TYLER, Texas — WKU Football quarterback Bailey Zappe was named a 2021 Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award Finalist, the Selection Committee announced Tuesday afternoon. Zappe earned a spot on the weekly Honorable Mention list seven times during the regular season.
The Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award recognizes the top offensive player in Division I who also exhibits the enduring characteristics that define Earl Campbell: integrity, performance, teamwork, sportsmanship, drive, community and tenacity. In addition, the nominee must meet one or more of the following criteria: born in Texas and/or graduated from a Texas High School and/or played at a Texas-based junior college or four-year college.
Zappe is the lone quarterback among the five finalists, who otherwise include: UTSA junior running back Sincere McCormick, Baylor senior running back Abram Smith, Kansas State running back Deuce Vaughn and Ohio State wide receiver Garrett Wilson. Now in the award’s ninth season, there have been 46 finalists – and Zappe is the first one from Victoria, Texas. Hilltopper wide receiver Jerreth Sterns was also 1-of-16 Semifinalists, but was not chosen among the final five.
For the year, Zappe is 442-of 639 passing (69.2%) for 5,545 yards, with 56 touchdowns and 11 interceptions. He leads the nation in yards by 1,094 (next-closest is Mississippi State’s Will Rogers’ 4,451) and touchdowns by 13 (next-closest is Alabama’s Bryce Young’s 43). The all-time single-season FBS yardage record is 5,833 by Texas Tech’s B.J. Symons during his 14-game 2003 season, while the single-season FBS touchdown record is 60 by LSU’s Joe Burrow during his 15-game 2019 campaign. A performance by Zappe of 289 passing yards and five touchdowns in the Hilltoppers’ bowl game vs. App State would eclipse both marks.
With a C-USA Championship Game-record and career-high 577 yards at UTSA, Zappe became only the sixth quarterback in FBS history to achieve a 5,000-yard, 50-touchdown campaign. In addition, a 45-yard completion in the first quarter pushed Zappe over Brandon Doughty’s WKU single-season program record of 5,055, which was set during the 14-game 2015 season. Meanwhile, his 577 yards marked the first FBS passing performance of 560 or more yards since UCF’s Dillon Gabriel had 601 at Memphis on October 17, 2020.
From 2020-to-2021, the Hilltoppers went from scoring 19.0 points per game to 43.1 (+24.1 increase leads the nation), scoring 2.0 offensive touchdowns per game to 5.2 (+3.2) and 164.3 passing yards per game to 434.6 (+270.3). The 434.6 passing yards per game would be the second-best number in FBS over the past five seasons (2019 Washington State averaged 437.2). In 13 games this season, Zappe has 83 passing “chunk” plays of 20 or more yards this season with 23 of those going for touchdowns. Comparatively, in 12 games in 2020, WKU had 15 “chunk” passing plays with three of those going for touchdowns.
The winner will be announced at the award banquet in Tyler, Texas, on January 12, 2022. All finalists will be invited to the event and the emcee is Brian Jones, college football studio analyst for CBS Sports and CBS Sports Network.
The Hilltoppers conclude their season on Saturday, December 18 in the 2021 RoofClaim.com Boca Raton Bowl on Saturday, December 18, where WKU (8-5) will face App State (10-3) of the Sun Belt Conference. Kickoff at FAU Stadium is set for 10 a.m. CT and will be aired nationally on ESPN.
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