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Ken O'Brien
California-Davis
O'Brien,
a three-year letterman at the University of California-Davis from
1980-82, said he was excited to be inducted. "This is a great
honor because there have been so many great players in Division
II," said O'Brien. "It's also exciting to be inducted in this
class." During his career as quarterback with the Aggies,
O'Brien rolled up 6,673 passing yards, completing 470 passes for
44 touchdowns. O'Brien passed for a career high 413 yards in a
single game in 1982, setting a single-game passing record in the UC
Davis books. He added another UC Davis record when he
recorded 2,976 total yards in a season in 1982. He also holds a
school record in pass attempts in a career with 820. O'Brien was a 1982
first-team All-American and was awarded UC Davis honors that included
the Colby E. Slater Award (UC Davis male Athlete of the Year), the Jerry
Norris Award (Most Valuable and Inspirational Award), and the T. Palmer
Moody Award (outstanding sophomore).
From college, he was taken
in the 1983 draft as the 24th overall pick, becoming the No.1 pick
of the New York Jets. Professionally he played 10 seasons
from 1983-92 with the Jets. He completed 2,039 of 3,465 passes for
24,386 yards and 124 touchdowns. He led the Jets in passing form
1985-91. His passing totals in 1985 (3,818), which led the AFC,
and 1986 (3,690) rank second and third, respectively, in Jets history
behind only Joe Namath's 1967 season. His 96-yard TD pass in
1985 ranks as the longest in Jets history. He was voted Most
Valuable Player by his teammates in 1985 and awarded the Ed Block Award
(Most Courageous Player) by his teammates in 1989. O'Brien was
inducted into the UC Davis Hall of Fame in 1990 and was inducted into
the College Football Hall of Fame in 1997. |
