Davey O'Brien
c. 1938
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| Position: | Quarterback | ||||||||
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| Personal information | |||||||||
| Date of birth: | June 22, 1917 | ||||||||
| Place of birth: | Dallas, Texas | ||||||||
| Date of death: | November 18, 1977 (aged 60) | ||||||||
| Place of death: | Fort Worth, Texas | ||||||||
| Height: | 5 ft 7 in (1.70 m) | ||||||||
| Weight: | 151 lb (68 kg) | ||||||||
| Career information | |||||||||
| College: | TCU | ||||||||
| NFL Draft: | 1939 / Round: 1 / Pick: 4 | ||||||||
| Career history | |||||||||
| Career highlights and awards | |||||||||
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| Career NFL statistics | |||||||||
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| TD–INT: | 11–34 |
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| Passing yards: | 2,614 |
| Passer rating: | 41.8 |
| Player stats at NFL.com | |
Robert David "Davey" O'Brien (June 22, 1917 – November 18, 1977) was an American football quarterback. He played college football at Texas Christian University (TCU) and professionally in the National Football League (NFL) with the Philadelphia Eagles for two seasons.
In 1938, O'Brien won the Heisman Trophy and the Maxwell Award, and was the fourth overall pick of the 1939 NFL draft. O'Brien was inducted into the College Football Hall of Fame in 1955. Since 1981, the Davey O'Brien Award is given annually to the best quarterback in college football.
Born in Dallas, Texas, O'Brien played high school football at its Woodrow Wilson High School. He was an All-State selection and led the high school to the Texas state playoffs in 1932.
O'Brien played college football at nearby TCU in Fort Worth in 1935 as a backup for Sammy Baugh. He became the starter in 1937, and was named to the first-team All-Southwest Conference.
In 1938, O'Brien threw for 1,457 yards — a Southwest Conference passing record that stood for ten years. He had only four interceptions in 194 attempts, and his NCAA record for most rushing and passing plays in a single season still stands today. That season, he led the Horned Frogs to an undefeated season, as they outscored their opponents by a 269–60 margin and held nine of their ten regular-season opponents to seven points or less, including three shutouts. TCU finished the season with a 15–7 victory over Carnegie Tech in the Sugar Bowl and a national championship. O’Brien was named to 13 All-America teams and became the first player to win the Heisman and Maxwell awards in the same year. He was the first Heisman winner from TCU and the Southwest Conference. Off the field, he was also an honorary member Sigma Phi Epsilon fraternity, Texas Gamma chapter. He majored in geology and expressed little interest in pro football in January 1939.
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