Michigan State’s best quarterbacks
Connor Cook has the most passing yards in Michigan State history, 9,194 from 2012 to 2015. Alessio Milivojevic is 9th, with 2,530; 485 more passes Andrew Maxwell for 8th.
Michigan State’s quarterbacks this season
- Alessio Milivojevic7 games, 180.4 a game2,530 at Michigan State, the 9th-most since 2004.1,263passing yards
By decade: 2020s · 2010s · 2004–09
passing yards in Michigan State history
- 1Connor Cook2012 – 20159,194
- 2Kirk Cousins2008 – 20119,131
- 3Jeff Smoker2000 – 20038,932
- 4Brian Lewerke2016 – 20198,293
- 5Drew Stanton2003 – 20066,524
- 6Payton Thorne2020 – 20226,501
- 7Brian Hoyer2005 – 20086,159
- 8Dave Yarema1982 – 19865,809
- 9Ed Smith1976 – 19785,706
- 10Bill Burke1996 – 19995,463
From Wikipedia (CC BY-SA 4.0), through the 2025 season, which counts bowl games from 2002.
Compare with in · side by side
Every quarterback since 2004
| Place | Player | passing yards | passing touchdowns | wins |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Connor Cook2012 – 2015 · 43 games | 9,194 | 71 | 37 |
| 2 | Kirk Cousins2008 – 2011 · 43 games | 9,131 | 66 | 28 |
| 3 | Brian Lewerke2016 – 2019 · 41 games | 8,293 | 47 | 23 |
| 4 | Payton Thorne2020 – 2022 · 29 games | 6,501 | 49 | 16 |
| 5 | Drew Stanton2004 – 2006 · 31 games | 6,241 | 40 | 13 |
| 6 | Brian Hoyer2005 – 2008 · 36 games | 6,147 | 35 | 20 |
| 7 | Aidan Chiles2024 – 2025 · 20 games | 3,807 | 23 | 8 |
| 8 | Andrew Maxwell2010 – 2013 · 25 games | 3,014 | 14 | 16 |
| 9 | Alessio Milivojevic2024 – 2026 · still playing | 2,530 | 17 | 4 |
| +1,263 this season · passes Andrew Maxwell for 8th in 3 games at his pace | ||||
| 10 | Tyler O'Connor2013 – 2016 · 23 games | 2,344 | 20 | 15 |
| 11 | Rocky Lombardi2018 – 2020 · 17 games | 1,902 | 11 | 7 |
| 12 | Noah Kim2022 – 2023 · 8 games | 1,264 | 9 | 3 |
| 13 | Katin Houser2022 – 2023 · 12 games | 1,132 | 6 | 5 |
| 14 | Keith Nichol2009 – 2011 · 33 games | 826 | 9 | 23 |
| 15 | Damon Dowdell2004 · 5 games | 657 | 4 | 1 |
| 16 | Damion Terry2014 – 2017 · 24 games | 356 | 1 | 17 |
| 17 | Stephen Reaves2004 · 4 games | 331 | 2 | 2 |
| 18 | Tommy Schuster2024 · 4 games | 202 | 0 | 1 |
| 19 | Sam Leavitt2023 · 4 games | 139 | 2 | 1 |
| 20 | Leo Hannan2026 · still playing | 67 | 0 | 0 |
| +67 this season | ||||
| 21 | Cam Fancher2026 · still playing | 59 | 0 | 2 |
| +59 this season | ||||
| 22 | Nick Foles2007 · 1 game | 57 | 0 | 1 |
| 23 | Anthony Russo2021 · 2 games | 43 | 0 | 1 |
| 24 | Kayd Coffman2026 · still playing | 42 | 1 | 0 |
| +42 this season | ||||
| 25 | Theo Day2019 · 1 game | 12 | 0 | 0 |
passing yards by decade
2020s
- Payton Thorne2020 – 2022 · 29 games6,501
- Aidan Chiles2024 – 2025 · 20 games3,807
- › Alessio Milivojevic2024 – 2026 · 17 games2,530
- Noah Kim2022 – 2023 · 8 games1,264
- Katin Houser2022 – 2023 · 12 games1,132
2010s
- Connor Cook2012 – 2015 · 43 games9,194
- Brian Lewerke2016 – 2019 · 41 games8,293
- Kirk Cousins2010 – 2011 · 27 games6,141
- Andrew Maxwell2010 – 2013 · 25 games3,014
- Tyler O'Connor2013 – 2016 · 23 games2,344
2004–09
- Drew Stanton2004 – 2006 · 31 games6,241
- Brian Hoyer2005 – 2008 · 36 games6,147
- Kirk Cousins2008 – 2009 · 16 games2,990
- Keith Nichol2009 · 10 games764
- Damon Dowdell2004 · 5 games657
Also at Michigan State: running backs · wide receivers · tight ends · defenders · kickers · punters · Michigan State record book
Method
- Every quarterback who played at Michigan State since 2004, ranked by passing yards over his games there. Bowl and playoff games count.
- The numbers here start in 2004, so a quarterback who played at Michigan State before then isn't here.
- A decade counts his passing yards at Michigan State in its seasons.
- The record book's numbers are the school's own. Where they and the box scores differ for one player, the box scores are missing a game or count bowls another way.
- A quarterback still playing at Michigan State is counted at tonight's numbers against the record book's, which run through the 2025 season.