Mike Hartline

Mike Hartline, born in 1988, is an American football player for the University of Kentucky Wildcats, where he was the starting quarterback.^[1].

High School

Hartline was born in suburban Canton, Ohio. Both he and his older brother Brian Hartline^[2], who is a wide receiver for the Miami Dolphins, were football stars at GlenOak High School in Canton.

While a sophomore at GlenOak High School, Mike became the starting quarterback for the team when his brother Brian moved from quarterback to wide receiver.^[2] Mike started at quarterback his last two years in high school, attracting the attention of college scouts. In addition to Kentucky, he also expressed an interest in Ohio State (where his brother played) and Wisconsin.

College

Mike Hartline signed with the Wildcats and redshirted in 2006. He saw limited action in 2007, backing up starting quarterback André Woodson. Hartline won the starting quarterback job in 2008 following Woodson's graduation, although later in the season he shared quarterback duties with freshman Randall Cobb. He stands 6 feet 6 inches tall and weighs 201 pounds.^[3]

On September 15, 2008, Hartline was chosen as the SEC Offensive Player of the Week. In Kentucky's game against Middle Tennessee State University on September 13, Hartline completed 28 of 47 passes for 254 yards with two touchdowns and no interceptions.^[4] On January 2, 2009, Hartline led the Wildcats to a victory over East Carolina in the Liberty Bowl, taking all snaps at quarterback due to an injury by Cobb, retaining his starting quarterback role for the Wildcats.

In the 2008 season, Hartline completed 172 of 311 passes for 1,666 yards. He threw nine touchdown passes versus eight interceptions, completed 55.3% of his pass attempts and had a quarterback rating of 104.7.^[5]

References