Kerwin “the Throwin’ Mayoan” Bell was originally a walk-on quarterback for Charley Pell‘s Florida Gators in 1983. He started off his freshman year eighth on the depth chart and was redshirted without a scholarship, but was promoted to second-team QB with a scholarship after the other scholarship QBs left in 1984. Just four days before the opener against defending national champion Miami, he became the starter after Dale Dorminey was injured in practice. After losing to Miami and tying LSU, the Gators did not lose another game. This was a rough transition period for the Gators due to the release of Charley Pell due to NCAA infractions. Galen Hall carried Kerwin Bell as his starter until 1987. In 1984, Kerwin was rewarded with an SEC Player of the Year award, as well as being named first-team All-SEC and Honorable Mention All American. The Gators went 9-1-1, and won the SEC before the championship was stripped six months after the end of the season. The Gators were also crowned national champions by 21 of the 47 ranking identities, including two that are part of the current BCS rating system. As NCAA sanctions started sinking in, Kerwin still managed to lead the team to an identical 9-1-1 record in 1985, and was named Honorable Mention All American. By 1986 and 1987, NCAA sanctions and major injuries had caught up with the Gators depth chart and the team went 6-5 and 6-6. In his senior season, he was team captain and Fergie Ferguson Award winner. He finished his career with 549 completions, 949 attempts, 7585 yards, 56 touchdowns. He was drafted by Miami in the 7th round of the 1988 NFL draft, but spent time on theTampa Bay Buccaneers, Orlando Thunder (WLAF), Sacramento Gold Miners (CFL), Edmonton Eskimos (CFL), Indianapolis Colts, Winnipeg Blue Bombers (CFL) and Toronto Argonauts (CFL). He was named to the University Athletic Association Hall of Fame as a Gator Great in 1997.
Career Passing:
549/949 (57.6%), 7585 Yds, 56 TD, 35 INT, 136.5 RAT
Bonus trivia: Kerwin has the highest career passer rating of any QB in NFL history, 158.3 (5/5, 75 yards, 1 TD)…but his career spans only one game.
Christopher Patrick Leak of Charlotte, North Carolina played quarterback for Ron Zook’s and Urban Meyer’s Florida Gators from 2003 to 2006. Chris came to Gainesville as a Parade All American Player of the Year, 5-star player, and #3 QB of the 2003 recruiting class. He made an immediate impact as a freshman and took over as starter in game 5 against Kentucky. He set the SEC record for wins by a freshman with a 6-3 record as starter, threw for 2435 yards (190/320, 59.4%, 16 TD, 11 INT) and was named to the All-SEC Freshman squad. Chris tied the school record with 6 TDsagainst South Carolina his sophomore year while throwing for 3197 yards (238/399, 59.6%, 29 TD, 12 INT). In his junior year, Chris struggled with the option portion of Urban Meyer’s spread-option attack, but improved once Coach Meyer adjusted the offense halfway through the season to suit his skills and he finished with 2639 yards (235/374, 62.8%, 20 TD, 6 INT). By his senior year, he and freshman QB Tim Tebow made a formidable spread-option tandem as he threw for 2942 yards (232/365, 63.6%, 23 TDs, 13 INT) on the way to Florida’s second national championship, where Chris was named the offensive MVP of the 2007 BCS National Championship game. Chris finished as the Gator career passing yardage leader. In 2013, Chris joined the Gator coaching staff first as quality control coach and then as graduate assistant on the offensive coaching staff.
