Building a college football super team could be as easy as trusting different schools with each position. Which school would supply each position group?
Different schools have developed their own niches in the college football landscape. Some have solved the offensive puzzle, cranking out elite skill players out of the spread year after year. Others have made their hay on the defensive side of the ball. Some win in the trenches, others have a tradition of secondary play that would make NFL teams jealous.
No matter how hard they try, no school has mastered how to develop every position to the highest level. Every coaching staff has strengths and weaknesses. There are quarterback whisperers and linebacker gurus, but seldom does the same school excel in both respects.
From running back to kicker, here is one school that stands above the rest at each position group. Putting each of these position groups together would make for one intimidating team.
There isn’t any one school that’s separated itself as a quarterback factory when it comes to NFL success. The USC Trojans might lack the professional star power, but it’s hard for any school to hold a candle to the bounty of passers that have donned the iconic Trojan helmet.
Two Trojan quarterbacks have claimed the Heisman Trophy: Carson Palmer in 2002 and Matt Leinart in 2004. Since Palmer was drafted No. 1 overall by the Cincinnati Bengals in 2003 there have been six other quarterbacks from USC drafted, including two additional first round picks.
Four different Trojans have thrown for more than 70 career touchdown passes, led by Matt Barkley with 116. Since the year 2000, a USC quarterback has thrown for five or more touchdowns in a single game 20 times. Cannon arms and high impact offenses are the norm in southern California and the Trojans have developed their own pipeline of top quarterback talent.
The USC records books are filled with recognizable names (Mark Sanchez, John David Booty), not to mention potential first round pick in the upcoming 2018 NFL Draft – Sam Darnold. Darnold is the latest in what will continue to be an impressive line of USC passers, which makes sense, given the Trojans’ place in the college football pantheon.
Honorable mention: Oklahoma
Herschel Walker will forever be the greatest Georgia running back of all time, but he’s received added attention in recent years thanks to the Bulldogs’ newest tandem of elite running backs. Walker is still the No. 1 rusher in Georgia history, amassing 5,259 yards on the ground from 1980 to 1981. The second and third ranked rusher in Bulldog history played in the same backfield in 2017.
Nick Chubb (4,769 yards) and Sony Michel (3,638 yards) carried Georgia to the College Football Playoff National Championship Game this past season. Both have the tools to be a workhorse back, but having both backs run side by side kept the Bulldogs’ attack fresh. It’s possible fans got to see one of the best backfields in the history of college football.
Those three would have been enough to cement their status as the running back capital of college football, but there’s more. Todd Gurley took the NFL by storm in 2017 and produced similar results when was in Athens from 2012 to 2014.
Even some of the more “average” running backs, at least by Georgia standards, have been terrifying to meet in the open field. Knowshon Moreno produced back-to-back 1,300 yard seasons for Mark Richt and helped the Bulldogs go 21-5 in his two seasons at UGA.
Honorable mention: Wisconsin
The Badgers are one of the last power running offenses still standing in college football. Outside of the military academies and Georgia Tech which run some variation of the triple option, Wisconsin continues to make pounding the rock their bread and butter on offense.
An elite rushing attack doesn’t happen with mediocre running backs. They’ve had their fair share of great ones, including NCAA rushing leader Ron Dayne whose 7,125 career yards have yet to be matched. Nonetheless, it takes big men in the trenches winning their battles to set up even the best tailbacks with room to run.
It’s hard to keep track of the elite blockers that have come out of Wisconsin. Ryan Ramczyk, Rob Havenstein, Travis Frederick, Kevin Zeitler and Peter Konz have all been top 60 NFL draft selections since 2012. That’s an average of at least one elite offensive lineman selected every year. The crossover time in the trenches between those select players made the Badgers o-line one of the most physically opposing units in the country, year in and year out.
Honorable mention: Texas A&M
The tight end is a rare breed in college football. The position has fallen out of favor as spread offenses have swept across the nation. Some programs still frequently employ tight ends, but none do it better than the Stanford Cardinal.
Outside of Andrew Luck, Stanford hasn’t typically been known for its electrifying quarterback play. Instead the Cardinal focus on running the football and short passes. That scheme has paved the way for an impress away of pass catchers, all of which possess incredible athleticism given their size and toughness in the trenches.
Three of those tight ends played on the same team in 2011. During that season Coby Fleener, Levine Toilolo and Zach Ertz combined for 86 receptions, 1,356 yards and 20 touchdowns. That’s more production than most schools see out of their best receivers, let alone several seasons at the tight end position.
All of those guys, including recent draftee Austin Hooper, went on to some measure of success in the NFL. That’s not too surprising given the track record of overwhelming success that David Shaw has had with the position since he took over with the Cardinal in 2011.
Honorable mention: Notre Dame
The Big 12 loves to sling the football and there were several schools that have seen great measures of success out of the shotgun formation. Few have done it better and produced more talented pass catchers than Mike Gundy and the Oklahoma State Cowboys.
The spread is one of the most receiver-friendly systems but the Cowboys have taken it to the next level. It doesn’t matter which statistic is chosen, Oklahoma State has at least one wide receiver in recent memory that has obliterated the ordinary.
Receptions? Rashaun Woods caught 293 passes over a four-year career ending in 2003. Total yards in a season? Justin Blackmon racked up 1,782 in 2010 on his way to a fifth place finish in the Heisman voting that year. Total yards in a career? James Washington, who will be a first or second day selection in the upcoming NFL Draft, tallied 4,472 yards over his four years in Stillwater.
All of those jaw-dropping numbers and Dez Bryant wasn’t even mentioned. All of those Pokes’ pass catchers have incredible careers. Those kind of players make their quarterback look good and an elite offense even better.
Honorable mention: Texas Tech
As much as the Big 12 is known for its offense, the Big Ten has carved out equal recognition for their defense. When it comes to fielding an elite front seven, few have done better than the Michigan Wolverines.
Michigan saw both of their starting defensive ends, Taco Charlton and Chris Wormley, drafted in the first 75 picks of the 2017 NFL Draft. Chase Winovich continued that tradition of excellence. As a senior he led the Wolverines with 8.5 sacks and 19 tackles for a loss.
As good as Winovich was, he might not have been the best pass rusher on his own team. Blue chip recruit Rashan Gary followed up a strong freshman season with an even stronger sophomore campaign. He racked up 58 tackles (11.5 for a loss) and 5.5 sacks for the Wolverines last season, and will be the focal point of the defensive front again next season.
Past or present, the iconic maize and blue helmet of the Wolverines has become synonymous with defensive excellence. When it comes to winning the battle up front, Michigan always has somebody that can make a difference.
Honorable mention: Florida State
The SEC is a league won in the trenches and the Tigers have found the formula when it comes to churning out elite defensive tackles. As soon as one big man leaves there are two more to take his spot in the middle of the line.
Auburn has to load up to battle teams like Alabama and LSU every season. They’ll never be done recruiting the defensive line, no matter how deep they get at the position.
Gabe Wright and Angelo Blackson gave way to Montravius Adams who was succeeded by current Tiger Derrick Brown. Auburn ranked 29th in the nation against the run, thanks in large part to the success they had up front. The SEC has no shortage of elite running backs, making a finish in the top third all the more impressive.
Brown is the latest in a long line of excellent tackles that go back much further than Wright and Blackson. Nick Fairley was a first round pick in 2011 after posting an unbelievable 11.5 sacks junior season. There are plenty of defensive ends that go through their careers without reaching that number, but Fairley managed all that production from the interior.
Honorable mention: Clemson
Every year another linebacker walks out of the cloning machine that Nick Saban has built in Tuscaloosa. They’re all six-foot six-inches tall, weigh 260 pounds and proceed to dominate every offensive lineman they come into contact with. Okay, so there might not be any proof of cloning, but its hard to explain the incredible lineage of linebackers that have come out of Alabama during the Saban era.
Nine Crimson Tide linebackers have been drafted since 2012, just under two per year. It’s been star after star and there isn’t an end in sight. If these players chose to play anywhere else they might have gone down as one of the best linebackers in that school’s history, instead they’re members of an elite fraternity.
Rolando McClain, Dont’a Hightower, C.J. Mosley, Reggie Ragland, Ryan Anderson, Reuben Foster, Rashaan Evans. The list goes on and on and on. The Tide have claimed the monopoly on the linebacker position, not just for the SEC, but for the entire nation.
Honorable mention: Ohio State
The battle for DB U continues to rage on. There are a few worthy candidates, but the LSU Tigers have produced the most lock-down corners. The secondary is always a strength in Baton Rouge, but every few years the Tigers put out a game changing defender that has the ability to win football games nearly on his own.
In 2010 the Tigers had perhaps the most talented pair of cornerbacks to every play together in the same backfield. Patrick Peterson patrolled one side of scrimmage while the Honey Badger, Morris Clairborne, shut down the other side. The Tigers have juggled a few head coaches and coordinators since then, but that hasn’t watered down their talented pipeline of cornerbacks.
LSU trusts their corners to do a lot, which was especially true under defensive coordinator John Chavis. The Chief let his corners to play on islands, offering little to no safety support. Even when they were left alone, they found a way to shut down opposing receivers more often than not.
You could pull just about any LSU corner out of a hat and find an incredible stat line. Tre’Davious White, a first round pick following the 2016 season, tallied 34 passes defended and six interceptions over four seasons with the Tigers.
Honorable mention: Florida
Another contender for DB U, the Ohio State Buckeyes have fielded some of the best secondaries for decades. Elite corner play has buoyed the efficiency of the safety play in Columbus and the Buckeyes could contend for the best crop of corners as well.
Malik Hooker was the latest Ohio State safety to be drafted in the first round. He was selected No. 15 overall by the Indianapolis Colts in the 2017 NFL Draft, which isn’t surprising given the seven interceptions and three pick sixes he registered in his final season with the Buckeyes.
The dominance in the secondary isn’t all that surprising when the man who started the lineage of great safeties earned the nickname “The Assassin”. Jack Tatum, former Buckeye and Oakland Raider safety, was one of the most terrifying tacklers in his time. Shot out of a canon, Tatum leveled ball carriers.
The Buckeyes have finished in the top 30 in passing defense over the last four seasons and have eight top 30 finishes in the past 10 seasons. It’s unusual to see Ohio State outside of the top 20, thanks in large part to the constant parade of center fielders.
Honorable mention: Alabama
Texas A&M has had years of great offense and years of great defense, but special teams has always had a special place in College Station. Thanks in part to the all-12th Man kickoff team, the Aggies haven’t slacked when it comes to kicking.
The same goes for punters too. Texas A&M has a pair of punters currently starting in the NFL: Drew Kaser and Shane Lechler. Both warranted draft picks, which isn’t always the case for specialists. It won’t be much longer before they’re joined by another Aggie punter. Shane Tripucka earned an invitation to the East-West Shrine game and the NFL Combine. Whether he’s drafted or not, he’ll be kicking in the pros next season. Texas A&M will soon have three starting punters among the 32 NFL teams. That’s not a bad ratio.
The lineage of professional success for all of those players began in college. Kaser was so successful that he launched his own Heisman campaign. It might have been in good fun, he certainly had a claim to being the best at his position. He boomed 168 punts in his four seasons in Aggieland, averaging 46.2 yards over his career.
Honorable mention: Tennessee
Some of the more prominent college programs have struggled to put trustworthy kickers on the field. There’s a reason why fans hold their breath when the game comes down to a field goal. #CollegeKickers have their own hashtag. The same can’t be said for other position groups.
It’s a position filled with inconsistency, but Florida State hasn’t been susceptible as the rest. The Seminoles always seem to have some of the most sure-footed kickers in the collegiate ranks. The Aguayo brothers, Ricky and Roberto both have steel legs, as did Dustin Hopkins before them.
Roberto Aguayo did enough to earn a second round draft pick from the Tampa Bay Buccaneers in 2016. Regardless of his professional struggles, it takes a track record of near-perfection to be valued that highly by an NFL team. Aguayo never missed an extra point with FSU and connected on 69 of 78 field goals. He was responsible for a whopping 405 points in three seasons in Tallahassee.
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Specialists get overlooked in programs across the nation when they’re mediocre. At Florida State the kickers have been consistently above average and well deserving of any and all accolades they’ve earned.