I was watching the NFL Network today and they happend to be doing a biography on Tom Brady. It struck me that his collegiate career has been somewhat mirrored by our beloved ultra-Patriot, Ricky Stanzi.  Aside from similarities in build (Brady is listed at 6'4", 225 lbs, Stanzi is listed at 6'4", 230 lbs), they really do resemble each other. Just check out the stats of their Junior and Senior campaigns, and you'll see what I mean.

Tom Brady's Junior Year (1998):

214/350, 15 TDs, 12 INTs, 61.1 Comp%,  2636 Yds.

10W, 3L (7W, 1L in B10), B10 Co-Champs, Citrus Bowl Win

Ricky Stanzi's Junior Year (2009):

171/304, 17 TDs, 15 INTs, 56.3 Comp%, 2417 Yds.

11W, 2L (6W, 2L in B10), B10 Runner-Up, Orange Bowl Win

Brady backed up Brian Griese and Drew Henson for a few years, while Stanzi beat out Jake Christensen early in his Sophmore year.  So maybe Stanzi had an advantage in that he was more experienced going into his Junior year. Brady was a little more accurate and slightly more prodcutive in terms of total yards.  Stanzi threw more TDs and more picks. Both won bowl games in Florida, but Brady's team went as Big Ten Co-Champs.

Tom Brady's Senior Year (1999):

214/341, 20 TDs, 6 INTs, 62.8 Comp%, 2586 Yds.

10W, 2L (6W, 2L in B10), B10 Runner-Up, Orange Bowl Win

Ricky Stanzi's Senior Year (2010 - to date):

157/230, 20 TDs, 3 INTs, 68.3 Comp%, 2212 Yds.

Season Results: ?

Stanzi has already matched Brady in TDs, has fewer INTs, has been more accurate, and will almost certainly overtake him in passing yards.

I didn't watch many Michigan football games in '98-'99, so I don't remember watching Brady play in college.  But I seem to recall that the Wolverines of that era played a pretty balanced, pro-style offense, similar to that which Iowa currently employs.

I am not bringing this up to try and argue that Ricky Stanzi is a better QB than Tom Brady, or that Stanzi will be the next great NFL QB.  I just thought it would be fun to compare the two.  In their college careers they both distinguished themselves as winners.  Brady has obviously carried his success over to the NFL; I just hope Stanzi gets the chance to compete at that level too.

For those of you who watched Brady during his Michigan career, what do you remember about him, and how would you compare him to Stanzi as a college QB?