Quarterback, Western Kentucky (from Houston Christian), 2017–21
Bailey Zappe
- Number
- No. 4
- Height
- 6′2″
- Weight
- 215 lb
- Class (2021)
- Senior
- Hometown
- Dallas, TX
- Born
- Apr 26, 1999
Bailey Zappe played quarterback at Houston Christian (2017–20) and Western Kentucky (2021). The New England Patriots took Zappe in round 4, No. 137 overall in the 2022 NFL Draft.
At a glance
Career highs
577passing yards, career highat UTSA, 20217touchdown passes, career highvs. UT Martin, 2021Honors
- 2021Earl Campbell Tyler Rose Award
- 2021Conference USA Most Valuable Player
- 2021National leader in passing touchdowns (62)
- 2021National leader in passing yards (5967)
- 2021National leader in total offense (5,984)
- 2021National leader in total offense per game (427.4)
Players of the year, conference and regional honors: Wikipedia’s lists (CC BY-SA), each linked from its honor.
Passing
| Season | Team | Cmp | Att | Pct | Yds | Y/A | TD | Int |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Houston Christian | 21 | 34 | 61.8 | 199 | 5.9 | 0 | 0 |
| 2018 | Houston Christian | 27 | 50 | 54.0 | 226 | 4.5 | 2 | 1 |
| 2019 | Houston Christian | 27 | 37 | 73.0 | 300 | 8.1 | 2 | 0 |
| 2020* | Houston Christian | 106 | 169 | 62.7 | 1,453 | 8.6 | 12 | 1 |
| 2021 | Western Kentucky | 475 | 686 | 69.2 | 5,967 | 8.7 | 62 | 11 |
| Career | 656 | 976 | 67.2 | 8,145 | 8.3 | 78 | 13 | |
Rushing
| Season | Team | Car | Yds | Avg | TD | Long |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Houston Christian | 9 | −38 | −4.2 | 0 | 7 |
| 2018 | Houston Christian | 11 | 15 | 1.4 | 0 | 12 |
| 2019 | Houston Christian | 7 | −15 | −2.1 | 0 | 16 |
| 2020* | Houston Christian | 16 | −8 | −0.5 | 0 | 9 |
| 2021 | Western Kentucky | 51 | 17 | 0.3 | 3 | 21 |
| Career | 94 | −29 | −0.3 | 3 | 21 | |
Season lines from CollegeFootballData, regular season and bowls. * That team-season’s player lines are missing part of the team’s yards in our source, so these numbers may be short.
On the roster
| Season | Team | No. | Pos | Class | Ht | Wt |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Houston Christian | 4 | QB | Yr 1 | ||
| 2018 | Houston Christian | 4 | QB | Yr 2 | ||
| 2019 | Houston Christian | 4 | QB | Yr 3 | ||
| 2020 | Houston Christian | 4 | QB | Yr 4 | ||
| 2021 | Western Kentucky | 4 | QB | Sr. (Yr 5) | 6′2″ | 215 |
As each season’s roster listed the player (CollegeFootballData). Classes before the latest listing are counted back from it; “Yr 1” is the year on file where that count can’t place a season he played (a redshirt, transfer or 2020 year); height and weight as last listed.
Per play
| Season | Team | Plays | EPA/play | Pctile | Median | Total | Usage | Adj. pass |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2017 | Houston Christian (FCS) | 43 | 0.04 | – | – | 1.8 | 58% | – |
| 2018 | Houston Christian (FCS) | 61 | 0.04 | – | – | 2.3 | 76% | – |
| 2019 | Houston Christian (FCS) | 44 | 0.36 | – | – | 15.7 | 60% | – |
| 2020 | Houston Christian | 185 | 0.49 | 95th (n=116) | 0.27 | 90.7 | 75% | – |
| 2021 | Western Kentucky | 638 | 0.45 | 86th (n=145) | 0.33 | 283.9 | 71% | 0.54 |
Expected points added: how much the player’s plays moved the team’s expected score, per play and in total. Plays: total EPA divided by EPA per play, the plays the source credits to him (for a receiver roughly his catches and runs, not every target; for a passer, not every attempt), so it can differ from attempts plus carries. Percentile: against the position’s regulars that season across all divisions on file (quarterbacks with 150+ plays, backs 60+, receivers and tight ends 30+), with how many there were (n) and their median; a dash means too few plays to rank. A season in progress uses the full-season bar scaled by games played, never below 75 plays for quarterbacks, 30 for backs and 20 for receivers. The cohort grows or shrinks with the source’s coverage each season (2025 lists far more players), so compare percentiles rather than raw EPA across years. FCS seasons are marked. Usage: the share of the team’s plays the player was part of (shown from 20 plays). Adjusted pass and rush: EPA per play adjusted for the defenses faced (CollegeFootballData’s WEPA). From CollegeFootballData, 2013 on.
Game by game
2021 Western Kentucky 14 games, 5,967 passing yards, 62 TD
| Date | Opponent | Result | Cmp | Att | Yds | TD | Int | Rush |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2 | vs. | W 59–21 | 28 | 35 | 424 | 7 | 1 | 24 |
| Sep 11 | at | L 35–38 | 28 | 40 | 435 | 3 | 1 | 7 |
| Sep 25 | vs. | L 31–33 | 31 | 44 | 365 | 3 | 0 | 6 |
| Oct 2 | at | L 31–48 | 46 | 64 | 488 | 3 | 0 | −17 |
| Oct 9 | vs. | L 46–52 | 38 | 60 | 523 | 5 | 1 | 2 |
| Oct 16 | at | W 43–20 | 36 | 54 | 397 | 5 | 1 | 8 |
| Oct 23 | at | W 34–19 | 39 | 49 | 382 | 3 | 0 | −7 |
| Oct 30 | vs. | W 45–13 | 33 | 45 | 393 | 4 | 2 | 13 |
| Nov 6 | vs. | W 48–21 | 29 | 50 | 281 | 4 | 0 | −6 |
| Nov 13 | at | W 42–21 | 34 | 42 | 482 | 5 | 1 | −5 |
| Nov 20 | vs. | W 52–17 | 39 | 49 | 470 | 6 | 2 | 3 |
| Nov 27 | at | W 53–21 | 25 | 48 | 328 | 4 | 0 | −11 |
| Dec 3 | at | L 41–49 | 36 | 59 | 577 | 4 | 2 | 5 |
| Dec 18 ✦ | vs. | W 59–38 | 33 | 47 | 422 | 6 | 0 | −5 |
2020 Houston Christian 3 games, 1,453 passing yards, 12 TD
| Date | Opponent | Result | Cmp | Att | Yds | TD | Int | Rush |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 5 | at | L 31–57 | 39 | 62 | 480 | 3 | 0 | −1 |
| Sep 12 | at | L 33–35 | 30 | 49 | 567 | 4 | 0 | −7 |
| Sep 26 | at | L 38–66 | 37 | 58 | 406 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
No box score in the source for Oct 3 at Eastern Kentucky, so that game is not listed.
2019 Houston Christian 1 game, 300 passing yards, 2 TD
| Date | Opponent | Result | Cmp | Att | Yds | TD | Int | Rush |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Aug 31 | at | L 34–36 | 27 | 37 | 300 | 2 | 0 | −15 |
No box score in the source for Sep 7 vs. Texas Wesleyan; Sep 14 at South Dakota; Sep 21 vs. Northwestern State; Sep 28 vs. Texas Southern; Oct 5 vs. Incarnate Word; Oct 12 at Abilene Christian; Oct 19 at McNeese; Oct 26 vs. SE Louisiana; Nov 9 at Nicholls; Nov 16 vs. Lamar; Nov 23 at Sam Houston, so those games are not listed.
2018 Houston Christian 1 game, 226 passing yards, 2 TD
| Date | Opponent | Result | Cmp | Att | Yds | TD | Int | Rush |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 29 | at | L 27–63 | 27 | 50 | 226 | 2 | 1 | 15 |
No box score in the source for Sep 1 vs. Southwest Baptist; Sep 8 vs. McNeese; Sep 15 vs. Abilene Christian; Oct 6 at Central Arkansas; Oct 13 at SE Louisiana; Oct 20 vs. Stephen F. Austin; Oct 27 at Northwestern State; Nov 3 vs. Nicholls; Nov 10 at Lamar; Nov 17 vs. Sam Houston, so those games are not listed.
2017 Houston Christian 1 game, 199 passing yards
| Date | Opponent | Result | Cmp | Att | Yds | TD | Int | Rush |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sep 2 | at | L 11–20 | 21 | 34 | 199 | 0 | 0 | −38 |
No box score in the source for Sep 8 at Texas Southern; Sep 16 at Abilene Christian; Sep 23 at McNeese; Oct 7 vs. Central Arkansas; Oct 14 vs. SE Louisiana; Oct 21 at Stephen F. Austin; Oct 28 vs. Northwestern State; Nov 4 at Nicholls; Nov 11 vs. Lamar; Nov 18 at Sam Houston, so those games are not listed.
Box scores from CollegeFootballData, 2004 on. ✦ postseason; ★ a career high on file.
Before the draft
Played in the 2022 Senior Bowl (American team, lost 10–20).
| Drill | Combine 2022 |
|---|---|
| Height | 6′0½″ |
| Weight | 215 lb |
| Arm length | 31⅜″ |
| Hand size | 9¾″ |
| Wingspan | 74¾″W |
| 40-yard dash | 4.88 s |
| 10-yard split | 1.67 sW |
| Vertical jump | 30″ |
| Broad jump | 9′1″ |
| 3-cone drill | 7.19 s |
| 20-yard shuttle | 4.40 s |
Unmarked: Combine and pro day results compiled by array-carpenter (nfl-draft-data); W: Pre-draft measurables: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA). Rosters and honors: Wikipedia (CC BY-SA).
In the NFL
3 seasons, 15 games with a stat; latest team: New York Jets.
| Season | Team | G | Cmp | Att | Yds | TD | Int | Rush |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | New England Patriots | 4 | 65 | 92 | 781 | 5 | 3 | 0 |
| 2023 | New England Patriots | 10 | 127 | 212 | 1,272 | 6 | 9 | 83 |
| 2024 | Cleveland Browns | 1 | 16 | 31 | 170 | 1 | 2 | 2 |
| NFL career | 15 | 208 | 335 | 2,223 | 12 | 14 | 85 | |
Regular seasons, from nflverse (CC BY 4.0). G counts games in which the player recorded a stat.
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