JT Daniels

Summary:

  Well travelled, JT Daniels is with his fourth college since starting with USC in 2018

 Jonathan Tyler Daniels (born February 2, 2000) is an American football quarterback for the Rice Owls. He previously played for the West Virginia Mountaineers before entering the transfer portal in 2022. Daniels previously played for USC and Georgia, winning the CFP National Championship with the latter as a backup to Stetson Bennett, before transferring to West Virginia in 2022.

 Early years

Daniels was born in Irvine, California, the son of Ali and Steve Daniels. His father is Catholic and his mother is Jewish. He attended Mater Dei High School in Santa Ana, California. During his high school career, he passed for 12,014 yards with 152 touchdowns and 14 interceptions

 Daniels was notable for earning the starting position his freshman year and full play calling responsibility his sophomore year, the latter of which being a distinction that took fellow Mater Dei and USC alum Matt Barkley until his senior year to earn. He threw for 4,849 yards and 67 touchdowns his sophomore season. As a junior, he won the Gatorade Football Player of the Year and then later the Male Athlete of the Year award after passing for 4,123 yards and scoring 61 total touchdowns (52 passing, nine rushing), leading his team to a 15–0 record and a consensus high school football national championship. Mater Dei held the #1 position from the first week of the season and did not trail at any point in the season, winning every game by at least 10 points in CIF's Division I.

 USC

2018 season

Daniels was a five-star recruit and ranked as the number one overall recruit in his class by Rivals.com prior to his reclassification. He committed to the University of Southern California (USC) to play college football. In December 2017, Daniels announced that he would graduate early from high school and reclassify to the 2018 class. He enrolled in USC in June 2018 upon completion of his high school course work. In August 2018, he began USC's two week fall camp in a three-way competition for the starting quarterback position. Within three weeks, Daniels was named the starter over incumbents Matt Fink and Jack Sears, making him the second true freshman in school history to start a season opener. In his true freshman year, Daniels passed for 2,672 yards, 14 touchdowns, and ten interceptions in 11 games, missing just one game due to concussion. The Trojans went 5–7 for the season.

 2019 season

In 2019, he won the starting job over Fink, Sears, and Kedon Slovis. During the season opener against Fresno State, he tore his ACL during a sack in the second quarter; at the time of the injury, he had completed 25 of 34 passes for 215 yards, a touchdown, and an interception. Daniels was eventually ruled out for the remainder of the year and Slovis was named the starting quarterback.

 Following the emergence of Kedon Slovis, USC head coach Clay Helton announced that Daniels entered his name in the NCAA transfer portal on April 16, 2020.

 Georgia

 2020 season

On May 28, 2020, Daniels announced that he would be transferring to the University of Georgia. Daniels was granted immediate eligibility to play by the NCAA on July 13, 2020.[18] Going into the 2020 season, Daniels competed with Jamie Newman, D'Wan Mathis, Stetson Bennett, and Carson Beck for the starting job. On September 2, 2020, Newman announced he would opt-out of the 2020 season due to COVID-19 concerns and begin to prepare for the 2021 NFL Draft, leaving Daniels to compete with Mathis, Bennett and Beck. Ultimately, D'Wan Mathis was named the starting quarterback for the season-opener against Arkansas. Daniels was named the backup quarterback behind Stetson Bennett, who replaced Mathis due to poor play against Arkansas. Daniels was named the starting quarterback in the game against Mississippi State after Bennett sustained a shoulder injury against Florida.

 On November 21, 2020, Daniels made his first start and appearance with Georgia against Mississippi State and went 28-of-38 for 401 passing yards with 4 touchdowns in the 31–24 win. Following that game, Daniels was named the starter for the remainder of the season. Daniels led the Bulldogs to the Peach Bowl, where he went 26-of-38 for 392 passing yards with one touchdown and one interception in the 24–21 win. The Bulldogs went 4–0 in Daniels' four starts and Daniels finished the season with 80 passing completions out of 119 attempts for 1,231 passing yards with 10 touchdowns and 2 interceptions.

 2021 season

Beginning the 2021 season, JT Daniels was the clear frontrunner for starting quarterback, with Stetson Bennett as backup. In the season opener against Clemson, Daniels threw 22-for-30 with 135 yards, with no touchdowns and one interception. Following Georgia's victory, Daniels was sidelined with an oblique injury, leaving Bennett as the starter for an indefinite period.[19] Daniels returned two weeks later against South Carolina and threw 23-for-31 with 303 yards, and two touchdowns and one interception. Daniels started a week later on September 25 against Vanderbilt and threw 9-for-10 with two touchdowns for 129 yards, but was replaced by Bennett. Daniels did not return until November 6 against Missouri; however, he only appeared briefly in relief of a struggling Bennett, throwing 7-of-11 for 82 yards with a touchdown and an interception. Daniels' last appearance came against Charleston Southern on November 20 during senior day (the last home game of the season), and threw 7-for-12, gaining 73 yards and a touchdown during his brief stint.[20]

 Despite a poor performance by Bennett in the SEC championship game against Alabama with two interceptions, coach Kirby Smart remained confident in Bennett's abilities for the remainder of the season. Following Georgia's national championship and Bennett's affirmation to play out his final season of eligibility in 2022, Daniels entered the NCAA transfer portal.

 West Virginia

 2022 season

On April 13, 2022, Daniels announced his intention to transfer to West Virginia University.[21] He was benched midseason in favour of Garrett Greene. On December 5, 2022, Daniels entered the transfer portal.

 

Rice 2023 season

On December 20, 2022, Daniels announced his intention to transfer to Rice University, his fourth program in his six-year collegiate career.[22]

 

STATS

Season Team    Games Passing Rushing

GP       GS                              Cmp       Att       Pct       Yds      TD        Int            Rtg       Att       Yds      Avg      TD

USC Trojans

2018     USC     11         11         216       363       59.5      2,672    14        10            128.6    45        -149     -3.3      0

2019     USC     1          1          25        34        73.5      215       1          1            130.5    3          -6         -2.0      0

Georgia Bulldogs

2020     Georgia 4          4          80        119       67.2      1,231    10        2            178.5    10        -71       -7.1      0

2021     Georgia 5          3          68        94        72.3      722       7          3            155.1    4          -18       -4.5      0

West Virginia Mountaineers

2022     West Virginia     10        10        200       327       61.2      2,107    13            9          122.9    30        -51       -1.7      1

Rice Owls

2023     Rice      –          –          –          –          –          –          –          –            –          –          –          –          '–

Career  31        29        589       937       62.9      6,947    45        25            135.7    92        -295     -3.2     

HISTORY -- From college profile

 2023

Comes to Rice as the highest-ranked recruit in the rating era and brings 6,947 career passing yards and 45 touchdowns to South Main…Threw for 2,107 yards (200-327) and 13 touchdowns in 10 starts at West Virginia last season… Threw a touchdown in nine of 11 games and had at least 20 completions in seven of 11… Top game was a 365-yard, three-touchdown effort vs. Kansas… 2017 Gatorade Player of the Year after leading Mater Dei to the national title as a senior… Second true freshman to start the season opener at quarterback for USC (Matt Barkley in 2009), throwing for 282 yards vs. UNLV… Set career highs with 2,672 yards, 216 completions, and 14 touchdowns as a freshman at USC in 2018… Threw for 1,953 yards and 17 touchdowns in 10 starts at Georgia in 2020 & 21 including six starts for the 2021 National Champions.

 

 

Transferred to West Virginia in 2022 summer

2021 (r-So.) – Georgia

Played for coach Kirby Smart at Georgia

Was 7-0 as the starting quarterback during his tenure with the Bulldogs

Member of the 2021 CFP National Championship squad

Starting quarterback in three of 14 games, played in six games overall

Team’s second-leading passer with 68 completions on 94 attempts, totaling 722 yards and seven TDs

Completed 22-of-30 passes for 135 yards in season-opening win over No. 3 Clemson

Missed UAB, Arkansas, Auburn and Florida games because of injury

Returned to action in reserve role vs. Missouri and completed seven of 11 passes for 82 yards and a TD

Started the South Carolina game and completed 23 of 31 passes for 303 yards and three scores

Named among 35 collegians as a “player to watch” for the Walter Camp 2021 Player of the Year award

Second-team preseason All-SEC, as voted by the league’s 14 head coaches, as well as by attendees at SEC Media Days

2020 (COVID) – Georgia

Georgia’s starting quarterback in the last four games of the season, winning all four starts

Helped lead the Bulldogs to an 8-2 record, including a Chick-fil-A Peach Bowl win over Cincinnati

Finished with 80 completions (119 att.), for 1,231 yards and 10 TDs

Completed 28-of-38 passes for 401 yards and four scores, including TD passes of 48 and 40 yards, in his UGA debut vs. Mississippi State

Became the 10th quarterback in Georgia history to have four touchdown passes in a game

Named SEC Co-Offensive Player of the Week, Maxwell Award Player of the Week and Davey O’Brien Award Great 8 for his performance against Mississippi State,

Went 26-for-38 for 392 yards and a TD, leading three fourth-quarter scoring drives in Georgia’s Peach Bowl win over Cincinnati

Threw for 299 yards and three TDs in win at No. 24 Missouri

Medically cleared to play just days after the Bulldogs’ season opener at Arkansas

Participated in preseason camp

 2019 (So.) – USC

Redshirted after season-ending knee injury suffered in third quarter of opener vs. Fresno State

Had completed 25-of-34 passes for 215 yards before the injury

Named to the Pac-12 Academic Honor Roll for Fall 2019

 2018 (Fr.) – USC

Started at quarterback in 11 games (missed the Arizona State game)

Just the second true freshman USC player to start at quarterback for USC in a season opener (Matt Barkley was the first in 2009)

Was 21-of-35 for 282 yards and a 43-yard touchdown in his debut vs. UNLV

Completed 37 (USC record) of 51 passes for 349 yards and 2 TDs vs. Notre Dame

Threw for 322 yards (30-of-48 passes) vs. Texas

Threw for a pair of TDs and a 2-point conversion in the second half to help USC overcome a 13-point deficit vs. Washington State

Missed the Arizona State game after suffering a concussion the week before vs. Utah

 High School

Graduated from Mater Dei Catholic High and was coached by Bruce Rollinson

Graduated a full year early in order to enroll at USC

2017 Gatorade National Player of the Year

Max Preps National Player of the Year

PrepStar Dream Team

USA Today All-USA First Team

Two-time Gatorade state Player of the Year and two-time Orange County Offensive Player of the Year

Los Angeles Times All-Area Player of the Year

Completed 262 of 365 passes (71.8%) for 4,123 yards and 52 TDs with just four INTs as a senior

His 12,014 career passing yards were an Orange County record, as were his 152 TD passes

Led Mater Dei to a 38-4 record in his three seasons, including a 15-0 mark, the CIF state title and a final No. 1 national ranking in 2017

Personal

Son of Steve and Alison Daniels

 One of two children (1 sister)

Graduated with his bachelor's degree in psychology from Georgia in May 2022

Pursuing a second bachelor's degree in multidisciplinary studies