Reggie Ball - College Career

College Career

Reggie Ball was the first true freshman to start at quarterback for Georgia Tech since Stu Rogers in 1980. Ball's first start was in the Yellow Jackets' opening game against BYU in 2003. Since then, he missed just one game and amassed 8,128 passing yards, 57 touchdown passes and 9,579 total yards of offense in his career, but also threw 55 interceptions. Ball's passing yards total is third on Georgia Tech's career list, behind Joe Hamilton and Shawn Jones, and his touchdown pass and total offense totals are second behind Hamilton. Ball accumulated 11 rushing touchdowns and also rushed for 1,451 yards in his career, good for 18th on the Yellow Jacket leaderboard and second among Tech quarterbacks in history (Hamilton). He wore jersey number 1.

During his career, Ball was named ACC Rookie of the Year in 2003 and was named the MVP of the Champs Sports Bowl in 2004. He compiled a solid record of 29-20 as the starting quarterback for the Yellow Jackets. Ball, whose athleticism was well noted as CouchScout.com listed him at 4.46 in the 40-yard dash, led Georgia Tech to three 7-win seasons in a row. He capped off his career with a 9-5 mark in 2006 that included a #25 ranking nationally (heading into the Toyota Gator Bowl) and an ACC Coastal Division Championship.

Reggie Ball began this—his senior season—for the Yellow Jackets by leading the team to a sterling 9-2 record, but his collegiate career ended on a negative note on December 2, 2006, with a 9-6 loss in the ACC Championship Game to Wake Forest, just one week after Ball's Georgia Tech team lost to in-state rival UGA for a sixth straight year. He completed less than 30% (15-51) of his passes in these last two games, threw four interceptions, and gave up a crucial fumble in the loss to Georgia. Although Georgia Tech earned a spot to play West Virginia in the Gator Bowl that year, Reggie Ball's controversial career abruptly ended when he was named academically ineligible, and backup quarterback Taylor Bennett was named the starter. He left Georgia Tech after this season having completed only 44% of his passes, the worst mark of his four-year career, and not receiving an academic degree.