Scott Tolzien

Scott Tolzien (born September 4, 1987) is an American football quarterback for the San Francisco 49ers of the National Football League. He was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted free agent in 2011. He played college football for the Wisconsin Badgers. He was the starting quarterback for the 2010 Wisconsin Badgers who were co-champions of the Big Ten Conference with Ohio State and Michigan State.

College career
A two-star recruit out of William Fremd High School, Tolzien did not attract many offers from major universities and chose to attend the University of Wisconsin, Madison.

2006 season
Tolzien was redshirted and did not play for the Badgers this season.

2007 season
Tolzien did not play in any games for Wisconsin this season; as they had Tyler Donovan, Allan Evridge, and Dustin Sherer at quarterback.

2008 season
After Allan Evridge was benched following dismal performances against Michigan, Ohio State, and Penn State, Tolzien saw his first major action for Wisconsin against Iowa in Kinnick Stadium. Tolzien completed 5 passes on 8 attempts, but threw an interception in the red zone. Dustin Sherer eventually took charge of the Badgers, who finished the season a disappointing 7-6.

2009 season
A surprise winner of a spring quarterbacks competition at Wisconsin after beating out former starter Dustin Sherer, Tolzien threw an 80 yard touchdown pass to WR Isaac Anderson on his first attempt against Northern Illinois. Tolzien would set the Wisconsin All-Time record for completions in a single season, with 211, and passed for 2,705 yards. Under Tolzien's leadership, Wisconsin would finish the season at 9-3. However, Scott threw a pair of interceptions that were returned for touchdowns in an eventual loss at Ohio State and threw 3 interceptions against Iowa the next week. Despite this, Tolzien was at the top of his game in games against Michigan, Minnesota, and Michigan State, being named Big Ten Offensive Player of the Week for his efforts against Michigan State. Tolzien's efforts were often overshadowed by 1,500 yard rusher John Clay, but he turned in a very solid season.

Tolzien finished the 2009 season with a good performance in a 20-14 win over Miami in the 2009 Champs Sports Bowl, completing 19 passes on 26 attempts as the Badgers knocked off the higher-ranked Hurricanes.

2010 season
Tolzien, after being named a finalist for the 2010 Johnny Unitas Golden Arm Award along with Andy Dalton of TCU, Colin Kaepernick of Nevada, Christian Ponder of Florida State and Ricky Stanzi of Iowa, won the award. Tolzien smashed the Wisconsin record for completion percentage in a season in his remarkable 2010 season, completing 74.3% of his passes in 12 regular season games. Tolzien ranked 4th nationally in passer rating, and led the nation in completion percentage.

After a disappointing effort against Michigan State in which the Badger receiving corps dropped several passes, Tolzien would improve week after week as the Badgers won their next 7 games to finish the year 11-1. Against a top 5 Ohio State defense, Tolzien completed 13 of 16 passes. His efforts led the Badgers to an eventual upset of then top-ranked Ohio State. The next week against Iowa, Tolzien again had a solid game, completing 20 passes on 26 attempts for 205 yards and a touchdown. Most impressively, Tolzien led the Badgers down the field for the game-winning touchdown with Wisconsin's running game stifled by Iowa's defense. In his final home start, against the Northwestern Wildcats, Tolzien was nearly flawless, completing 15 passes on 19 attempts for 230 yards with four touchdown passes.

Tolzien made his final collegiate start at Wisconsin in the 2011 Rose Bowl against one of the top defenses in the nation, TCU. Tolzien finished the game with 12 completions out of 21 attempts for 159 yards, no touchdowns and no interceptions and a rating of 120.7 for the game. The Horned Frogs defeated the Badgers by a final score of 21-19.

Tolzien completed his college career by playing in the 2011 East–West Shrine Game on January 22, 2011.

Pre-draft
Tolzien took part in the NFL Combine at Lucas Oil Stadium in Indianapolis.

San Diego Chargers
Tolzien was signed by the San Diego Chargers as an undrafted free agent following the 2011 NFL Draft on July 26, 2011. He then appeared in three of the four preseason games. During that time, Tolzien completed 25 of his 40 pass attempts for 302 total yards, one touchdown pass, and one interception, while he had 4 rush attempts for 24 yards. He was subsequently released by the team on September 3, 2011 in final cuts.

San Francisco 49ers
The San Francisco 49ers claimed Tolzien off waivers on September 4, 2011 to be the third string quarterback behind starter Alex Smith and backup Colin Kaepernick. Tolzien played a major role in the 49ers' practice during the 2011 playoffs, helping Alex Smith prepare for the NFC Championship game against the New York Giants. He was retained by San Francisco after the conclusion of the 2012 preseason, and will remain as the third string quarterback behind Kaepernick and Smith.