The quarterback position is undoubtedly one of the most important roles within a football team, and many players throughout history have stood out both during their time in college and once they made the leap to the world’s most prestigious league.

However, and although it may seem surprising, there aren’t many cases where the same quarterback has managed to win both the National Championship in the NCAA and the Super Bowl in the NFL. Here, we take a look back at the players who achieved this remarkable feat, as well as some interesting details surrounding these accomplishments.

Which quarterbacks won an NCAA National Championship and Super Bowl?

In the 1960s, there was one name that defined an era in the sport. The talented Joe Namath, one of the greatest quarterbacks in history, was the first QB to achieve the remarkable feat of winning both a Super Bowl title and a National Championship.

In 1964, Namath led his Alabama Crimson Tide to a strong 10-1 record, becoming SEC Champions. Despite losing to Texas in the Orange Bowl, Alabama was recognized as National champions by both the AP and UPI prior to that loss.

Chosen by the New York Jets in 1965, Namath slowly began to take control of the team. The pinnacle of his career came in January 1969, when the quarterback led his team to a Super Bowl III victory, defeating the Baltimore Colts 16-7. That was the first time an AFL team had beaten an NFL team in the Super Bowl.

In addition to securing that epic title for his team, Joe Namath was named the MVP of Super Bowl III.

Joe Montana, the second QB to win both a National Championship and a Super Bowl title

Representing Notre Dame, Joe Montana began his successful American football career by winning the National Championship in the NCAA in 1977. At that time, the Fighting Irish won the title by defeating the previously unbeaten and No. 1 ranked Texas Longhorns in the Cotton Bowl Classic with a score of 38–10.

From that moment on, Montana’s name began to gain more and more recognition in the sport. In the 1979 NFL Draft, the San Francisco 49ers selected him at the end of the third round with the 82nd overall pick.

It was in the Bay Area where the QB made history in the NFL, winning four Super Bowl titles in editions XVI, XIX, XXIII, and XXIV. Additionally, in three of those four victories, Montana was named Super Bowl MVP.

Tom Brady’s case: From underdog to NFL legend

In this review of quarterbacks who have won both an NCAA Championship Title and a Super Bowl, both Namath and Montana have proven themselves as outstanding starting QBs for their teams.

Tom Brady‘s case is perhaps a bit different, although he too achieved both titles. In the 1997 season, while wearing the colors of the Michigan Wolverines, Brady served as a backup to Brian Griese. That season, Michigan went undefeated and claimed the NCAA Championship.

His arrival in the NFL is now a well-known story. Alongside Bill Belichick, Tom Brady built a dynasty with the New England Patriots, six Super Bowl titles and marking an era in the league. His latest great achievement? Lifting the Vince Lombardi Trophy once again outside New England, this time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

On the other hand, Brian Griese’s case is the opposite of Brady’s. Griese was the starting QB for the Michigan Wolverines in 1997, leading them to the NCAA Championship. However, during his NFL career, he won a Super Bowl as a backup. In that Super Bowl, the Denver Broncos triumphed over the Falcons with a 34-19 victory, and the starting QB for that team was the veteran John Elway.

Ken Stabler, another privileged QB to win both a National Championship and a Super Bowl

Ken Stabler is another of the privileged few to have achieved both a National Championship and a Super Bowl title. Stabler led the Alabama Crimson Tide to a National Championship in 1965, securing the title with a strong season performance.

Later, in the NFL, Stabler made his mark with the Oakland Raiders. He led the Raiders to a Super Bowl victory in 1977, winning Super Bowl XI against the Minnesota Vikings with a 32-14 score. Stabler’s leadership and clutch performances earned him a place as one of the NFL’s great quarterbacks.

Jalen Hurts, the most recent QB to win both a National Championship and a Super Bowl

Jalen Hurts has etched his name in the annals of football history. In Super Bowl LIX, the Philadelphia Eagles’ quarterback defeated Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs, securing his first NFL title.

Before his NFL success, Hurts made his mark in college football. During the 2017 NCAA season, he led Alabama to a National Championship game against nGeorgia. However, the game took a dramatic turn when Hurts was benched at halftime for Tua Tagovailoa after the Bulldogs took a 13-0 lead. Tagovailoa stepped in and guided the Crimson Tide to a thrilling 26-23 victory, clinching the championship.

The curious case of Troy Aikman

Troy Aikman is another quarterback who could be categorized as having succeeded both in the National Championship and the Super Bowl. Aikman won three Vince Lombardy Trophies with the Dallas Cowboys, but his college career tells a different story. He was the starting QB for the Oklahoma Sooners in 1985, but an injury sidelined him before the team could compete for the National Championship that season.

After being selected with the first overall pick in the first round by the Cowboys, Aikman gradually became an emblem of the franchise. The talented quarterback went on to win three Super Bowl titles, in editions XXVII, XXVIII, and XXX.

During his time with the Sooners, the QB suffered a serious ankle injury, which forced him to miss that historic season in which his teammates ultimately went on to win the championship.

Aaron Rodgers‘ season-ending injury forced the Jets to change their plans. They had initially been keen on using a veteran quarterback this year, but an Achilles injury derailed those intentions.

Even though the team benched Zach Wilson for Rodgers, they had to use their former 2nd overall pick again as starter due to this reason. He has not had a great year, receiving a lot of criticisim for his poor performances.

Joe Namath addresses Zach Wilson’s game vs. Chiefs

Zach Wilson’s 2023 NFL season started as a backup quarterback. However, he quickly had to take the team’s offense after Aaron Rodgers got injured in the third play of their first game.

Surprisingly, Wilson was able to lead the Jets to the victory against the Buffalo Bills. However, after his second game lost, Joe Namath, legendary quarterback of the team, severely criticized him by saying that New York should move on from him.

Nevertheless, Week 4 changed Namath’s perspective. After witnessing Wilson’s impressive performance against the Chiefs, where he even outperformed Patrick Mahomes, the former quarterback came to Zach’s defense and showed his support for him.

“I said it. I take it back. I hope he stays for 10 years.” Namath said, via Michael Kay. “As a fan, you get really frustrated. I didn’t think for a minute they were going to get rid of him. Of course, they’re gonna stick with him. And he’s going to improve. Hopefully he’ll keep improving, and hopefully we’ll start winning games.”

Which Super Bowl did Joe Namath won?

Joe Namath won the Super Bowl III as the quarterback of the New York Jets. He also was the MVP of that game.

The New York Jets‘ season took an unexpected turn after just four plays when Aaron Rodgers suffered a season-ending injury against the Buffalo Bills in Week 1. This abrupt change forced the Jets to turn to Zach Wilson as their starting quarterback. However, things have gone so wrong for the quarterback that he had to defend himself from the words of a Jets legend like Joe Namath.

Wilson stated during a press conference: “He’s passionate and he’s obviously one of the greats. As an offense, we have to do everything we can to try and prove him wrong. We’ll keep doing what we can to improve. I think the guys are very optimistic, and we all believe in each other. So I’m excited for this week.”

When asked about whether those comments bothered him, Wilson expressed: “I don’t think so. Obviously, Joe was an unbelievable player, but this locker room is tight-knit. We’re working to get better, and I’m working to get better. I know I need to improve, and I promise I’m doing everything I can to keep trying to get better.”

Joe Namath Comments on Wilson

In his first few games as a starter, Wilson has struggled mightily. His performance has been far from what the Jets and their fans had hoped for. In just two-plus games, he completed only 52.4% of his passes for 467 yards, managing two touchdowns but also throwing four interceptions.

Namath didn’t mince words when he demonstrated his frustration with Wilson’s performance during an appearance on “The Michael Kay Show” on ESPN New York radio. He went as far as to voicing doubts about whether Wilson would ever develop into a successful player.

His statement was: “Were you watching? I mean, please. You sit down on a play, you go right down? I thought you were trying to make plays and win. You quit on a play. What is going on? It’s disgusting.”

How Old Is Zach Wilson?

Zach Wilson is 24 years old.

Zach Wilson couldn’t do anything to prevent the losses in Weeks 2 and 3, and the Jets are now mired in a losing streak that will be very difficult to overcome in Week 4 against Patrick Mahomes’ Kansas City Chiefs.

One of the New York Jets legends commented on the team’s situation in the 2023 season, saying that it is unlikely to get out of this whole problem with Zach Wilson as the starting quarterback.

However, the Jets still have enough time to turn things around this season. They recently signed a veteran Super Bowl-winning quarterback to help the franchise.

Who was the Jets’ legend who spoke badly about Zach Wilson?

During an episode of The Michael Kay Show, Jets’ legend Joe Namath said of the quarterback, “I’ve seen enough of Zach Wilson.” But the worst thing was that Namath referred to Wilson’s recent performance as “disgusting.”

Wilson had a successful college career at BYU. He was named the Mountain West Conference Offensive Player of the Year in 2020, after throwing for 3,692 yards and 33 touchdowns with just three interceptions. He also led BYU to a 11-1 record and a victory in the Boca Raton Bowl.

How was Joe Namath time with the Jets?

Joe Namath played for the New York Jets from 1965 to 1976. He is considered one of the greatest quarterbacks in Jets history and is credited with helping to popularize the American Football League (AFL). Namath led the Jets to victory in Super Bowl III in 1969, defeating the heavily favored Baltimore Colts.

It’s safe to say it’s been a while since the Jets had a player of his caliber on their roster. But that doesn’t mean the team is short on legendary players that once wore Gotham green at some point in their careers.

For starters, there’s the whole situation with Joe Namath. The Jets have already retired his no. 12 jersey, meaning Rodgers will likely have to pick up a new jersey number… Or will he? Let’s break down all the options right now.

Aaron Rodgers’ College Jersey Number: What Number Could Aaron Rodgers Wear With The New York Jets?

Rodgers wore no. 8 in college during his days with the California Golden Bears,so he could choose to do that again. However, he’d have to negotiate with new teammate Elijah Moore, who currently wears that number.

Of course, there’s also the chance that the Jets decide to unretire Namath’s number. As a matter of fact, he actually gave him his blessing as soon as the news broke that the Jets were looking forward to trading for him.

So, now that the man himself has spoken — and considering Aaron Rodgers’ history of being a bit of a narcissist — all signs point toward him wearing his signature no. 12 jersey going forward.

All Retired Numbers In Jets History:

As we previously mentioned, the Jets have had several marquee names throughout their history. Here are all retired Jets jersey numbers:

– 12: Joe Namath

– 13: Don Maynard

– 28: Curtis Martin

– 73: Joe Glecko

– 90: Dennis Byrd

The veteran quarterback is due nearly $60 million in 2023, but he still looks undecided on whether coming back for next year. In the event he leaves, many teams will probably be interested in his services.

One of them could be the New York Jets, given that team owner Woody Johnson admitted they’d spend what it takes to get a star signal-caller. In the event he makes a move for Rodgers, Johnson would have Joe Namath’s blessing. In fact, the Hall of Famer would even havehis No. 12 shirt unretired so that Rodgers continues to use that number.

Joe Namath willing to have his Jets No. 12 unretired for Aaron Rodgers

“I hope it can come true but it’s farfetched,” Namath told Tiki and Tierney on Thursday, via WFAN Radio New York. “I know Mr. Johnson is trying to get a quarterback, and if there’s a way he can get Rodgers…I’m a big Rodgers fan. I noticed he wears No. 12 of course.”

“It’s on ownership, and it’s different ownership, it’s different people. I sure like Rodgers. If he’s there, yeah, I want him to wear his number. We establish ourselves and we got a real respect for our numbers. Aaron Rodgers…it would be great to have him in New York.”

Namath spent twelve years with the Jets, leading them to a memorable Super Bowl win in 1969. A two-time MVP, Namath was inducted to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in 1985, same year the Jets retired his iconic No. 12 jersey.

The Jets have been a disaster in every single aspect you could think of. They’re poorly coached, they don’t have the right personnel to compete at the highest level, and the most worrying part is that there isn’t a sign that their reality could change in the foreseeable future.

That’s why, even if they wind up with the first overall pick of this year’s Draft and take star quarterback Trevor Lawrence out of Clemson, he could still decide not to play for them, according to Joe Namath.

Joe Namath Predicts Trevor Lawrence Will Force A Trade If The New York Jets Take Him

Jets legend Joe Namath took to ESPN to address the team’s situation and claimed that he believes that Lawrence will do something similar to Eli Manning and force a trade if the Jets were to take him:

“Anything could happen in this world, damn near anything — except for the Jets maybe making the playoffs this year,” Namath. “It’s happened before, so why would it shock anybody?” Thinking back to the Manning family and Eli Manning and San Diego, there are some people that may not want to go [to a certain team] for whatever reason,” Joe added.

“But If Trevor Lawrence is available, I think the upside is tremendous there. Also, I think the upside with Sam [Darnold] is positive, but you’re not going to keep both of them. You’re not going to take a quarterback No. 1 without getting a couple of high draft choices for Sam. It depends on what the powers that be want to do,” Namath concluded.

Joe Namath Raves About Trevor Lawrence

The Super Bowl III MVP went on to laud Trevor Lawrence’s game and pointed out that there are plenty of reasons why any team would want to make a move to get him as their quarterback for the future:

“He’s a winner. He’s determined. His size is terrific. His athleticism is terrific. His passing ability is terrific. And that’s about it,” Namath laughed and said before also complimenting struggling Sam Darnold.

The Jets have a lot of things to address if they want to go back to winning, with their coaching situation right at the top of that list. Honest to God, no one would judge Lawrence for not wanting to play for them.