffin
Archie Griffin
Archie Mason Griffin is a former American football running back. Griffin played seven seasons in the NFL with the Cincinnati Bengals. He is college football's only two-time Heisman Trophy winner...
to win the honor twice, but instead finished third behind his Sooner backfield mate, runner-up Adrian Peterson and winner Matt Leinart
Matt Leinart
Matthew Stephen Leinart , is an American professional football quarterback for the Houston Texans of the National Football League...
. White did win the Davey O'Brien Award
Davey O'Brien Award
The Davey O'Brien Award, officially the Davey O'Brien National Quarterback Award, named after Davey O'Brien, is presented annually to the collegiate American football player adjudged by the Davey O'Brien Foundation to be the best of all National Collegiate Athletic Association quarterbacks. The...
for the second straight year, becoming the third quarterback ever to win the prestigious award two years in a row. White and Peterson led the Sooners to another national championship
National championship
A national championship is the top achievement for any sport or contest in a particular nation or nation state. The title is usually awarded by contests, ranking systems, stature, ability, etc. This determines the best team, individual in a particular nation and in a particular field...
game, the Orange Bowl, in 2004, but lost 55-19 to Leinart's USC Trojans
USC Trojans
The USC Trojans are the athletic teams representing the University of Southern California in Los Angeles, California. While the men's teams are nicknamed the Trojans, the women's athletic teams are referred to as either the Trojans or Women of Troy...
.) White finished his collegiate career as the University of Oklahoma
University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma is a coeducational public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two became the state of Oklahoma. the university had 29,931 students enrolled, most located at its...
's all-time leader in career passing yards (8,012) and touchdown passes (81).
- 2005 BCS National Championship Game2005 Orange BowlThe 2005 Orange Bowl represented the BCS National Championship Game of the 2004 season and was played on January 4, 2005 at Pro Player Stadium in Miami Gardens, Florida....
- Oklahoma 19, USC2004 USC Trojans football teamThe 2004 USC Trojans football team represented the University of Southern California in the 2004-2005 NCAA Division I-A college football season. Although now vacated for breaking NCAA rules, the team won the 2004 BCS National Championship by winning the 2005 Orange Bowl, that year's BCS National...
55
White's on-the-field accomplishments have been further honored in Tuttle with the painting of a local water tower to read "Home of Jason White 2003 Heisman Trophy Winner". This tower is readily seen from the center of town, just west of State Highways 4 and 37. Additionally, a section of Cimarron Road in the city was renamed "Jason White Boulevard".
College statistics
| Year | Att | Comp | Pct | Yds | TD | Int | Rating |
| 2001 | 113 | 73 | 64.6 | 681 | 5 | 3 | 124.5 |
| 2002 | 34 | 20 | 58.8 | 181 | 1 | 2 | 101.5 |
| 2003 | 451 | 278 | 61.6 | 3,846 | 40 | 8 | 158.1 |
| 2004 | 390 | 255 | 65.4 | 3,205 | 35 | 9 | 159.4 |
NFL career
Despite his strong college career, White was not selected in the 2005 NFL Draft2005 NFL Draft
The 2005 NFL Draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 23–24, 2005. The league also held an supplemental draft that year, which was held after...
and did not receive a tryout from any NFL team in the first several weeks of post-draft free agency. He did eventually receive a tryout from the Kansas City Chiefs
Kansas City Chiefs
The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are a member of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Originally named the Dallas Texans, the club was founded by Lamar Hunt in 1960 as a...
, who opted not to sign him. Eventually the Tennessee Titans
Tennessee Titans
The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the team began play in 1960 as a charter...
signed him as an undrafted free agent in 2005, but White decided to quit professional football, citing weak knees. White has expressed an interest in coaching.
Post football life
Today, White owns and operates the Jason White Companies, which owns A Store Divided, an OU/OSU memorabilia store, and a The Athlete's FootThe Athlete's Foot
The Athlete's Foot is a franchisor of athletic footwear.In 1971, David Lando realized that athletic shoes were by far the highest selling product in his store. That year, he and his son, Michael Lando, opened the first Athlete's Foot store in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. It was the first athletic...
shoe store. He also worked with insurance agent Steve Owens
Steve Owens (football)
Steve Everett Owens , raised in Miami, Oklahoma, was the 1969 Heisman Trophy winner. Owens was the second Oklahoma Sooners player to win the Heisman Trophy, after Billy Vessels, and preceding Sam Bradford, Jason White and Billy Sims...
, another former Sooner Heisman Trophy winner and former athletic director at the University of Oklahoma
University of Oklahoma
The University of Oklahoma is a coeducational public research university located in Norman, Oklahoma. Founded in 1890, it existed in Oklahoma Territory near Indian Territory for 17 years before the two became the state of Oklahoma. the university had 29,931 students enrolled, most located at its...
. Prior to that, White worked briefly for a securities firm in downtown Oklahoma City. He is a co-founder and board member of St. Anthony Hospital's YourCARE Clinic community health centers.
In 2007, a bronze statue of White was dedicated on the University of Oklahoma campus in Heisman Park, commemorating his 2003 award.