Penn State Football: 30 greatest players of all-time

The best quarterback in the history of Penn State football, Kerry Collins was as dominant a signal-caller as there was in college football during his time in Happy Valley. Playing his high school ball at West Lawn (PA) High School, Collins was one of the best quarterbacks in the country, but decided to stay in-state and play his college football at State College.

Penn State fans are sure happy he did, as he held the team to an undefeated season in 1994, where he basically re-wrote the program’s single season passing record book. Collins set the single-season record for passing yards (2,679), and completion percentage (66.7) to name a few, and parlayed his magical season into finishing fourth in the Heisman Trophy balloting.

An All-American that season, Collins capped off his college career by leading the Nittany Lions to a victory over Oregon in the Rose Bowl. He would go on be a first-round selection of the Carolina Panthers in 1995.

Aside from finishing fourth in the Heisman vote, Collins won the Maxwell and Sammy Baugh Awards. On Sept. 29, 2018, he will be honored by the school for his enshrinement into the College Football Hall of Fame.

Collins had a stellar NFL career as well, as he played in the league from 1995 to the 2011 season. Still, it was his work during his time with Penn State that fans of the program remember. During that 1994 season, he put his stamp on his legacy at the school, leading them to a No. 1 ranking by the New York Times.