The Noodles at Cal (Wonderlic Scores)

Posted by: Danzig on Tuesday, May 6th, 2008

(This is 90% Danzig, with some great data; my small contribution is the Analysis section after the scores and before the sources)

I was catching up on my RSS feed yesterday and I came across a report that Mario Manningham of Michigan scored a ‘6’ on his Wonderlic IQ test. A fricking ‘6’?? I thought he went to the second best public university in the nation?? Jesus, even Chris Leak squeezed out an got an ‘8’… and he only went to Florida. I swear I’d give a $1,000 if I could find out what our own President would get on the test.


“You’re kidding!… You got an ‘8’ too??”

Which got me thinking, what kind of Wonderlic scores did the BEST public university in the nation produce?

As a background, the Wonderlic is an IQ test where you get 12 minutes to answer 50 multiple choice questions. A score of ’20’ is judged as ‘average intelligence’ while a score of ’10’ indicates literacy issues. Statistically, you can score a ‘5’ or ‘6’ just by guessing randomly. You are allowed one retest and can accept the higher of the two. Retest scores are usually higher, but many actually score lower. Here are some NFL averages:

* Offensive tackle – 26
 * Center – 25
* Quarterback – 24
* Guard – 23
* Tight end – 22
* Safety – 19
* Linebacker – 19
* Cornerback – 18
* Wide receiver – 17
* Fullback – 17
* Runningback – 16

So how about our Bears versus the best public universities in the nation? Excuse me for being surprised, but we stack up pretty well. When I average the top 5 recorded scores for each of the schools, Cal comes out on top. (NOTE: You can’t average all the players for each school because some schools send more kids to the NFL than others).

University of California, Berkeley (38.2, avg of top 5, 36.4 without ML)
42 – Marshawn Lynch* (14 on first try)
39 – Aaron Merz
39 – Aaron Rogers
36 – Thomas Decoud
35 – Justin Forsett
33 – Ryan Riddle
31 – Dante Hughes
30 – Mark Wilson
29 – Lorenzo Alexander
27 – Kyle Boller
26 – Chase Lyman
25 – Tim Mixon (18 on first try)
23 – Lavelle Hawkins
15 – Deltha O’Neal
14 – JJ Arrington
12 – Geoff Mcarthur
10 – Brandon Mebane

*I can’t find a second source for ML’s ’42’, but doesn’t change the school order either way. Note large jumps in score are common during retests. (wait, is it racist that I’m even questioning this?)

(Note from Avinash: Well, Deltha O’Neal panned out well. So did Marshawn. Are Rodgers, Decoud and Forsett going to hold up their side of the curve?)

More Wonderlic scores from other big schools after the jump.

University of Michigan (35.6, avg of top 5)
42 – Drew Henson
39 – Brian Griese
37 – David Baas
33 – Tom Brady
27 – Braylon Edwards
24 – Markus Curry
24 – John Navarre
22 – Chad Henne
21 – Kevin Dudley
21 – Marlin Jackson
20 – Scott Dreisbach
16 – Ernest Shazor
16 – Elvis Grbac
6 – Mario Manningham

University of Virgina (33.4, avg of top 5)
39 – Heath Miller
36 – Patrick Estes
34 – Chris Canty
30 – Matt Schaub
28 – Brandon Albert
26 – Albert Perlman
25 – Elton Brown (13 on retest, some test lower on second try)
20 – Marquis Weeks
17 – Aaron Brooks
16 – Darryl Blackstock

University of California, Los Angeles (28.4, avg of top 5)
30 – Cory Paus
29 – Troy Aikman
28 – Cade McNown
28 – Rodney Leisle
27 – Craig Bragg
25 – Manuel White Jr
25 – Dave Ball
24 – Brandon Chillar
22 – Matt Ware
20 – Tab Perry
19 – Ben Emanuel II
13 – Marcedes Lewis

Just for fun, what about them Farm boys?

Stanford University (34.2, avg of top 5, median of 30.0 – highest among schools)
39 – Todd Husak
37 – Brandon Harrison
34 – Trent Edwards
31 – Stanley Wilson
30 – John Elway
30 – Jared Newberry
30 – OJ Atogwe
30 – Kwame Harris
27 – Will Svitek
27 – Eric Heitmann
25 – Randy Fasani

What about Tedford’s Kids?

Past Tedford 1st Round Proteges (29.6, avg of top 5)
39 – Aaron Rogers
32 – Joey Harrington
27 – Kyle Boller
26 – Akili Smith
24 – David Carr
22 – Trent Dilfer

Think you got a pretty good noodle in your head? Take a partial Wonderlic test here… I dare you!:
http://www.efplfp.stealingisgood.com/wpt.html

Score key:
9 correct=50 4 correct=22
8 correct=44 3 correct=17
7 correct=39 2 correct=11
6 correct=33 1 correct=6
5 correct=28 0 correct=0

My first go was a ’39’…

===========
Other Wonderlic Scores

Harvard University (whoa!)
50 – Pat McInally
50 – Ryan Fitzpatrick (37 on first try)
46 – Matt Birk

Recent 2008 picks
32 – Brian Brohm
32 – Matt Ryan (28 on first try)
29 – Dennis Dixon
27 – Joe Flacco
26 – Jake Long
22 – Chad Henne
14 – John David Booty
14 – Andre Woodson

Other Pro QBs (bolded QBs shows they’ve won a ring)
42 – Drew Henson
40 – Alex Smith
39 – Aaron Rogers
39 – Eli Manning
39 – Brian Griese
38 – Charlie Frye
37 – Tony Romo
36 – Drew Bledsoe* (*won a Super Bowl, but as a backup)
35 – Matt Leinart
35 – Kellen Clemens
33 – Tom Brady
33 – Steve Young
32 – Joey Harrington
32 – Patrick Ramsey
32 – Sage Rosenfels
31 – J.P. Losman
31 – Matt Schaub
30 – Phillip Rivers
29 – Brady Quinn
29 – Rex Grossman
29 – Marc Bulger
29 – Matt Hasselbeck
29 – Troy Aikman
29 – John Elway
28 – Drew Brees
28 – Peyton Manning
27 – Kyle Boller
27 – Ryan Leaf
26 – Jay Cutler
26 – Kyle Orton
26 – Carson Palmer
26 – Akili Smith
25 – Ben Roethlisberger
25 – Byron Leftwich
25 – Chad Pennington
24 – JaMarcus Russell
24 – David Carr
23 – Jason Campbell
22 – Tim Couch
22 – Trent Dilfer
22 – Brett Favre
20 – Michael Vick
19 – Tarvaris Jackson
19 – Bruce Gradkowski
19 – Derek Anderson
19 – A.J. Feeley
18 – Daunte Culpepper
17 – Aaron Brooks
17 – Vinny Testeverde
16 – Vince Young (6 on first try)
15 – Steve McNair
15 – Randall Cunningham
15 – Dan Marino
15 – Terry Bradshaw
14 – David Garrard
14 – Donovan McNabb
11 – Marcus Vick
10 – Jeff George
8 – Chris Leak

Analysis: The Wonderlic looks about as useful as any other standardized test in determining professional success. No doubt that there are great success stories (Lynch with a 14 breaking out in Buffalo, McNabb and Gerrard with 14s and are still regularly employed, Bradshaw has 4 rings instead of a perfect Wonderlic), but quarterbacks who succeed on the professional level can range up to scoring close to perfect.

The moral? A quick reaction test of basic logic skills shows little. It just means your mind can react quickly, not your body (just like physical drills and mini-camps show what you’re capable of physically, not mentally). Only during the actual game can one truly see the combination of body and mind at work, which is why all this Wonderlic sweating has only minimal impact. You learn a lot more watching gametape.

(Oh, and first try for your site leader, 50 for 50. I am a genius. Can someone give me a helmet and pads so I can get pounded into the turf by 250 pound men?)

Main Sources are below:
http://potencial.wordpress.com/2008/03/23/2008-wonderlic-scores/
http://stripehype.com/2008/03/25/wonderlic-test-scores-for-the-upcoming-draft/
http://www.sportsline.com/nfl/draft/drafttracker
http://msn.foxsports.com/nfl/draft/prospect?contentId=8021826&year=2008
http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFLDraft/Draft+Insider/2005/Wonderlic.htm
http://www.armchairassociation.com/2008/04/wonderlic-me.html
http://bleacherreport.com/articles/19719-The-annual-Drama-that-is-the-NFL-Wonderlic-IQ-test–250408
http://www.usatoday.com/sports/football/2005draft/Estes,Patrick-TE%2BOT-Virginia.htm
http://www.philaphans.com/forums/showthread.php?t=68371&page=2

http://www.profootballweekly.com/PFW/NFLDraft/Draft+Insider/2005/Wonderlic.htm



Topics: Analysis, Bay Area, Cal Football, Draft, History, NFL, Stanford, UCLA

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