University of Notre Dame graduate student quarterback Sam Hartman has been named to the 2023 Davey O’Brien Award Watch List, which is awarded annually to the nation’s best college quarterback.
Hartman, who announced his decision to graduate transfer to Notre Dame in January of 2023, is the active FBS leader in career touchdown passes (111) and passing yardage (12,967). He is poised to become just the 12th FBS quarterback to throw for over 13,000 yards and 110 touchdowns in a career.
Over the last two seasons, Hartman leads all FBS quarterbacks in touchdown passes (77) and yards per completion (13.9) while ranking in the top five for passing yards (second, 7,929), red zone touchdown passes (third, 45) and fourth-quarter passing yards (fifth, 1,114).
In 2022, Hartman required just 270 completion to rack up 38 touchdown passes, which was the best pass-completion-to-touchdown-ratio among Power 5 quarterbacks.
The Davey O’Brien National Quarterback Award is presented annually to the nation’s best college quarterback and is the oldest and most prestigious national quarterback award. The 47th Annual Davey O’Brien Awards Dinner honoring the winner will be held Monday, Feb. 19, 2024, at The Fort Worth Club in Fort Worth, Texas.
Three different Irish signal callers have been O’Brien Award finalists through the years, including Tony Rice (1988 and ‘89), Rick Mirer (1992) and Brady Quinn (2005 and ‘06).
The official Davey O’Brien Midseason Watch List will be released on Tuesday, Oct. 17, and will contain all active quarterbacks from the Preseason Watch List, all players honored as a weekly Great 8 recipient through the season’s first seven weeks and any additional quarterbacks approved by the selection subcommittee.
The Midseason Watch List will then be pared down to the 35-player Davey O’Brien QB Class of 2023 on Tuesday, Oct. 24. Fan voting on social media (Facebook, Instagram and Twitter) will again play a role in the semifinalist, finalist and winner voting totals when combined with the national selection committee’s ballots. Voting will begin on Oct. 24.
The list of semifinalists selected from the QB Class will be named on Tuesday, Nov. 7. The Foundation will announce the three finalists two weeks later (Tuesday, Nov. 21). The 2023 Davey O’Brien Award winner will be unveiled live on ESPN on Thursday, Dec. 7, during The Home Depot College Football Awards.