SoCalPatrick
Member
I move on to the SEC as I continue my Mount Rushmore of college football since 1980 and have to start alphabetically with Alabama. Ugh.
DE/LB Derrick Thomas — Many people have forgotten just how unstoppable Derrick Thomas was. The best collegiate pass rusher since Lawrence Taylor, Thomas racked up a then-record 52 sacks in his career, including 27 in his Butkus Award-winning season of 1988. A unanimous All-American and college football Hall of Famer, Thomas was one of the most intimidating players to ever suit up.
WR DeVonta Smith
— Smith burst on to the scene as a freshman, hauling in one of the most iconic touchdown passes in history to win the national title against Georgia, and got progressively better after that. His 2020 season was among the best ever for a collegiate receiver - 117 catches for 1,856 yards and 23 touchdowns to become the first wide receiver to win the Heisman Trophy since Desmond Howard in 1991. He graduated with the most catches, yards and touchdowns in school history.
RB Derrick Henry
— One of the most storied high school recruits of all-time as the nation's leading rusher in history (with a whopping 12,124 yards and 153 touchdowns at Yulee HS in Florida), Henry's 2015 season is on par with the best of all-time for a running back. On his way to winning the Heisman Trophy, he ran for 2,219 yards (sixth-most in history), and 28 touchdowns for a national champion Crimson Tide team.
LB Cornelius Bennett — Just how good was Bennett? He was a three-time consensus first-team All-American, SEC Player of the Year, and Lombardi Award winner. In his four seasons, he tallied 287 tackles and 21.5 sacks, teaming up with Derrick Thomas and Wayne Davis to make one of the most formidable linebacking units in the history of the sport.
DE/LB Derrick Thomas — Many people have forgotten just how unstoppable Derrick Thomas was. The best collegiate pass rusher since Lawrence Taylor, Thomas racked up a then-record 52 sacks in his career, including 27 in his Butkus Award-winning season of 1988. A unanimous All-American and college football Hall of Famer, Thomas was one of the most intimidating players to ever suit up.
WR DeVonta Smith
— Smith burst on to the scene as a freshman, hauling in one of the most iconic touchdown passes in history to win the national title against Georgia, and got progressively better after that. His 2020 season was among the best ever for a collegiate receiver - 117 catches for 1,856 yards and 23 touchdowns to become the first wide receiver to win the Heisman Trophy since Desmond Howard in 1991. He graduated with the most catches, yards and touchdowns in school history.
RB Derrick Henry
— One of the most storied high school recruits of all-time as the nation's leading rusher in history (with a whopping 12,124 yards and 153 touchdowns at Yulee HS in Florida), Henry's 2015 season is on par with the best of all-time for a running back. On his way to winning the Heisman Trophy, he ran for 2,219 yards (sixth-most in history), and 28 touchdowns for a national champion Crimson Tide team.
LB Cornelius Bennett — Just how good was Bennett? He was a three-time consensus first-team All-American, SEC Player of the Year, and Lombardi Award winner. In his four seasons, he tallied 287 tackles and 21.5 sacks, teaming up with Derrick Thomas and Wayne Davis to make one of the most formidable linebacking units in the history of the sport.
