Former Tennessee Volunteers quarterback Jarrett Guarantano will start in the UFL on Sunday afternoon with the Houston Roughnecks. What is Guarantano’s background?
Jarrett Guarantano To Lead Roughnecks at QB in 2024
Combining the USFL and XFL, the United Football League has kicked off its inaugural season.
The Roughnecks bring plenty of talent to their team, including former Alabama linebacker Reuben Foster and former Volunteers running back Tiyon Evans. Meanwhile, leading the team at quarterback will be Guarantano, who spent four years at Tennessee, where he produced 6,174 yards, 38 touchdowns, and 17 interceptions.
In his first season with the Volunteers, in 2017, Guarantano threw for 997 yards and four touchdowns. During the 2018 season, he started all 12 games for Tennessee, throwing for 1,907 yards, 12 touchdowns, and just three interceptions. The next season, Guarantano added over 2,000 yards through the air and another 16 scores.
During a shortened 2020 tenure, Guarantano started seven games for the Volunteers, racking up 1,112 passing yards and another six touchdowns. In 2021, he transferred to Washington State, where he started in two of three games played, totaling 304 passing yards and a touchdown, alongside three interceptions.
After a one-year stop at Washington State and going undrafted in the 2022 NFL Draft, the former Tennessee QB signed an undrafted free agent contract with the Arizona Cardinals. While Guarantano did play in all of the Cardinals’ preseason games that fall, he was cut on Aug. 20, 2022. He was later signed to the practice squad on Sept. 7 but was released on Oct. 4.
Guarantano was then signed to the Denver Broncos’ practice squad in December 2022 and was even promoted to the active roster that same month. His time with Denver ended, however, in July 2023, when he was waived from the roster.
Guarantano signed a contract with the USFL’s Houston Gamblers in December 2023, which was then converted into a Houston Roughnecks contract after the merger had taken place and teams were finalized.
Guarantano beat out Reid Sinnett and Nolan Henderson for the starting QB spot for the Roughnecks. Head coach Curtis Johnson made the announcement earlier this month.
KEEP READING: Who Is C.J. Johnson? A Closer Look at the Houston Roughnecks’ Head Coach for the 2024 UFL Season
“I think it was a great competition all camp long,” Johnson said. “One day it was Nolan, one day it was Jarrett, one day it was Reid. But in the end, I think (with) the body of work that Jarrett put forth, I think he deserves to start.”
The Roughnecks start their 10-game regular season at 2 p.m. Sunday with a home game against the Memphis Showboats at Rice Stadium. It will be televised by ESPN, which is one of the league’s broadcast partners along with ABC, FOX, and FS1.
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