Mark Brunell
New Orleans Saints' quarterback, Mark Allen Brunell, was born on September 17, 1970 in Santa Maria, California. From 1985 until 1987, he played as the starting quarterback for St. Joseph High School in Santa Maria, California, leading the Knights to two championships and the CIF finals.
Brunell played college ball in Washington. Originally, the Green Bay Packers drafted Brunell who was a three-time Pro Bowler during his time with the Jacksonville Jaguars; he has also played with the Washington Redskins football team.
Just out of high school, Brunell signed on at the University of Washington. He began his freshman year and had taken over the duties of starting by the time he was a sophomore. Mark Brunell's run-pass combo quarterback abilities had potential from the very beginning. His third starting game, he took the Huskies to a shutout win of 31 - 0 over a top rank USC team, establishing the forcefulness of the Huskies in Pac-10 football. Brunell continued to grow all through the first season as the Huskies rose in rank. Mark Brunell was named MVP of one of his best-played games, the Rose Bowl, when Washington overtook Iowa with at 46 - 34 win.
Mark Brunell - Former Redskins
Although the Washington Huskies were fifth in the ranks at the end of the season on the Associated Press poll, they were National Champions in another poll. The star of Mark Brunell was shining brightly. He was expected to take the Huskies all the way to the top in 1991, even better than the previous season. However, a dreadful injury to his knee during the annual spring game sidelined Brunell and any hope of a National Championship for the season. The capable Billy Joe Hobert from Puyallup, Washington replaced Brunell and the Huskies were victorious in their first two games without Brunell. Mark Brunell returned ahead of schedule for game three of the 1991 season, receiving a standing ovation and defeating Kansas State 56 - 3.
As the season went on, Brunell occasionally played in the rest of the games, generally after the fate of the games were already determined. In the 1991 season, the University of Washington Huskies beat every opponent of the regular season.
On New Year's Day, Mark Brunell threw a touchdown pass to Mario Bailey leading the Huskies to their second consecutive victory at the 1992 Rose Bowl. The University of Washington Huskies were sitting pretty at the top of the UPI poll and second on the Associated Press poll at the season's end.
The media criticized the Seattle Seahawks for taking Notre Dame Quarterback Rick Mirer as opposed to holding out for Brunell who was signed by the Green Bay Packers after his senior year at Washington.
In 1995, Mark Brunell was traded to the Jacksonville Jaguars in the draft. That season he had 13 starts, completed 201 of 346 passes, going for 2,168 yards and scoring 15 touchdowns with 7 interceptions.
His most astounding moment came in Week 2 of the 2005 season when Brunell threw two incredible passes to Santana Moss, scoring two touchdowns in the last three minutes of the game and defeating the Dallas Cowboys 14 - 13.
In March of 2008, Brunell signed with the New Orleans Saints and will enter the season as Drew Brees' backup.
Mark Brunell is an active member of Metro Morningstar Church, now called Every Nation. He helped to found Southpoint Community Church in Jacksonville, Florida and is a passionate member of Champions for Christ.
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