Stanford football: 15 greatest quarterbacks in Cardinal history

Bobby Garrett has an incredible spot in the history of the Stanford football program, as he was the team’s star quarterback during the 1950s. A two-way player for the then-Indians, Garrett found his niche as the team’s starting quarterback in 1953, when he burst onto the scene in one of the program’s keystone victories early on.

Garrett led the Indians to a victory over the UCLA Bruins during that 1953 season and it instantly threw him into the national spotlight. The Indians were not supposed to win that game, but Garrett came to play, tossing three touchdowns, and leading the team to a stunning 21-20 victory over the Bruins.

The signal-caller would end up being fifth in the Heisman Trophy balloting in 1953, taking home the W.J. Voit Memorial Trophy, as well as Most Valuable Player honors in the Hula Bowl. He played so well that Paul Brown and his Cleveland Browns made him the No. 1 overall pick in the 1953 NFL Draft, where they hoped he could replace legendary quarterback Otto Graham.

However, Garrett struggled with stuttering during his life and this made it very hard for him to make calls in the huddle. The Browns ended up trading Garrett away to the Green Bay Packers, where he would play in only nine NFL games. He may not have made his mark on the pro game, but in Stanford history, he was an absolute legend and trailblazer.