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Jay Cutler Superb in South Carolina Loss 10/26/2003
Jay Cutler Superb in South Carolina Loss
NASHVILLE, Tenn. – A career performance against South Carolina last Saturday has quarterback Jay Cutler within range of the all-time passing mark by a sophomore Commodore quarterback. Cutler, a native of Santa Claus, Ind., needs 143 passing yards to surpass the Vanderbilt sophomore single-season mark of 2,059 yards set by Greg Zolman in 1999. Cutler broke the team record for touchdown passes by a sophomore with a three-touchdown performance at South Carolina. He has 12 touchdown passes on the season, one more than the former sophomore mark established in 1973 by Fred Fisher. Cutler was superb versus the Gamecocks, completing 27 of 35 attempts for 319 yards and three touchdowns. He set single-game career highs in completions, passing yards and touchdown passes in the 35-24 loss. The performance was highlighted by an awesome second half display that saw Cutler hit 19 of 22 attempts for 240 yards. He directed scoring drives of 82, 95 and 62 yards on consecutive series in the half. It was the finest performance by a Vanderbilt quarterback since Zolman completed 29 passes for 441 yards versus Kentucky on Nov. 16, 2001. Cutler jumped to third behind Eli Manning of Ole Miss and David Greene of Georgia in the Southeastern Conference in total offense with a 224.9-yard average and is the SEC’s fourth-ranked quarterback with a 134.7 passing efficiency rating. He also ranks fifth with a 213-yard passing average. Cutler is completing 59.1% of his passes. Only Eric Jones’ 60.7% completion success in 1987 is better among Commodore quarterbacks in the last three decades. Cutler needs 355 passing yards to jump into the Vanderbilt Top 5 for career passing. He currently is eighth with 3,350 yards. In seventh place on the list is Bill Wade (1949-1951) with 3,397 yards. Cutler also needs 39 yards of total offense to surpass Damian Allen (1994-1997) into fifth place in career total yardage. Vanderbilt will not play this Saturday. The Commodores will face the Florida Gators in Gainesville on Saturday, Nov. 8.
VU Career Passing Yardage Leaders Name Yards 1. Greg Zolman, 1998-2001 7,981 2. Whit Taylor, 1979-82 6,307 3. Kurt Page, 1981-84 6,233 4. Eric Jones, 1986-88 5,029 5. Damian Allen, 1994-97 3,704 6. John Gromos, 1985, 87-89 3,514 7. Bill Wade, 1949-51 3,397 8. Jay Cutler, 2002- 3,350 VU Career Total Offense Leaders Name Yards 1. Greg Zolman, 1998-2001 7,607 2. Whit Taylor, 1979-82 6,727 3. Eric Jones, 1986-88 6,240 4. Kurt Page, 1981-84 6,008 5. Damian Allen, 1994-97 3,888 6. Jay Cutler, 2002- 3,850 VU Career Touchdown Passes Name TD Passes 1. Whit Taylor, 1979-82 41 Greg Zolman, 1998-2001 41 3. Kurt Page, 1981-84 35 4. Eric Jones, 1986-88 32 5. Bill Wade, 1949-51 31 6. Jay Cutler, 2002- 22 Passing Yards (by a VU Sophomore) Name Yards 1. Greg Zolman, 1999 2,059 2. Jay Cutler, 2003 1,917 |
