Saturday, November 10, 2007

Top Ten All-Time College Football Players

ABC / ESPN / IBM have been counting down the Top 25 All-Time College Football players. They've listed numbers 25 through 11. Help me figure out who the top ten are. Here's who we have so far...

No. 11 Charles Woodson
No. 12 Earl Campbell
No. 13 Glenn Davis
No. 14 Hugh Green
No. 15 John Elway
No. 16 Tom Harmon
No. 17 Bronco Nagurski
No. 18 Jim Brown
No. 19 Dick Butkus
No. 20 Charley Trippi
No. 21 Archie Griffin
No. 22 George Gipp
No. 23 Johnny Rodgers
No. 24 Reggie Bush
No. 25 Ernie Nevers

This tells us they're not afraid to name defensive players or legendary figures. Here's some possibilities: Marcus Allen, Sammy Baugh, Brian Bosworth, Billy Cannon, Ron Dayne, Eric Dickerson, Marshall Faulk, Doug Flutie, Paul Hornung, Rocket Ismael, Bob Lilly, Peyton Manning, Joe Montana, Anthony Munoz, Joe Namath, Brian Piccolo, Jim Plunkett, Gale Sayers, Emmitt Smith, Roger Staubach, Lawrence Taylor, Andre Ware, Doug Williams. Probably one or two legends from Army, Navy, Notre Dame, Nebraska, or Oklahoma.

MY top ten:
10. Archie Manning: a huge hero.
9. Jerry Rice: small school, big numbers.
8. Deion Sanders: better than Woodson.
7. John Hannah: greatest lineman ever?
6. Red Grange: didn't he help put the game on the map?
5. Jim Thorpe: revolutionalized the game.
4. O.J.: greatest of the USC tailbacks.
3. Tony Dorsett: broke the all-time NCAA rushing record.
2. Barry Sanders: just as amazing at OK State as he was in the pros.
1. Herschel. Broke the NCAA rushing record for freshmen, sophomores, and juniors, finishing third all-time in rushing in only three years.

5 comments:

Unknown said...

Tommie Frazier has to be in there somewhere.

Unknown said...

what about Doak Walker, three time all american at SMU?

David said...

After a few office discussions, I added Frazier to updated lists...he'll probably be in the top seven.

Doak had his number retired and was honored by Rickey Williams while at Texas. ABC/ESPN/IBM has listed other old-timers like Trippi already, so Gabriella makes an excellent suggestion.

How did you guys stuble across my humble little blog? Good to hear from y'all!

Unknown said...

How can Ron Dayne not make the top 25? I understand he's not as historic and his NFL career has been a bust, but the fact of the matter is he is the all-time leading rusher in NCAA football. He was a better college player than Vince Young. Ron just bowled over the competition.

David said...

Dayne did break the all-time rushing record, which was quite a feat. I was predicting who ABC/ESPN/IBM would pick for the Top 25. They've picked all but the top three now. Herschel was number four, and Dorsett and Vince Young were already made the list as well. Surely Barry Sanders will be in the top three.

Will Dayne make the list? I can disregard his pro career. But as much as I appreciate his productivity, it is often overlooked. Excitement and championships (Rickey Williams and Tommy Frazier) are more likely to be picked.

Similarly, Herschel retired from the NFL among the all-time leaders in combined yards gained, but it is hardly mentioned.