The top five Georgia football quarterbacks of the Twenty-first century

Number one – David Greene

Greene gets the nod as the number one Georgia quarterback of the Twenty-first century because he dominated the only statistical category that matters: wins.

When David Greene arrived in Athens, Georgia was in the midst of a three game losing streak to Georgia Tech and would fire head coach Jim Donnan . Georgia football fans had never experienced the SEC Championship game.

Return to Winnersville

Greene won 42 games, breaking Peyton Manning’s record. It was the first time since the Herschel Walker era that Georgia had double-digit wins in three consecutive seasons, making Greene’s years at Georgia the second coming of the Georgia  football Golden Age.

In 2001, Greene immediately endeared himself to Dawg people with his freshman year “Hobnail Boot’’ upset of Tennessee .  The season’s 8-4 finish included a redemptive thrashing of Georgia Tech, and Greene claimed the SEC Offensive Rookie of the Year award by throwing for 2,789 yards and 17 touchdowns.

Greene’s one-loss 2002 Georgia football team claimed the SEC Championship and finished the season 13 – 1. Greene threw for 2,924 yards and 22 touchdowns to win the conference Offensive Player of the Year honors. He beat Tech again.

As a junior, Greene completed 60.3 percent of his passes for 3,307 yards. Georgia’s repeat appearance in the SEC Championship was the Dawgs only back to back SEC Championship appearance until last season.  Georgia finished 11-3, and Greene beat Tech again.

Greene’s final year was a let down as Georgia failed to advance to the SEC Championship game. Greene made the most of it, earning his only win over Florida and again, beating Tech. Greene also threw 214 consecutive passes that season without an interception, then an NCAA record. He also threw for 20 touchdowns. His career record 11,528 passing yards stood as a school record until Aaron Murray broke it as a senior in 2013.

Living in the Top 10

The ten seasons before Greene took over as quarterback, Georgia won 65 percent of its football games. In Greene’s four seasons, Georgia won 81 percent of its football games, the SEC East twice, a SEC Championship, and beat Tech four straight. Greene’s Dawg’s finished in the top 10 every year.

Greene only beat Florida once, but it’s only enough to give pause. There may never have been a better Dawg under center than David Greene.