He played college football for the Texas Longhorns, winning several awards and honors as a senior in 2009 and ranking second all-time in games won by an FBS quarterback.

[2][3] McCoy was selected by the Cleveland Browns in the third round of the 2010 NFL draft and was also a member of the San Francisco 49ers, Washington Redskins, New York Giants, and Arizona Cardinals, primarily being used as a backup.

He achieved several distinctions as a high school player, including two-time Associated Press 2A Offensive MVP and First-team All-state selection.

[7] McCoy was also Jim Ned High School's punter as a junior and senior,[8] and played free safety during his sophomore year.

[18][19] The previous record of five touchdown passes had been held by James Brown (set vs. Baylor in 1994) and Chris Simms (vs. Oklahoma State in 2001).

[30] Replays showed both on television and in the stadium revealed the hit might have included "helmet-to-helmet"[31] contact which is illegal in NCAA football only if done intentionally, but no flag was thrown.

[32] When the replay was shown in the stadium, the Longhorn fans erupted in boos[33] before lapsing back into silence as McCoy lay on the ground writhing for ten minutes before being taken off the field on a cart.

[35] McCoy was taken to University Medical Center Brackenridge where he spent more than three hours undergoing an evaluation that included an X-ray, MRI, and a CAT scan.

On December 1, 2006, the Longhorns issued a statement confirming that back-up quarterback Jevan Snead had left the team and would transfer to an unspecified school.

[43] After just one season with Texas, McCoy received a lot of media attention, including appearing on some lists of the nation's top players of 2007.

[70][71] Lined up in the spread offense on the first play from scrimmage,[72] Colt McCoy scrambled away from a blitz and threw a pass to Jordan Shipley for a 58-yard touchdown.

[73] The offensive line provided great protection for Colt McCoy,[71] who called most of the plays without huddling and directed the Longhorns to touchdowns on his first five series.

[83] He finished the 2008 regular season with a 76.7% completion percentage, breaking the mark set by Daunte Culpepper for Central Florida, and was the Longhorns' leading rusher with 576 yards and 11 rushing touchdowns.

[119] The Associated Press story commented, "McCoy likely refueled his Heisman Trophy bid by completing 26 of 37 passes for his fourth 300-yard game this season, and eighth of his career, even without playing the final 12 minutes.

Gilmore said, "I love his numbers (78 percent completion percentage, 28 touchdowns, only 7 interceptions and 2,879 yards) and his gutsy second-half performance against Texas Tech.

[122] After McCoy led the Longhorns to a victory over rival, unranked Texas A&M (a team he had lost to twice in the past), Sports Illustrated analyst Stewart Mandel said the quarterback took a big step towards claiming the Heisman Trophy.

[123] In the final 2008 Rocky Mountain News poll before the Heisman votes were announced, McCoy moved to the top of the list, but had a very thin lead over Sam Bradford and Tim Tebow, who were in second and third place, respectively.

Despite this, he still had an outstanding season and was again named a finalist, this time along with Tim Tebow, Mark Ingram, Jr, Toby Gerhart and Ndamukong Suh.

"[128] After a 49–9 victory over Texas A&M on November 27, 2008, McCoy said that he still intended to come back for his senior year, but that it would be "foolish" for him not to ask the NFL to evaluate his draft prospects.

Frank Cooney of USA Today noted that McCoy "fired mostly from a shotgun, has a low release point and might lack an NFL fastball."

[135] The Browns previously traded linebacker Kamerion Wimbley to the Oakland Raiders in order to acquire the pick used to select McCoy.

[136] One reporter commented that McCoy was drafted later than expected because "he lacks NFL size..., has small hands and was injured in the last game of his career at Texas.

[149] The next two weeks, the Browns defeated the Indianapolis Colts and the Miami Dolphins with McCoy throwing combined 41 of 71 attempts, 421 yards, and three touchdowns with one interception.

[164][165] In his first start since 2011, McCoy completed 25 of 30 passes for 300 yards with a rushing touchdown and an interception, earning an overtime victory against the Cowboys, his favorite team growing up.

[167] McCoy was placed on injured reserve on December 16 due to a neck injury he suffered in a shutout loss to the St. Louis Rams.

[175] In Week 13 against the Philadelphia Eagles, McCoy left the game in the second quarter with a leg injury during a sack by Malcolm Jenkins.

[181] McCoy made his first appearance for the Giants in Week 12 against the Cincinnati Bengals after starter Daniel Jones left the game in the third quarter with a hamstring injury.

He was only able to play four drives during their last preseason game and coach Jonathan Gannon cited his overall body of work and production as to why McCoy was released.

[196] He was frequently cited in the media as an option when other quarterbacks were injured, and even had a workout with the Minnesota Vikings a couple of months after being cut, but he was not signed during the 2023-24 NFL season.

[7] On January 12, 2010, McCoy became engaged to his girlfriend, Rachel Glandorf, a former middle-distance track and field athlete for Baylor University,[207] by proposing on the video scoreboard at Darrell K Royal-Texas Memorial Stadium in Austin.