As the NFL draft nears, USA TODAY High School Sports will look back at the high school careers and draft prospects for former American Family Insurance ALL-USA selections. Today’s installment features Southern California quarterback Cody Kessler.
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Centennial High School football player Cody Kessler smiles as he announces his intentions to attend Southern California in 2010 with his brother Dylan. (Photo: Casey Christie, The Bakersfield Californian via Associated Press)
PLAYER PROFILE:
Position: Quarterback
High school: Centennial (Bakersfield, Calif.)
ALL-USA history: Named to the American Family Insurance first team in 2010. According to his USC bio, he completed 175-of-251 (69.7%) of his passes for 2,831 yards and 36 touchdowns with just two interceptions in 2010 as a senior and rushed for 324 yards on 75 carries (4.3 avg.) with eight TDs. Centennial was 10-2 in his senior year.
College: Southern California
Height, weight: 6-1, 220 pounds
Southern California quarterback Cody Kessler takes part in the team’s pro day. (Damian Dovarganes, Associated Press)
By the numbers: He threw for more than 10,000 yards in his career at USC and never had a single-season completion percentage less than 65.4, despite playing for multiple head coaches during his tenure. His career passer rating was 156.4.
Draft positives: Consistently accurate. Can drop the ball in a bucket downfield. Shows proper appropriate patience or urgency. Good feel for pressure when it comes to evading pressure while keeping his his eyes downfield. Good decision-maker. Plays with a high level of intelligence and proper decision making. Protects the ball well.
Draft negatives: Below-average size and arm strength. Struggles to get zip on throws. Can be too conservative, too quick to check down. Won’t make a lot of plays with his legs.
Projection: Rounds 6/7
What he says: “Whoever’s in there, whether it’s a veteran or a younger guy, you want to compete for a spot. You don’t want to come in and settle for being a backup or a three. But at the same time it’s very beneficial to come in there and learn from a guy who knows the system and has been in there for a while.”
STATISTICS AT USC
| Year | Comp | Att | Comp% | Yds | TD | Int |
| 2012 | 2 | 2 | 100.0 | 9 | 0 | 0 |
| 2013 | 236 | 361 | 65.4 | 2,968 | 20 | 7 |
| 2014 | 315 | 452 | 69.7 | 3,826 | 39 | 5 |
| 2015 | 298 | 446 | 66.8 | 3,536 | 29 | 7 |
| Career | 851 | 1,261 | 67.5 | 10,339 | 88 | 19 |
Draft analysis by Dan Shonka, Ourlads.com