The Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award is given annually in the United States to the nation's top upperclassmen quarterback in college football. Candidates are judged on accomplishments on the field as well as on their character, scholastic achievement, and leadership qualities. The award was established in 1987 and named after Johnny Unitas, who was nicknamed "The Golden Arm". Unitas played his college career at the University of Louisville and set many records in the National Football League while playing for the Baltimore Colts.
Winners[]
These are the award recipients since inception in 1987.
| Year | Player | School |
|---|---|---|
| 1987 | Don McPherson | Syracuse |
| 1988 | Rodney Peete | USC |
| 1989 | Tony Rice | Notre Dame |
| 1990 | Craig Erickson | Miami |
| 1991 | Casey Weldon | Florida State |
| 1992 | Gino Torretta | Miami (2) |
| 1993 | Charlie Ward | Florida State (2) |
| 1994 | Jay Barker | Alabama |
| 1995 | Tommie Frazier | Nebraska |
| 1996 | Danny Wuerffel | Florida |
| 1997 | Peyton Manning | Tennessee |
| 1998 | Cade McNown | UCLA |
| 1999 | Chris Redman | Louisville |
| 2000 | Chris Weinke | Florida State (3) |
| 2001 | David Carr | Fresno State |
| 2002 | Carson Palmer | USC (2) |
| 2003 | Eli Manning | Ole Miss |
| 2004 | Jason White | Oklahoma |
| 2005 | Matt Leinart | USC (3) |
| 2006 | Brady Quinn | Notre Dame (2) |
| 2007 | Matt Ryan | Boston College |
| 2008 | Graham Harrell | Texas Tech |
| 2009 | Colt McCoy | Texas |
| 2010 | Scott Tolzien | Wisconsin |
| 2011 | Andrew Luck | Stanford |
| 2012 | Collin Klein | Kansas State |
| 2013 | A. J. McCarron | Alabama (2) |
| 2014 | Marcus Mariota | Oregon |
| 2015 | Connor Cook | Michigan State |
| 2016 | Deshaun Watson | Clemson |
| 2017 | Mason Rudolph | Oklahoma State |
| 2018 | Gardner Minshew | Washington State |
| 2019 | Joe Burrow | LSU |
| 2020 | Mac Jones | Alabama (3) |
| 2021 | Kenny Pickett | Pittsburgh |
| 2022 | Max Duggan | TCU |