Kellen Moore: Winningest QB in NCAA History Goes Undrafted by NFL

Perhaps Boise State's Kellen Moore will get a chance as a free agent with an NFL team; still it seems odd that the winningest quarterback in the history of the NCAA was bypassed by every team during the 2012 NFL draft.

When Chandler Harnish, quarterback of Northern Illinois, was selected as the 253rd pick of the draft Saturday (the last of the 11 QBs taken), Moore's hopes seemed to slip away…with the exception of, perhaps, being picked up on the free-agency market. Maybe it was that he was only 6'0", and his mobility and arm strength were often questioned.

But if you look at his other numbers, according to broncosports.com, it is somewhat amazing that no one took a chance on him.

Moore's "142 career touchdown passes ranked second all-time and his 14,667 career passing yards were the fifth-most in NCAA history;" he was "just the sixth player in NCAA history to eclipse 14,000 career passing yards" and "is the first player in NCAA history to record four seasons with both 3,000 yards of total offense and 3,000 passing yards." In addition, his "14,534 career yards of total offense ranks eighth in NCAA history" and his "8.85 yards per attempt for his career ranks 12th all-time in NCAA history."

Moore also led the nation in completion percentage (.743) while his passing efficiency of 175.19 ranked third nationally.

While some in the media, and perhaps among the scouts, doubted Moore's abilities, former NFL coach Jon Gruden, who featured Moore on his "QB Camp" that aired on ESPN, praised the Boise State signal-caller. A story on the Idaho Statesman quoted Gruden as saying, about Moore's passing ability, "Some of these throws are the damndest throws I’ve seen. It’s not a 103 mile an hour fastball, but the ball is placed perfectly with great anticipation…It’s the kind of anticipation you have to have to play at the next level.”

Still, Boise State had a record draft with the six that were taken during the 2012 NFL draft. In addition to Shea McClellin (the No. 19 pick) and Doug Martin (at No. 31) going in the first round, defensive end Tyrone Crawford was selected by the Dallas Cowboys in the third round (No. 81 overall), safety George Iloka was selected by Cincinnati in the fifth round (No. 167), defensive lineman Billy Winn was picked up by Cleveland in the sixth round (No. 205) and Arizona snagged offensive tackle Nate Potter in the seventh round (No. 221).