Tim Couch

At 46 years old, Tim Couch has this physical status:

Timothy Scott Couch (born July 31, 1977) is a retired American football quarterback who played 5 seasons in National Football League, all for the Cleveland Browns.

He played college football for the University of Kentucky and was named All-America honors.

In the 1999 NFL Draft, he was voted first overall by the reactivated Cleveland Browns. Couch threw for over 11,000 passing yards during his NFL career, aided the Browns in returning to the league as an expansion team for the first time since returning to the league as an expansion team, but he was unable to replicate his college success, and his playing career ended after five injury-plagued seasons and is now a draft bust.

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Early years and high school career

Couch was born in Hyden, Kentucky. He held a number of national high school records, including high pass completions (872), passing yardage (12,104), touchdown passes (1132), and passing percentage for a season (75.1). He was named in Kentucky's "Mr. Football" award during his senior season in 1995. Couch was named as the sixth best high school athlete ever by ESPN. Couch has also appeared on the Leslie County High School basketball varsity team. As a junior, he averaged 36 points per game, the highest in the state. Couch received 3,023 points in his high school career.

College career

Couch played for the University of Kentucky, where he served for the Kentucky Wildcats football team from 1996 to 1998. Billy Jack Haskins split time as the starting quarterback during his 1996 freshman year under head coach Bill Curry. Curry was fired after a 1–6 start to the season, and Hal Mumme's replacement announced early that Couch would be the starter in his newest pass-oriented air raid defense offense. Couch set many school records in 1997 as the previously anemic Kentucky offense topped national offensive rankings and finished 5-6 on the season, with a victory over #20 Alabama. During the 1998 season, Couch led Kentucky to seven victories (including a win on the road at #21 LSU) and a spot in the Outback Bowl, in which Couch completed 30 of 48 passes for 336 yards and two touchdowns, despite Kentucky's loss to Penn State 26-14). Couch revealed that he would leave Kentucky to enter the NFL Draft early in 1998 following his junior season in 1998.

Couch's career at Kentucky included 795 of 1,184 passes (including 4,275 yards during the 1998 season) and 74 touchdowns (including a 97-yard touchdown pass to Craig Yeast against Florida on September 26, 1998). Couch also holds the NCAA record for completion percentage in a single game (minimum of 40 percent) against Vanderbilt (44 of 53) in 1998 and 39.4 in 11 games during the same season. He also left Kentucky with the highest completion rate in a season (400 in 1998), most completions in a two-year cycle (793 in 1997–1998), highest completion percentage (67.1%). He had an 8,151 offensive yards in a season for nine years before Florida quarterback Tim Tebow tied it with 4,181 yards in 2007. His 1998 total of 4,275 passing yards was a SEC record before being shattered by LSU's Joe Burrow.

Professional career

Couch's college success culminated in his selection as the top overall pick in the NFL draft by the Cleveland Browns, who were returning to the league as an expansion team in 1999 after the initial team's 1996 relocation to Baltimore. In the team's second game of his rookie season, Couch took over for Ty Detmer as the team's starting quarterback. He spent five seasons as a starting quarterback for Cleveland, but he would eventually face opposition from journeyman backup Kelly Holcomb in his final two seasons.

Couch's tenure in Cleveland spanned everything from leading the team to a playoff appearance to boos and inconsistent play, which was partially due to the fact that he was constantly plagued by injuries. In his career, he played only one 300-yards per game. With a broken thumb, he missed the final nine games of the 2000 season. In 2002, Couch threw for 2,842 yards and 18 touchdowns, leading the Browns to a 9-7 record and a playoff appearance. In the final game of the regular season, he suffered a fractured leg and was forced to watch as Holcomb threw for over 400 yards in a loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers in the Wild Card round of the playoffs. This was the start of a quarterback controversy in Cleveland that would not be resolved until head coach Butch Davis tapped Holcomb as his starter a year later. Couch's 2003 season featured playing behind an offensive line that had been hampered by injury. Couch has been dubbed one of the NFL's top draft busts in history by Fox Sports after being ranked No. 1 with high hopes but then faltering through the majority of his career. However, former Browns offensive coordinator Bruce Arians has defended Couch's career.

Several key moments for the Browns included two "Hail Mary" passes. Kevin Johnson's last-second touchdown pass to the Browns gave the Browns their first victory over the New Orleans Saints in 1999. Quincy Morgan tossed a game-winning pass on the last play of the game in Jacksonville three seasons later. Couch has the distinction of being the only quarterback in NFL history to throw two game-winning passes of 50 yards or more with 0:00 remaining on the clock.

Despite the fact that the 2001 Browns had raised eyebrows with their defense, having gained 43 sacks and a league-best 33 interceptions, the offense was still moribund. The running game was pitiful, and the offensive line was porous. Jamir Miller, the star of the 2002 preseason, went down with a career-ending Achilles tendon injury. However, the team, led by Couch, won nine games, five in the final two minutes and seven by ten points or less, and earned a wildcard playoff spot. Couch's 31-28 overtime victory over Tennessee, which Couch threw for 326 yards and three touchdowns, a last-minute touchdown, and two-point conversion passes against the Jets, the "Hail Mary" against the Jaguars, and tight end Mark Campbell's 1st touchdown against the Jaguars, as well as a final-minute drive against Baltimore, where Couch threw a 1-yard touchdown to tight end Couch after being blocked inside his own 5-yard line with 1:30 with a

In all-time career completion percentage, Couch ranks second (after Baker Mayfield) for the Browns (600 attempts or more). He also ranks 7th all-time in touchdown passes (75.1), 6th in QB rating (75.1), 4th in passing attempts (1,721), 5th in passing yards (9,131). Couch now holds the franchise single-game record for pass completions (36 against Tennessee in 2002) and Brandon Weeden's (723) records for pass completions (399), pass completions (223), passing yards (2,447), and QB rating (73.2%) were all broken by Colt McCoy in 2010 and Brandon Weeden. From 1999 to 2002, he was the Browns' leading passer.

Couch was released by the Browns in 2004 as a free agent for the Green Bay Packers. Couch continued to have a weak training camp, and was booed off the field by the Lambeau Field crowd during his few preseason appearances. Couch was struggling with a rotator cuff injury that would eventually necessitate surgery, and was on the sidelines for the entire year.

During the Packers' final cutdown to 53 players before the season, Couch was released. Couch filed a grievance against the Packers because the Packers refused to seek an injury settlement prior to his release.

Couch auditioned for the Chicago Bears and the Cincinnati Bengals in December 2005 after suffering shoulder surgery in February 2005. During their workout, the Bears noticed that his arm was not back to NFL shape and did not sign him. The Bengals did not pursue Couch, though Jon Kitna was not re-signed after his deal came to an end in early 2006.

Couch appeared in tryouts with the Tennessee Titans in January 2006. He has also worked with the Miami Dolphins, Pittsburgh Steelers, and the Houston Texans. Despite good workouts, the three squads stated that they were not keen on pursuing him. Couch was unable to complete the 2006 season due to another shoulder injury, which was scheduled in late June 2006.

Couch had contacted all 32 NFL clubs to see if any teams were interested in him for the 2007–2008 season, according to ESPN. Couch decided to a two-year deal with the Jacksonville Jaguars on July 29, 2007.

Couch was brought in to compete for the third-string quarterback role with Quinn Gray and Lester Ricard. He appeared in one preseason game against the Miami Dolphins and was 2-of-4 for 11 yards. Couch was forced to make the third string on August 18, and was banned. The Jaguars cut former starter Byron Leftwich and Lester Ricard, leaving them without a third-string quarterback next week.

Broadcasting career

In 2002, Couch appeared in "Cheers, Jeers, and Tears" where she, as an adult captain, is frightened by her body's role as a cheerleader, leaps into his body in order to get tips/lessons from professional cheerleaders on new cheers to the coach's surprise and the other participants.

Couch now works as an analyst for Fox Sports South as an analyst on the weekly show SEC Gridiron Live. He also acts as the color analyst for the SEC Regional Network football package, which is typically available on Fox Sports Net affiliates in most SEC territories. Sun Sports, Fox Sports South, Fox Sports Southwest Plus, Fox Sports Southwest Plus, Fox Sports Southwest Plus, Fox Sports Southwest Plus, Fox Sports Midwest Plus, Fox Sports Midwest Plus, and Fox Sports San Diego are among Sun Sports' current affiliates.

The Browns declared on April 11, 2018 that Couch would be calling their 2018 preseason games with Jay Crawford.

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