Portal:Montana/Selected biography/3

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Ryan David Leaf (born May 15, 1976) is a former American football quarterback who played for the San Diego Chargers, Tampa Bay Buccaneers, Dallas Cowboys and Seattle Seahawks between 1998 and 2002. As of 2007, he is the quarterback coach and golf head coach for West Texas A&M University. His brother Brady is a quarterback for the University of Oregon Ducks.

Leaf had a successful college career at Washington State University, where he was a finalist for the Heisman Trophy his junior year. He was selected as the second overall pick in the 1998 NFL Draft, after which many scouts predicted that Leaf would have a successful career in the league. However, despite his athleticism, his time as a professional was short and marked by injuries, poor media relations, and failure.

Leaf was born in Great Falls, Montana, and led C. M. Russell High School to the 1992 Montana state title. After high school, Leaf played college football at Washington State University, playing in 32 games for the Cougars and starting 24 of them. He averaged 330.6 yards passing per game in his junior year and threw for a then-Pac-10 conference record 33 touchdowns. He also helped the Cougars defeat the University of Washington Huskies, 41-35, for the first time since 1994. Leaf ended the school's 67-year Rose Bowl drought and helped bring the Cougars their first Pac-10 championship in school history. Despite a strong early showing by Leaf in the Rose Bowl, the Cougars were defeated 21-16 by eventual co-national champion Michigan Wolverines.