Former West Virginia star quarterback Pat White, who was a second-round pick of the Miami Dolphins in 2009, announced his retirement from pro football last week.
White had been playing in the Canadian Football League, and the Edmonton Journal reported that concussion issues evidently led to White's retirement.
While White was a high-level college quarterback -- he is the only quarterback in NCAA history to start in four bowl wins, including two BCS victories -- his skill set didn't translate to the NFL. White, who turned 29 last month, barely played for the Dolphins in '09, going 0-of-5 as a passer and rushing for 81 yards on 21 carries. He was released by the Dolphins at the end of camp in 2010 and didn't play another regular-season down in the NFL, although he did have a short stint with the Washington Redskins in 2013. He was a backup for the CFL's Edmonton Eskimos last season, accounting for five touchdowns (four on the ground) in limited action.
White was the fourth quarterback drafted in 2009, behind first-rounders Matthew Stafford, Mark Sanchez and Josh Freeman. The only other quarterback selected in that draft who has started an NFL game other than the three first-rounders is Curtis Painter, who was a sixth-round pick. New England Patriots wide receiver Julian Edelman, a college quarterback at Kent state, was a seventh-round pick in that draft.
White, an Alabama native, was a dangerous dual-threat quarterback at WVU in spread offenses for Rich Rodriguez (first three seasons) and Bill Stewart (senior year). He finished his college career with 6,051 yards and 56 touchdowns passing and 4,480 yards and 47 touchdowns rushing. At the time, his rushing total was an FBS record for quarterbacks, but Michigan's Denard Robinson bested the mark in 2013.
White finished sixth in Heisman voting in 2007 and seventh in '08. He was a three-time All-Big East first-team selection, and WVU was 42-9 in White's four seasons.
Mike Huguenin can be reached at mike.huguenin@nfl.com. You also can follow him on Twitter @MikeHuguenin.
