Armstrong named finalist for Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award

Courtesy UVA Media Relations

Virginia quarterback Brennan Armstrong is among 10 finalists for the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award presented annually to the top upperclassmen quarterback by the Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Educational Foundation.

Armstrong was on the award’s preseason watch list and selected as one of the top 25 candidates for the honor back on Sept. 30. Armstrong is the second UVA quarterback in the last three seasons (Bryce Perkins – 2019) to be a top-10 finalist for the prestigious award.

Heading into the weekend, Armstrong leads the country in passing yards (3,557) and total offense (3,828). The junior has thrown for 300 yards in eight of UVA’s nine games this season and a school-record nine 300-yard games in his career. He blew past former Cavalier Kurt Benkert’s single-game passing mark of 455 yards back on Sept. 18 at North Carolina, racking up 554 yards through the air, the most by any quarterback in FBS this season.

Armstrong broke Virginia’s single-season passing record in nine games and is 339 yards away from cracking the ACC’s all-time top-10 single-season passing leaders. His 27 touchdown passes this season, one shy of matching Matt Schaub’s single-season school record set back in 2002. He’s also been effective on the ground with seven touchdowns rushing, including three, two-touchdown efforts. His 3,828 yards of total offense are the second most in school history (Perkins – 4,307).

In addition to the Unitas Golden Arm Award, Armstrong is a semifinalist for the Maxwell Award, in the Davey O’Brien Award Quarterback Class (Top 40) and on the Manning Award Watch List.

The Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award encapsulates all that is positive in college sports. The award acknowledges performance on the field for sure, but it goes beyond completion percentage and touchdown strikes. The award values character, citizenship, integrity and those who honor the game.

The list will be narrowed down to five (5) finalists during the week of Nov. 22, 2021. The award winner will be presented the Golden Arm Award trophy by The Johnny Unitas Educational Foundation President, John Unitas, Jr., at the Golden Arm Award banquet and celebration at the Four Seasons Hotel in Baltimore, Md. on Friday, Dec. 10.