Combine Equivalents: Replacements for Andrew Luck, RG3 and More Await Spotlight

Wind sprints, agility drills, bench reps: these are the necessary evils football players must endure to produce the skills that entertain fans every autumn week. But in recent years, the drills have even become a part of the spectacle.

Football’s boom in popularity has resulted in a peeling back of the curtain to give consumers more of what they want. The game can’t be played year-round, but the TV beast never stops. Thus, the alternative is providing insight into what goes on between opening weekend and championship night. The somewhat shocking exposure the NFL Combine now receives is indicative of the game’s rabid fan base.

The Combine provides scouts and coaches an opportunity to evaluate what a player could bring an NFL franchise. Likewise, the burgeoning NFL Network and the various other outlets trying to quench NFL fans’ thirsts provide the pro game’s supporters with an early glimpse at the next generation.

For those who prefer their football on Saturday, it’s another phase in the bitter goodbye of players who have wowed for the past few years.

Fret not, college football junkies. While we say goodbye to Andrew, Robert, Trent and more, a new crop is ready to take center stage.

The well-polished, “would have gone in the top few picks had he come out this year” torch will not leave the Pac-12. That’s because this spring’s consensus overall No. 1 pick Andrew Luck has a successor in USC quarterback Matt Barkley.

Barkley posted numbers comparable to those of Luck this season. Many experts considered Barkley a surefire candidate for the second quarterback drafted this spring, but he past on the pros for a chance to take his talents to South Beach, locale of the 2013 BCS Championship.

USC began generating considerable buzz as a title game frontrunner from the moment Barkley announced he would return last December.

Accompanying the championship chatter is Heisman propaganda. And why not on either counts? Barkley is the centerpiece of an offense that was among the Bowl Subdivision’s most explosive. He plays with a Billy Zabka circa 1984 swagger that matches his Billy Zabka circa 1984 looks. He also returns his two favorite targets, one of whom assumes the receiver-to-watch spotlight from Oklahoma State’s Justin Blackmon.

That wideout is Robert Woods, a Heisman candidate in his own right and do-everything weapon in the same mold as Blackmon for OSU. each stands 6-foot-1, though Woods is a more svelte 185 pounds to Blackmon’s 210. What Woods makes up for in the lack of size, he compensates with impressive speed.

And like Blackmon, Woods has Velcro hands. He provides the passing-based Trojan offense a necessary top target around which everyone else feeds. Woods caught 111 passes, 15 of which were touchdowns. As USC began to establish its identity in September, Woods was the foundation with numerous double digit reception games out of the gate. His presence opens the field for fellow wideout Marqise Lee.

The biggest wrench thrown into the USC faithful’s overzealous exuberance is the departure of tackle Ryan Kalil. The anchor of an offensive line that allowed just eight sacks all season, Kalil would be a surefire No. 1 in most any other draft. St. Louis Rams fans who long for the days of the Greatest Show on Turf could have the new Orlando Pace in Kalil.

Meanwhile, the FBS gets its replacement for Kalil in Texas A&M tackle Luke Joeckel. The Aggies were right behind USC as one of the most protective lines in the game, allowing nine sacks in 13 games. Joeckel was a key to A&M’s 11th ranked scoring offense.

The Aggies put up 39.1 points per game with a balanced diet of the rush (199.2 yards per game) and the pass (291.1 yards per game). Playing his role at tackle, Joeckel earned All-Big 12 honors for the second time in as many seasons.

Robert Griffin III emerged from relative obscurity to win the Heisman Trophy with a rare blend of passing and rushing ability. His inspired play led Baylor to a surprising 10-win campaign, greatly exceeding expectations. Some are settting the bar low for Missouri in its first SEC season. However, if James Franklin can use his own dual abilities to spark the Tigers in similar fashion, MU could play spoiler in the loaded SEC West.

Franklin put up impressive numbers: 21 passing touchdowns and 2865 yards on 63.3 percent completions, a couple first downs fewer than 1000 rushing yards and a team high 15 scores from the ground. However, his production flew under the radar sharing a conference with Griffin, Brandon Weeden, Landry Jones and surprising Collin Klein.

MU’s playmaker will still have competition for that quarterback spotlight in his new conference. Within his division there roams a successor to the pass-happy, aerial assault throne akin to Weeden and last season’s Oklahoma State team: Arkansas quarterback Tyler Wilson.

The brother of former Alabama quarterback (and Two-A-Days star) John Parker Wilson, Tyler has more than emerged from his brother’s shadow. The junior went off for 3638 yards passing, completed 63.2 percent of his attempts and had an impressive 24:6 touchdown-to-interception ratio.

UA has forced to rely more on Wilson after losing running back Knile Davis, who returns for 2012. The readdition of Davis will keep defenses more honest, and thus Wilson on his feet more often — he was sacked 28 times in ’11. Balance will be critical for unlocking Wilson’s, and thus the Hogs’ potential. And with LSU and Alabama both coming to Fayetteville next season, the ingredients could be there for a surprise divisional title run.

Of course, defending BCS champion ‘Bama will have something to say about it, but it will have to state its case without Trent Richardson. A blend of bruising strength and explosive steps like Richardson’s is rare, but the SEC should have it once more in South Carolina’s Marcus Lattimore.

Lattimore was an All American as a freshman, and destined for another run before suffering a knee injury in October. If Lattimore bounces back, he’ll be a much-needed cornerstone for the Gamecocks’ offense.

Were it not breaking linebackers off the ankles with his breakaway speed and shifty moves, Lattimore might be one at 6-foot-1, 235 pounds. His combined skills could be the necessary push over the top that earns the Gamecocks an elusive conference title — which, as everyone knows, in the SEC that means a BCS title as well.