WKU redshirt senior quarterback Brandon Doughty picked up his second major award of the postseason on Thursday as he was announced as the winner of the 2014 Sammy Baugh Award, which is presented to college football’s top passer by the Touchdown Club of Columbus.
Doughty, who was named the 2014 Conference USA Most Valuable Player on Wednesday, becomes the first quarterback in WKU history to receive the Sammy Baugh Award and just the third in Conference USA history to win the award. Louisville’s Stefan LeFors, who was WKU head coach Jeff Brohm’s pupil at the time, won the Sammy Baugh Award in 2004 while Houston’s Case Keenum earned the honor in the 2009 and 2011 seasons.
Doughty joins a prestigious list of college football quarterbacks to win the Sammy Baugh Award, including Heisman Trophy winning signal callers Sam Bradford, Chris Weinke, Danny Wuerffel, Ty Detmer and Vinny Testaverde. The award is named after Pro and College Football Hall of Fame quarterback Sammy Baugh, who was a Consensus All-American at TCU and five-time All-Pro with the NFL’s Washington Redskins. Doughty will officially be presented the award at the 60th Touchdown Club of Columbus Awards on Feb 7 at the Sheraton Capitol Square in Columbus, Ohio.
In his historic 2014 season, Doughty has established 14 WKU single-season, single-game and records while also setting Conference USA records with 593 passing yards at rival Middle Tennessee and by throwing six touchdowns in one half in a win over previously undefeated Marshall. He ended the Herd’s quest for an unbeaten season with eight total touchdown passes on Nov. 28, which was the most by a road quarterback in FBS history.
He enters bowl season as the nation’s leader in passing yards (4,344) and touchdowns (44) and ranks 35th and 16th in those categories in FBS single-season history, respectively.
Doughty guided the Hilltoppers to their fourth-consecutive bowl eligible season and second bowl berth in FBS history with a 7-5 mark in the regular season. Behind 1,339 yards and 19 touchdowns from Doughty in the final month of the regular season, WKU rattled off four-straight wins in November to earn its trip to the Popeye’s Bahamas Bowl on Dec. 24.