Matt Ryan takes the field for Atlanta, making his NFL debut. 1st and 10 for the Falcons at their own 37. He takes the snap, drops back, throws downfield. He has Michael Jenkins behind the defense. He’s at the the 30, the 20, the 10, the 5, Touchdown! Matt Ryan throws a 63-yard touchdown on his first NFL play.

Ryan, at 24 years old, is among the elite quarterbacks in the game, and with only 18 regular season games under his belt, only God knows what he will become.

Ryan was born May 17, 1985 in Exton, Pennsylvania. He attended William Penn Charter School where, in his senior year, he was named captain of the football, baseball, and basketball teams. Along with quarterback, he spent the spring playing shortstop and pitching and the winter playing small forward.

He was offered a scholarship to Boston College and started school in 2004, where he won the Freshman Scholar-Athlete Award. Ryan spent his freshmen year as a backup, but Coach Tom O’Brian finally put him in for good during the 4th quarter of BC’s 2005 game against North Carolina. In five starts that year Ryan had over 1500 yards, 8 touchdowns, and another five rushing TDs. Over the final two years of his college career, Ryan threw for 7,446 yards and 46 touchdowns, plus 6 rushing. He had an unbelievable senior year with 4,507 yards, 31 TDs, and a 127.0 passer rating. They went 11-3 that year including a win in the Citrus Bowl against Michigan State. Ryan threw for 249 yards and 3 TDs to win 24-21. That was December 28, 2007.

On April 26, 2008, with the third pick in the NFL draft, the Atlanta Falcons selected Matt Ryan out of Boston College as a desperate organization looking for a ray of hope, and Ryan delivered. He completed 61% of his passes and finished the year with an 87.7 passer rating. On December 31, Ryan was named Associated Press NFL Rookie of the Year. He finished the season 3,440 yards and 17 touchdowns (1 rushing). He led the Falcons to an 11-5 record and an improbable playoff birth. He was also elected to the Pro-Bowl as an alternate.