Former Josh Heupel coached QB has a chance to make college football history in 2024

A former Josh Heupel-coached quarterback has a chance to make college football history in 2024.

Oregon Ducks quarterback Dillon Gabriel is entering his sixth season of college football this fall.

Gabriel started his career at UCF under Heupel in in 2019. He played at UCF for three seasons (two under Heupel and one under Gus Malzahn) before transferring to Oklahoma, where Gabriel played the last two seasons before landing at Oregon earlier this offseason.

The Hawaii native enters the 2024 season with 14,865 career passing yards.

The FBS record for passing yards in a season is 19,217 yards, which was set by Case Keenum at Houston (2007-2011).

Gabriel needs 4,353 passing yards in 2024 to break Keenum's record.

Gabriel has never passed for more than 3,660 yards in a season.

But with Oregon being a legit College Football Playoff contender, there's a chance the Ducks play some additional games in 2024 (Gabriel passed for 3,660 yards last season in 12 games).

If Gabriel sets the record for passing yards in a career, his time spent under Heupel will be a big reason why. Gabriel passed for 7,223 yards during his two seasons with Heupel, including 3,653 yards as a true freshman in 2019.

The trust that Heupel showed in Gabriel as a true freshman is one of the big reasons why the 23-year-old quarterback has a chance to make history this fall.

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