 Nova with Rutgers in 2012 | |
| No. 10 | |
|---|---|
| Position: | Quarterback |
| Personal information | |
| Born: | April 27, 1993 Elmwood Park, New Jersey, U.S. |
| Height: | 6 ft 1 in (1.85 m) |
| Weight: | 222 lb (101 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school: | Ramsey (NJ) Don Bosco Prep |
| College: | Rutgers (2011–2014) |
| Undrafted: | 2015 |
| Stats at Pro Football Reference | |
Gary Nova (born April 27, 1993) is an American football quarterback. He played college football at Rutgers and was the Scarlet Knights starting quarterback from 2012 to 2014.
Nova attended Don Bosco Prep High School in Ramsey, New Jersey.
Nova started five games in 2011, his first being against Navy as a true freshman and led Rutgers to a victory in the 2011 Pinstripe Bowl over Iowa State 27–13, despite throwing for just 20 yards.
In 2012, Nova was named the starting quarterback and led Rutgers to its best start since 2006, starting 7–0. When Rutgers was ranked (#15 in Coaches polls and #18 in the AP Poll), Nova did throw six interceptions in a loss to 6–1 Kent State 35–23, however. [1]
The 2013 season proved rather unsuccessful for Nova, as he threw for 14 interceptions in 10 games, and had a 54.2 completion percentage. Among those games was a four interception game in a 24–10 loss at Louisville, and a three interception game in a 49–14 loss vs Houston. As a result, he was replaced by Chas Dodd in the final two games as the starting quarterback. [2]
Rutgers moved to the Big Ten Conference for the 2014 season. Nova regained the starting job for the 2014 season. [3] In Rutgers' Big Ten debut against Penn State, Nova would throw no touchdowns and five interceptions in a 13–10 home loss. On September 27, 2014 Nova set the Rutgers record for career touchdown passes. [4] In his final game in the 2014 Quick Lane Bowl against North Carolina, he completed 9-of-20 passes and threw for 184 yards with 2 touchdowns. He was named team MVP at the 2014 awards banquet. [5] It was the most successful statistical season for Nova, as he threw for a career high 2,851 yards, 57.2 completion percentage, 3 rushing touchdowns, 22 passing touchdowns, and an 8.7 yards per attempt.
Nova's career statistics are as follows: [6]
Rutgers Scarlet Knights | |||||||||||
| Season | Passing | Rushing | |||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Comp | Att | Yards | Pct. | TD | Int | QB Rating | Att | Yards | Avg | TD | |
| 2011 | 116 | 227 | 1,553 | 51.1 | 11 | 9 | 116.6 | 23 | −114 | −5.0 | 0 |
| 2012 | 221 | 388 | 2,695 | 57.0 | 22 | 16 | 125.8 | 22 | −44 | −2.0 | 0 |
| 2013 | 165 | 303 | 2,159 | 54.5 | 18 | 14 | 124.7 | 50 | −93 | −1.9 | 1 |
| 2014 | 187 | 327 | 2,851 | 57.2 | 22 | 12 | 145.3 | 45 | −25 | −0.6 | 3 |
| Totals | 689 | 1,245 | 9,258 | 55.3 | 73 | 51 | 129.0 | 140 | -256 | -1.8 | 4 |
| Height | Weight | Arm length | Hand span | 40-yard dash | 10-yard split | 20-yard split | 20-yard shuttle | Three-cone drill | Vertical jump | Broad jump | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 6 ft 1+3⁄8 in (1.86 m) | 222 lb (101 kg) | 30+1⁄2 in (0.77 m) | 8+3⁄4 in (0.22 m) | 4.73 s | 1.59 s | 2.73 s | 4.46 s | 7.03 s | 34.0 in (0.86 m) | 9 ft 7 in (2.92 m) | ||
| All values from Pro Day [7] [8] | ||||||||||||
After going undrafted in the 2015 NFL draft, Nova attended rookie minicamp on a tryout basis with the New York Giants in May 2015. [9]
