Draft preview: Quarterbacks

Matthew Stafford (left) and Mark Sanchez worked out at the Scouting Combine in February. (PHOTOS: GETTY IMAGES)

QUARTERBACKS FROM AROUND THE NATION:

Rhett Bomar, Sam Houston StateHeight: 6-foot-2 – Weight : 225 pounds**NFL.com bio***| ***GoBearkats.com bio**

Started at Oklahoma as a redshirt freshman in 2005, but was dismissed from the program prior to the following season and eventually transferred to Sam Houston State ... Passed for 2,209 yards in nine games in 2007 and 3,355 yards in 10 games last season ... Averaged 335.5 yards per game in 2008 ... Finished his two seasons at Sam Houston State with 417 completions in 727 attempts for 5,564 yards, 37 touchdowns and 19 interceptions, numbers that translate to an 87.8 quarterback rating when using the NFL's formula ... Selected to the Senior Bowl, where he played for the North team.

Chase Daniel, MissouriHeight: 6-feet – Weight: 218 pounds**NFL.com bio***| ***MUTigers.com bio**

All-time total-offense yardage leader at Missouri, surpassing the record set by Brad Smith ... Threw for over 4,300 yards in both his junior and senior seasons, finishing his career with 12,515 yards on 1,094-of-1,609 passing ... Increased his touchdown-pass tally from 28 as a sophomore in 2006 to 39 last year ... His career numbers at Mizzou would translate to a 97.5 rating per the NFL's quarterback-rating formula ... Career completion percentage was 68 percent, including 69.0-percent figure as a senior ... Also ran for 975 yards and 10 touchdowns in his four seasons with the Tigers.

Nate Davis, Ball StateHeight: 6-foot-1 – Weight: 226 pounds**NFL.com bio***| ***BallStateSports.com bio**

Posted a 74-to-22 touchdown-to-interception ratio in his career ... Passed for 3,667 yards in 2007 and 3,591 last year ... Posted the following career numbers during his three seasons with the Cardinals: 678-of-1124 passing and 9,233 touchdowns, which along with the touchdown-to-interception ratio would translate to a 100.4 passer rating when calculated under the NFL formula ... Averaged 4.7 yards per carry last season and ran for 501 yards and 10 touchdowns in his career ... Helped guide BSU to a No. 12 national ranking and a 12-0 record before defeats in the Cardinals' two postseason games – the Mid-American Conference championship and the GMAC Bowl ... Turned pro with one year of eligibility remaining.

Josh Freeman, Kansas StateHeight: 6-foot-6 – Weight: 248 pounds**NFL.com bio***| ***KStateSports.com bio**

Accounted for 34 touchdowns in 12 games last season – 20 via the air and 14 on the ground ... Improved his touchdown-to-interception ratio from 6-to-15 as a freshman in 2006 to 20-to-8 two years later ... Set a school record for total yards ... Turned pro with one year of eligibility remaining ... Clocked at 4.97 seconds for the 40-yard dash at the Scouting Combine ... His 33.5-inch vertical jump ranked second among quarterbacks and his 9-foot-11 vertical jump was best at his position.

Stephen McGee, Texas A&MHeight: 6-foot-3 – Weight: 225 pounds**NFL.com bio***| ***AggieAthletics.com bio**

Saw his senior season scuttled by a torn labrum that limited him to just three starts, but recovered in time to take part in the East-West Shrine Game ... Finished his career with 5,475 yards on 485-of-815 passing with a 28-13 touchdown-to-interception ratio, numbers that translate to an 85.0 quarterback rating per the NFL's formula ... Posted a 12-to-2 touchdown-to-interception ratio in 2006 as a sophomore, when he completed 62 percent of his passes (194-of-313) for 2,295 yards ... His time of 4.66 seconds for the 40-yard dash was second among quarterbacks at the Scouting Combine.

Mark Sanchez, Southern CaliforniaHeight: 6-foot-2 – Weight: 227 pounds**NFL.com bio***| ***USCTrojans.com bio**

Is looking to become the third USC quarterback taken in the first round this decade, joining Carson Palmer (Cincinnati, 2003) and Matt Leinart (Arizona, 2006) ... Earned the starting job last season and threw for 3,207 yards, 34 touchdowns and 10 interceptions ... Turned pro with one year of eligibility remaining; he redshirted in 2005 and sat behind John David Booty in 2006 and 2007 before rising to the top of the depth chart last year ... Led USC to a 38-24 win over Penn State in the Rose Bowl, earning the game's Offensive Most Valuable Player award.

Matthew Stafford, GeorgiaHeight: 6-foot-2 – Weight: 225 pounds**NFL.com bio***| ***GeorgiaDogs.com bio**

Threw for 3,459 yards on 235-of-382 passing last season ... His 25 touchdown passes in 2008 were a school record ... First worked his way into the starting lineup as a true freshman ... Improved from a completion percentage of 52.7 percent and a 7-to-13 touchdown-to-interception ratio in 2006 to 61.5 percent and 25-to-10, respectively, in his junior season ... Turned pro with one year of eligibility remaining ... Had the third-best 40-yard dash time among Combine quarterbacks (4.81 seconds) ... Threw for 407 yards (on 24-of-39 passing) and five touchdowns in his final regular-season game against Georgia Tech last Nov. 29.

Pat White, West VirginiaHeight: 6-feet – Weight: 197 pounds**NFL.com bio***| ***MSNSportsNet.com bio**

Passed for 6,049 yards and ran for 4,480 yards during his four years with WVU ... Had two seasons in which he broke 1,000 yards passing and rushing (2006 and 2007) ... Averaged 6.5 yards per carry and 8.3 yards per attempt for his career ... Ran for 47 touchdowns – including 18 as a sophomore in 2006 – and passed for 56, including a career-best 21 last season ... Tallied a career 56-to-23 touchdown-to-interception ratio and a completion percentage of 64.8 ... Finished with a 42-9 record as the school's quarterback ... Named MVP of his final collegiate game, the Meineke Car Care Bowl, played at Bank of America Stadium.  The game was the fourth bowl win in as many opportunities for the White-led Mountaineers ...Accumulated a string of honors that included three first-team All-Big East selections and MVP honors in the Senior Bowl... His time in the 40-yard dash at the Scouting Combine (4.55 seconds) was better than all other quarterbacks and would have placed him eighth among running backs ... Also had the best vertical jump among Combine quarterbacks (35.0 inches).

John Parker Wilson, AlabamaHeight: 6-foot-2 - Weight: 219 pounds**NFL.com bio***| ***RollTide.com bio**

Started three seasons at Alabama ... Threw for a career-high 2,846 yards as a junior in 2007 ... Finished with a 46-to-29 touchdown-to-interception ratio ... Ran for 10 touchdowns in his last two seasons – five each in 2007 and 2008.

OTHER QUARTERBACKS OF NOTE:

Jason Boltus, Hartwick
Tom Brandstater, Fresno State
Nathan Brown, Central Arkansas
Hunter Cantwell, Louisville
Rudy Carpenter, Arizona State
Graham Harrell, Texas Tech
Chase Holbrook, New Mexico State
Brian Hoyer, Michigan State
Curtis Painter, Purdue
Mike Reilly, Central Washington
Drew Willy, Buffalo

FROM THE CAROLINAS:

Cullen Harper, ClemsonHeight: 6-foot-3 - Weight: 225 pounds**NFL.com bio***| ***ClemsonTigers.com bio**

Became Clemson's starting quarterback as a redshirt junior in 2007, and responded with a season in which he set a school single-season touchdown-pass record (27) while throwing six interceptions ... A year later, his touchdown-to-interception ratio was 13-to-14, although his yardage per attempt did improve (from 6.9 to 7.2 yards) ... Completed at least 61 percent of his passes in both seasons as the Tigers' starter.

DRAFT HISTORY:

With the signing of Jake Delhomme via unrestricted free agency in 2003, the Panthers' quarterback position was stablilized for the following six seasons.  The Panthers have gone to the playoffs in three of the four seasons in which Delhomme started all 16 games.  The Panthers' complement of young quarterbacks the last three years have come from the ranks of undrafted rookies, a group that now manifests itself in Matt Moore, who enters his third season this year.