A . J . McCarron Raymond Anthony " AJ " McCarron , Jr . ( born September 13 , 1990 ) is an American football quarterback for the University of Alabama Crimson Tide . Following the 2013 BCS National Championship Game against historic rival Notre Dame , A . J became the first quarterback to win back - to - back consensus national championships in the BCS era . A . J is one of only seven quarterbacks in history to win back - to - back titles in some form and the first quarterback to win back - to - back consensus titles since Nebraska ' s Tommie Frazier in 1994 and 1995 . In addition , A . J has been associated , since his freshman year ( in which he took a redshirt ) , with three national title teams 2009 , 2011 , and 2012 under coach Nick Saban . Early years . While attending St . Paul ' s Episcopal School in Mobile , Alabama , McCarron was recruited by several football programs in the Southeastern Conference , including Alabama , Auburn , Mississippi , and Tennessee . He committed to the Crimson Tide on May 3 , 2008 , becoming the only quarterback signed by Alabama for their 2009 recruiting class . College career . In his first season at " The Capstone " , McCarron accepted a redshirt and did not play during the season as the team went 14 – 0 to capture the 2009 National Championship . During his redshirt freshman year , he did see some playing time , appearing in eight games as the Tide finished 10 – 3 . His first collegiate touchdown pass came during the season opener when he connected with wide receiver Julio Jones on a 29 - yard pass in the second quarter . He passed for a total of 389 yards and three touchdowns during the season . Starting quarterback . After a tight competition for the starting quarterback position during spring practices , McCarron was named as the co - starting quarterback , alongside Phillip Sims for the team ' s 2011 season opener versus Kent State , and later became the " de facto " starter by starting in every game . In his first start in college , he passed for 226 yards and one touchdowns with two interceptions as Alabama won 48 – 7 . His first road start for Alabama came the following week , as the Tide traveled to State College , Pennsylvania . His performance of 163 yards with no turnovers helped Alabama defeat Penn State 27 – 11 , which came to be the last loss for legendary head coach Joe Paterno . Another solid performance , alongside running back Trent Richardson , helped him get a victory in his first SEC start , a 38 – 14 win versus No . 14 Arkansas . During the course of his sophomore season , McCarron led an 11 – 1 overall record during the regular season , including 7 – 1 record in conference . Alabama ' s only loss of the season came during a 6 – 9 overtime defeat at the hands of # 1 - ranked LSU . During the game , he completed 16 - of - 28 passes for 199 yards with one interception . By remaining unbeaten during the rest of the regular season , Alabama again met LSU at the Superdome for the national championship . His performance of 234 yards passing earned him Offensive Player of the Game in a 21 – 0 rout of the Tigers . During his first season as starting quarterback , he passed for a total of 2 , 634 yards with 16 touchdowns and five interceptions and a BCS National Championship . McCarron had a strong start in his second year as starting quarterback for Alabama as the Tide started off the season with a 9 – 0 record . In his first five games of the season , he passed for 999 yards and 12 touchdowns with zero interceptions . His good start to the season , including a comeback victory over LSU , had several media members put him as a dark horse candidate for the year ' s Heisman Trophy . His first interception , and Alabama ' s first loss , of the season came in the team ' s 10th game of the season . In their first year in the SEC , Texas A & M and eventual Heisman - winner Johnny Manziel came into Bryant – Denny Stadium and upset Alabama 29 – 24 . His second interception of the game seemingly sealed Alabama ' s loss , as he threw an interception on a fourth & goal pass with under two minutes remaining . Both he and Alabama rebounded to remain unbeaten during the rest of the regular season , which led them to the 2012 SEC Championship Game versus Georgia . With the help of running back Eddie Lacy , Alabama battled with the Bulldogs to win 32 – 28 and earn a shot to play for the 2013 BCS National Championship against No . 1 Notre Dame . On December 12 , 2012 , ahead of their game versus Notre Dame , McCarron announced that he would be coming back to Alabama for his senior season . On January 7 , 2013 , Alabama met Notre Dame for the 2013 BCS National Championship . The Fighting Irish were led by their defense and Heisman runner - up Manti Te ' o to an unbeaten 12 – 0 regular season record . However , their defense was overmatched as Alabama rolled 42 – 14 to capture their third BCS National Championship in four years behind McCarron ' s 264 yards and four touchdown passes , which allowed him to become the first quarterback to win back - to - back BCS titles . During his junior season , he threw for a school - record 30 touchdown passes in a season , as well as 49 touchdown passes over his career . He was named winner of the 2012 CFPA Quarterback Trophy on January 22 , 2013 .