By TOM MCCLELLAN

ECU Athletic Media Relations

 

GREENVILLE — Former East Carolina quarterback Shane Carden, the Pirates’ all-time leading passer, has agreed to terms with the Chicago Bears on an undrafted free agent contract, according to a release by the National Football League organization late Sunday.

Carden, who was named the American Athletic Conference Offensive Player-of-the-Year in 2014, threw for a league and ECU single-season record 4,736 yards, completing 63.5 percent of his passes (392-of-617) with 30 touchdowns. He also added six ground scores and established a new program standard with 4,812 yards of total offense.

A Davey O’Brien Award and Earl Campbell Tyler Rose semifinalist, as well as a three-time league player-of-the-week selection last fall, Carden finished his stay at ECU as the school’s most prolific passer with ownership of program career standards in completions (1,052), attempts (1,579), TDs (86), passing yards (11,991), total offense (12,244) and total plays (1,850). He also set East Carolina single-game records for completions (46/Old Dominion), passing yards (480/Tulane) and TDs accounted for (7/Tulsa), while tying his own mark with five passing scores on three occasions (ODU, Tulsa, UAB).

He engineered a Pirate offense that racked up 500 or more total yards a combined 17 times in 37 starts dating back to 2012, including a school-record 789 in a 70-41 win over North Carolina on Sept. 20, 2014. He also authored a league-best six 400-yard passing efforts as a senior, which matched Washington State’s Connor Halliday as the national leader.

Carden, 23, is a Newport Beach, Calif. native who prepped at Episcopal High School in Houston, Texas.

Additional rookie free agent signing announcements involving former Pirates will be released once officially confirmed by their respective NFL teams.