December 3, 2012 at 2:27 PM

Matt McGloin has won the 2012 Burlsworth Trophy, an honor given to the country's best player who started his career as a walk-on.

McGloin flourished in coach Bill O'Brien's offense, as he threw for 3,266 yards, 24 touchdowns, only five interceptions and had a completion percentage of 60.5 percent this season. The Scranton product beat out Michigan safety Jordan Kovacs and San Jose State offensive lineman Daivd Quessenberry for the award, which was handed out in Springdale, Ark. on Monday afternoon.

But McGloin's time in Happy Valley hasn't come without some bumps along the way.

He started in Happy Valley four years ago without a scholarship, but worked his way up the depth chart. After a season and a half of quarterback controversy and sharing time with others under center, McGloin won the job this spring and led the Nittany Lions to an 8-4 record.

The award is named for the late Brandon Burlsworth, who became an All-American lineman at Arkansas after walking onto the team. This is the third year the honor has been bestowed, and McGloin joins Georgia Tech's Sean Bedford and Austin Davis from Southern Mississippi as winners of the trophy.