1/5/2019 football Edit

Graham Mertz takes home MVP honors at All-American Bowl

Jon McNamara • BadgerBlitz

Editor

Jon McNamara is a graduate of the University of Wisconsin-Madison. He has covered UW athletics since 2002 and has worked at Rivals.com since 2006.

Graham Mertz, who completed 7-of-14 passes for 188 yards and five touchdowns Saturday in San Antonio, captured MVP honors at the All-American Bowl.

The future Wisconsin quarterback broke the event's records for passing yards and touchdown passes while helping the East to a 48-14 win over the West.

Mertz, the 2018 Kansas Gatorade Player of the Year, passed for 3,886 yards and a state-record 51 touchdowns as a senior. The early enrollee is the highest-rated quarterback prospect the Badgers have signed during the Internet era (2002).

"We think that Graham does a ton of things that can fit right into what we're doing, and possibly add a little more to it," head coach Paul Chryst said on the Big Ten Network during the early signing period in December. "I was talking about how this class is connected, and Graham kind of shows a lot of the qualities of a really good quarterback.

"He is the leader of this class in many ways. Certainly a great personality and a lot of the other committed kids have got to know him. He's obviously very talented and we love the way he throws - he can throw every type of ball."