Jarrett James Guarantano (born November 14, 1997) is an American professional

football Football is a family of team sports that involve, to varying degrees, kick (football), kicking a football (ball), ball to score a goal (sports), goal. Unqualified, football (word), the word ''football'' generally means the form of football t ...

quarterback The quarterback (QB) is a position in gridiron football who are members of the offensive side of the ball and mostly line up directly behind the Lineman (football), offensive line. In modern American football, the quarterback is usually consider ...

for the San Antonio Brahmas of the United Football League (UFL). He played

college football College football is gridiron football that is played by teams of amateur Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. It was through collegiate competition that gridiron football American football in the United States, firs ...

for the

Tennessee Volunteers The Tennessee Volunteers and Lady Volunteers are the 20 male and female varsity intercollegiate athletics programs that represent the University of Tennessee in Knoxville, Tennessee. The Volunteers compete in Division I of the National Colleg ...

and

Washington State Cougars The Washington State Cougars (known informally as the Cougs) are the sport, athletic teams that represent Washington State University. Located in Pullman, Washington, WSU is a member of the Pac-12 Conference in NCAA Division I. The athletic pr ...

Early life

Guarantano grew up

Lodi, New Jersey Lodi (; ) is a Borough (New Jersey), borough in Bergen County, New Jersey, United States. As of the 2020 United States census, the borough's population was 26,207, an increase of 2,070 (+8.6%) from the 2010 United States census, 2010 census coun ...

, and attended Bergen Catholic where he played football. His father James Guarantano was a

wide receiver A wide receiver (WR), also referred to as a wideout, and historically known as a split end (SE) or flanker (FL), is an eligible receiver in gridiron football. A key skill position of the offense (American football), offense, WR gets its name ...

Rutgers Rutgers University ( ), officially Rutgers, The State University of New Jersey, is a public land-grant research university consisting of three campuses in New Jersey. Chartered in 1766, Rutgers was originally called Queen's College and was aff ...

from 1989 to 1992 and joined later the Rutgers Hall of Fame and later played in the NFL and CFL. Guarantano threw for 3,028 yards and 28 touchdowns and rushed for 523 yards and 12 touchdowns in his prep career. He earned All-Bergen County First-team honors and was a 2016 Under Armour All-America. He was a four-star recruit coming out of high school and top 4 dual-threat quarterback in the nation. He committed to

Tennessee Tennessee (, ), officially the State of Tennessee, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Kentucky to the north, Virginia to the northeast, North Carolina t ...

over more than 40 scholarship offers from other programs.

College career

Tennessee

2016 season

In his first season, Guarantano took a redshirt year to learn from senior Joshua Dobbs in 2016.

2017 season

Guarantano started the 2017 season as the backup to Quinten Dormady. In the early part of the season, he appeared in relief roles. He threw his first collegiate touchdown to Jeff George in Tennessee's 42–7 victory over Indiana State in the second game. Following a 41–0 loss to

Georgia Georgia most commonly refers to: * Georgia (country), a country in the South Caucasus * Georgia (U.S. state), a state in the southeastern United States Georgia may also refer to: People and fictional characters * Georgia (name), a list of pe ...

, which was Tennessee's worst home loss since 1905, Guarantano was named the starter for the next game against

South Carolina South Carolina ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders North Carolina to the north and northeast, the Atlantic Ocean to the southeast, and Georgia (U.S. state), Georg ...

. The remainder of the season was a struggle for the Volunteers program with only one victory over Southern Miss. Tennessee finished 4–8. The program lost eight games for the time in program history to go along with a winless record in conference play. Tennessee's performance in the 2017 season resulted in the firing of head coach Butch Jones. He finished his second year with 997 passing yards and four touchdowns with a completion percentage of 62.0 when starting in six games and appeared in nine contests.

2018 season

Guarantano remained the starter going into the 2018 season under new head coach Jeremy Pruitt. After a 2–3 start, Guarantano played his most complete game in 30–24 upset victory at #21 Auburn. He passed for 328 yards and two touchdowns against the Tigers. Tennessee had two shots at bowl eligibility late in the 2018 season but dropped both games against

Missouri Missouri (''see #Etymology and pronunciation, pronunciation'') is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Ranking List of U.S. states and territories by area, 21st in land area, it border ...

and Vanderbilt to finish 5–7. As a sophomore he started all 12 games and passed for 1,907 yards and 12 touchdowns with three interceptions (the lowest since Condredge Holloway in 1972). He broke the school record for consecutive pass attempts without an interception by tossing 166 straight passes without a pick, breaking the old mark of 143 set by Casey Clausen in 2003.

2019 season

The 2019 season started disastrous for the Tennessee Volunteers. Tennessee dropped the season opener to Georgia State 38–30. The loss marked the first for Tennessee to a Group of 5 school since 2008. Guarantano passed for 311 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception in the loss. In the following game, he passed for 176 yards, two touchdowns, and one interception in a 29–26 2OT home loss to BYU. The Vols started 0–2 for the first time since 1988. Tennessee dropped two of their next three games, losses to top-ten teams

Florida Florida ( ; ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders the Gulf of Mexico to the west, Alabama to the northwest, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the north, the Atlantic ...

and

, to drop to 1–4. Guarantano was benched prior to the Georgia game for Brian Maurer. In the following game, against

Mississippi State Mississippi State University for Agriculture and Applied Science, commonly known as Mississippi State University (MSU), is a public land-grant research university in Mississippi State, Mississippi, United States. It is classified among "R ...

, Maurer was injured and Guarantano came into the game in relief. He threw a late touchdown to Tyler Byrd to give the Volunteers a 10-point lead in the fourth quarter to help clinch the 20–10 victory. In the following game at #1

Alabama Alabama ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern and Deep South, Deep Southern regions of the United States. It borders Tennessee to the north, Georgia (U.S. state), Georgia to the east, Florida and the Gu ...

, Tennessee had driven to the Alabama goalline trailing 28–13 in the fourth quarter. Guarantano went against the play call and tried a quarterback sneak and fumbled resulting in a Trevon Diggs 100-yard fumble return for a touchdown. In the next game, he bounced back with a solid 229-yard, two-touchdown game against

in a 41–21 victory. He broke his non-throwing wrist against South Carolina but never missed a game. Following victories over

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and

Kentucky Kentucky (, ), officially the Commonwealth of Kentucky, is a landlocked U.S. state, state in the Southeastern United States, Southeastern region of the United States. It borders Illinois, Indiana, and Ohio to the north, West Virginia to the ...

, Guarantano passed for 415 yards and two touchdowns in a 24–20 victory over

to clinch bowl eligibility for Tennessee. Following a victory over Vanderbilt, Tennessee finished with a 7–5 record and earned an appearance in the Gator Bowl against

Indiana Indiana ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. It borders Lake Michigan to the northwest, Michigan to the north and northeast, Ohio to the east, the Ohio River and Kentucky to the s ...

. Guarantano passed for 221 yards and two interceptions as Tennessee won 23–22 in a comeback victory. As a junior, he threw for 2,158 yards and 16 touchdowns while starting seven games and playing in all 13. Tennessee's momentum helped earn them a preseason #25 ranking for the 2020 season.

2020 season

Tennessee moved up to a #16 ranking before their 2020 regular season opener. Guarantano was named the starter for the opener against

. Guarantano helped lead Tennessee to a 2–0 start before a 44–21 loss to #3

Georgia Bulldogs The Georgia Bulldogs are the College athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent the University of Georgia. The Bulldogs compete in NCAA Division I and are members of the Southeastern Conference (SEC). The offic ...

sent the season spiraling. The following game against #23

saw Guarantano throw consecutive pick-sixes to set the tone of the 34–7 defeat. The 27-point loss marked the worst defeat in the series for Tennessee since Kentucky won 27–0 in 1935. The next three games saw Guarantano injured and eventually benched for the rest of the season. Guarantano threw for 1,112 yards and six touchdowns with four interceptions in seven games during the 2020 season that was cut short due to the

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Washington State

2021 season

Guarantano transferred for the 2021 season to

Washington State Washington, officially the State of Washington, is a state in the Pacific Northwest region of the United States. It is often referred to as Washington State to distinguish it from the national capital, both named after George Washington ...

as a graduate transfer where, due to a knee injury, he only appeared in two games with the Cougars, throwing for 304 yards and one touchdown. He was named to the Golden Arm Award watch list in August 2021. He completed his bachelor's degree in psychology in December 2019 and a master's in Agriculture.

Statistics

Professional career

Arizona Cardinals

After going undrafted in the 2022 NFL draft, he signed after a rookie minicamp as an UDFA-contract with the

Arizona Cardinals The Arizona Cardinals are a professional American football team based in the Phoenix metropolitan area. The Cardinals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the National Football Conference (NFC) NFC West, West division. The ...

. He played his first game for Arizona in the first preseason game against the

Cincinnati Bengals The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC North, North division. The team plays its h ...

. He played in every game of the preseason but was cut on August 30, 2022. He was re-signed to the practice squad on September 7. He was released on October 4.

Denver Broncos

At the end of November he had a tryout with the

Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver. The Broncos compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member of the American Football Conference (AFC) AFC West, West division. The team is headquartered in E ...

but failed to get signed. On December 5, 2022, Guarantano was signed to the Broncos' practice squad. He was promoted to the active roster on December 20. On July 25, 2023, Guarantano was waived.

Houston Roughnecks

Guarantano signed with the Houston Gamblers of the USFL on December 22, 2023. Guarantano and all other Houston Gamblers players and coaches were all transferred to the Houston Roughnecks after it was announced that the Gamblers took on the identity of their XFL counterpart, the Roughnecks.

San Antonio Brahmas

On January 30, 2025, Guarantano signed with the San Antonio Brahmas of the United Football League (UFL).

UFL career statistics

References

External links

Tennessee Volunteers bio

Washington State Cougars bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Guarantano, Jarrett 1997 births Living people Arizona Cardinals players Bergen Catholic High School alumni People from Lodi, New Jersey American football quarterbacks Tennessee Volunteers football players Washington State Cougars football players Players of American football from Bergen County, New Jersey Denver Broncos players Houston Gamblers (2022) players Houston Roughnecks (2024) players San Antonio Brahmas players