Elvis Grbac

Elvis M. Grbac (born August 13, 1970) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL) for nine seasons, most notably with the Kansas City Chiefs. He played college football for the Michigan Wolverines, winning the Sammy Baugh Trophy in 1992. Grbac was selected in the eighth round of the 1993 NFL draft by the San Francisco 49ers, where he spent his first four seasons as a backup. Grbac played his next four seasons as the Chiefs' starter.

With the Chiefs, Grbac would help lead the team to two playoff berths and one division title, along with earning Pro Bowl honors in 2000. His tenure would also be known for a quarterback controversy with Rich Gannon during the 1997 season, which drew retrospective criticism due to Gannon having greater success on the rival Oakland Raiders. Grbac played his final season for the Baltimore Ravens. After retiring, he became the athletic director at Villa Angela-St. Joseph High School, the high school he attended.

Grbac was born in Cleveland, Ohio to Ivan and Cecilija Grbac His father was born in Lanišće, near Buzet, Istria, Croatia (at the time part of Yugoslavia), and his mother was also from Istria. His parents left Croatia in 1967. Grbac has one brother, Engelbert, and two sisters, Maria and Barbara.

Grbac attended St. Joseph High School, where he played basketball and football. One of his high-school teammates was future Heisman Trophy winner Desmond Howard.

Although Grbac initially wished to continue his football career at Ohio State, he changed his mind when the Buckeyes fired head coach Earle Bruce and opted instead to join Howard at the University of Michigan, where he played college football from 1989 to 1992. He led the Wolverines to a Gator Bowl in 1991, three Rose Bowls in 1990, 1992 and 1993 and is best remembered for playing with wide receiver Desmond Howard during Howard's Heisman-winning season in 1991. In 1991 Grbac's pass to Howard sealed a 24–14 victory over Notre Dame. In the game Grbac completed 20-of-22 passes, a record for a Notre Dame opponent. He finished his career at Michigan as the school's all-time leader in passing attempts (835), completions (522), passing yards (6,460) and passing touchdowns (71). These records were later broken by John Navarre in 2003 and surpassed by Chad Henne in 2006–2007. In 1992, he won the Sammy Baugh Trophy.

Grbac also established the Big Ten Conference career passing efficiency record that would stand for six seasons until it was surpassed by Joe Germaine. Grbac was a two-time National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) passing efficiency champion during his last two seasons. He was a three-time Big Ten champion in this statistic.

Grbac was selected in the eighth round (219th overall) of the 1993 NFL draft by the San Francisco 49ers, where he served as Steve Young's backup from 1994 to 1996.

Grbac had an injury and was taken in and out of the lineup by coach George Seifert; Grbac played in 11 games in his rookie season only throwing for two touchdown passes in games against the Minnesota Vikings and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers; he threw one interception. During his rookie season he posted a QB rating of 98.2, with two touchdowns, and completing 35-of-55 pass attempts. He appeared in a total of sixteen games with the 49ers, five of them as the starting quarterback. In Week 11, he led the 49ers to an upset victory over the eventual Super Bowl champion Dallas Cowboys, 38–20, throwing for two touchdowns and running for a third. Grbac ended the season with a QB rating of 96.6, 183 passes attempted and 127 completed, eight passing touchdowns and two rushing, for a total of 1,469 yards gained. During the 1996 season, he played a total of 15 regular season games, four as a starter, passing for 10 touchdowns and rushing for two, with a total of 122 passes completed and 1,236 yards gained. In 1997, he signed a contract with the Kansas City Chiefs becoming their quarterback.