Texas A&M has been lucky enough to have more than a handful of successful quarterbacks come through their football program over the years. To name a few in recent years, College Station has been home to Johnny Manziel, Ryan Tannehill, and Trevor Knight.
There’s no shortage of football talent in the state of Texas, and as a result, the Aggies have had and always will have one of the best quarterbacks in the country. The past four years were no exception to this, as Aggies fans had the opportunity to watch their quarterback grow into an NFL prospect.
Kellen Mond had a shaky start to his A&M career but would ground himself by his sophomore season. In just a few years, he went from a guy who could barely throw more touchdowns than interceptions to one of the top NFL Draft prospects at the quarterback position.
Texas A&M quarterback Kellen Mond drastically improved each season
During his freshman season, nobody had an excess of confidence in the young player. He wasn’t necessarily bad. Rather, he seemed limited in his position. That said, he would continue to grow despite early criticisms. He became a more accurate passer, a smarter scrambler, and an extremely risk-free quarterback.
That’s the beauty of Mond as a passer — he took a significant step forward in each season as the leader of the Aggies’ offense. He started his time in College Station as a young, serviceable quarterback and finished as one of the best in A&M History.
But where does he rank all-time for the Aggies?
Kellen Mond’s Texas A&M career was excellent, but his predecessors were better
Kellen Mond has nothing to hang his head about when looking back at his NCAA Football career. As the 108th overall prospect in his class, he joined the Texas A&M football roster and made some noise.
But he may be a step behind some A&M legends.
It’s hard to say that Mond was a better quarterback than some of his predecessors in College Station. We’re talking about the school that housed Johnny Manziel, one of the greatest players that ever stepped foot onto a football field.
Look further down that list and you won’t receive any clarity. From Ryan Tannehill to Gary Kubiak, this school has been elite at the quarterback spot. Kellen Mond was the most recent, but he was part of a great system that has produced incredible talent.
That said, he should still find his name on the top ten all-time quarterback list for Texas A&M.
Looking at the Aggies’ all-time quarterback statistics, Mond is near the top in every single category. Yes, this is largely because he has been the passer for TAMU for four years but there is something to be said about that type of longevity.
In the passing yards category, Mond will find himself at the top of the list with 9,661 yards. It’s not close either — he holds the top spot by over 1,500 yards. He is also the Aggies’ all-time leader in passing touchdowns with 71, four ahead of Jerrod Johnson.
So while he may not have been the flashiest player in the world, he has given this school four incredible years under center.
In fact, he may have developed into the Aggies’ best NFL prospect in years.
Texas A&M’s Kellen Mond has been a huge name in NFL Draft talks recently
Rewind a few weeks and Kellen Mond’s name isn’t being talked about very frequently. He’s just another system quarterback from Texas A&M, a school that often produces NFL busts. The name that most NFL scouts will have ringing in their minds is Johnny Manziel.
But Mond isn’t Manziel.
Mond isn’t being talked about in regards to the NFL Draft because the NFL is bored of the top prospects. He’s being talked about in NFL Draft conversations because he brought sustained success at the quarterback spot to College Station. He has a maturity that is hard to come by in college quarterbacks.
Take his senior year as an example. Mond lost his top four receivers and still managed to improve his completion percentage, touchdown-interception ratio, and overall passer rating. He proved that he can continuously improve no matter who surrounds him.
Mond helped his stock in the Senior Bowl too, stepping up when all eyes were on him. He would accumulate 173 yards, two touchdown passes, a pair of 2-point conversions, and to cap it all off, the Most Valuable Player award.
Among some of the best performers in college football, he stepped up.
For a program that has had some underwhelming quarterbacks in the NFL in recent years, Mond could be their guy. He has every measurable that works in the NFL — it’s just a matter of when and where he will be drafted.