Gardner Flint Minshew II was born on May 16,1996 and is an American football quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts of the National Football League.
35 Facts About Gardner Minshew
2.
Gardner Minshew began his college football career at Northwest Mississippi Community College, winning the NJCAA National Football Championship, and played his next two years at East Carolina University.
3.
Rogers was the father of future college football quarterback Will Rogers, whom Gardner Minshew became a mentor to.
4.
Gardner Minshew began playing football for Brandon High School in 2011, serving as the starting quarterback for the all-freshman team until varsity quarterback Trey Polk broke his arm partway through the season.
5.
Gardner Minshew had 223 passing yards and one touchdown in the title game.
6.
Gardner Minshew took the Bulldogs to an MHSAA state championship victory as a senior in 2014, with 3,541 passing yards and 31 touchdowns en route to the finals.
7.
Gardner Minshew matriculated at Troy in January 2015, but left that May before he ever played in a game.
8.
On June 3,2015, Gardner Minshew signed a National Letter of Intent to transfer out of Troy and enroll at Northwest Mississippi Community College, where he would play college football with the Rangers in the National Junior College Athletic Association.
9.
Gardner Minshew finished the game 18 of 37 for 211 yards, a touchdown, and an interception.
10.
Gardner Minshew finished the season with a 61 percent pass completion rate and 28 touchdowns, and was first in the MACJC and second in the NJCAA with 3,288 passing yards.
11.
On May 3,2016, Gardner Minshew signed a grant-in aid with East Carolina University, which enabled him to continue his football career with the Pirates at the NCAA Division I level.
12.
Gardner Minshew had career highs with 29 of 49 passes and 336 yards, but a number of on-field penalties hindered the Pirates.
13.
The reverse happened in the next game, with Gardner Minshew replacing Sirk after the latter suffered a hit to the head in the third quarter of a game against West Virginia.
14.
Montgomery was worried about protecting both of his quarterbacks and wanted Gardner Minshew to keep the ball in his hands as little as possible.
15.
Gardner Minshew finished 6 of 12 for 69 yards and one touchdown.
16.
Gardner Minshew relieved Sirk the following week against Brigham Young when Sirk injured his throwing elbow.
17.
Gardner Minshew had one year of NCAA eligibility remaining after his early graduation from East Carolina, and although he had originally committed to playing for Alabama as a graduate student, he instead joined the Washington State Cougars.
18.
Gardner Minshew did not suffer a loss with Washington State until Week 4, when he was the subject of a controversial hit from USC Trojans linebacker Porter Gustin.
19.
Gardner Minshew finished his graduate season with 468 completed passes in 662 attempts, 38 touchdowns, nine interceptions, and 4,776 passing yards, breaking both Connor Halliday's Washington State single-season passing yards record and Jared Goff's single-season Pac-12 record.
20.
Gardner Minshew finished in fifth place in Heisman Trophy voting, behind Kyler Murray, Tua Tagovailoa, Dwayne Haskins, and Will Grier.
21.
In February 2019, Gardner Minshew was one of three Washington State football players, alongside Andre Dillard and James Williams, to receive an invitation from the National Football League to that year's NFL Scouting Combine.
22.
Gardner Minshew had the second-largest hand size of any quarterback at the combine, with his 10.125 inches span behind only Tyree Jackson's 10.25 inches.
23.
Between the scouting combine, pro days, and Senior Bowl, Gardner Minshew spoke with all 32 NFL teams in the time leading up to the draft.
24.
The next day, Jaguars coach Doug Marrone announced that Gardner Minshew would start the Week 14 game against the Los Angeles Chargers.
25.
Foles was traded to the Chicago Bears in March 2020 in exchange for a fourth-round selection in the 2020 NFL Draft, paving the way for Gardner Minshew to take over as the starting quarterback in the 2020 season.
26.
Gardner Minshew made his first start of the 2021 season in Week 13, after starting quarterback Jalen Hurts was sidelined with an ankle injury.
27.
Gardner Minshew had a perfect 158.3 quarterback rating through the first half of the game, and tied Donovan McNabb with a 93.3 percent first-half completion rate, the highest by an Eagles quarterback in 30 years.
28.
Hurts' ankle injury recovered over the Eagles' subsequent bye week, and Gardner Minshew returned to the backup role for the Eagles' Week 15 game against the Washington Football Team.
29.
Gardner Minshew went 1-for-2 with 23 yards in his limited outing.
30.
Gardner Minshew appeared again at the end of the Eagles' Week 13 game against the Tennessee Titans.
31.
When Hurts suffered a right shoulder sprain during the Eagles' Week 15 game against the Chicago Bears, Gardner Minshew was named the starting quarterback for the Eagles Christmas Eve game against the Dallas Cowboys.
32.
On March 17,2023, Gardner Minshew signed a one-year, $3.5 million contract with the Indianapolis Colts, that could go up to $5.5 million with incentives.
33.
Outside of football, Gardner Minshew is known for his distinctive physical appearance and exercise habits, which have generated several nicknames.
34.
Gardner Minshew began growing his signature Fu Manchu-style mustache at East Carolina, and it has been adopted by Minshew's fans, some of whom wear fake mustaches to his NFL games.
35.
Gardner Minshew was given the nickname "Jock Strap King" by former-Jacksonville running back Leonard Fournette, after the quarterback's propensity for exercising in nothing but the eponymous underwear.